How to Mend a Broken Piece of Split Wood

Wedge a thin, flat knife, chisel or pry bar into the split, and gently open the split slightly to make space for inserting glue.

Scrape off any dirt stuck in the split with the thin knife. This prepares a clean surface on which glue can adhere.

Apply wood glue to the split, with the knife, pry bar or chisel still in place to make space for the glue. Don't worry about the glue oozing out of the split at this point, because you will get to clean this later.

Press a wood block on each side of the split wood, and press the wood blocks toward each other to close the split. Drive nails through the wood blocks and into the surface area to keep them in place until the wood glue completely dries. Alternatively, clamp the two wood blocks together. Use a paper napkin to wipe away excess glue.

Remove the clamp or the nails and the wood blocks when the wood glue completely dries. The time it takes for the glue to dry varies depending on the product you use, so check the instructions on the product packaging. Removing the wood blocks before the wood glue dries could result in the split not closing properly.

Fill any remaining gap in the split with wood putty or wood wax, taking care to choose a color that matches the rest of the wood. Also fill the nail holes left by the wood blocks with wood putty, if necessary.