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how to stain wood?

J

jceli728

I need some advice with how to stain wood. I getting ready to built my new stand/canopy and really want to give it a cherry color. I have previously stain wood but I know I did it the wrong way, most of the time it was in small scales so it didn't matter.

Any advice or links will help.


Thanks in advance
 
D

duijver

I'm definitely no expert, but I've been staining things for years. Again, like you, most of my things are in smaller scales - trim, shelves I built, doors, etc.

I'm not sure what you did that you felt you messed up, but I'm not personally keen on reusing brushes for stains. I buy 2 of the 4" - $4-$8 brushes at HD/Lowes that are made for stain.

I sand down the wood really nice with a belt sander and finish it off with a really fine block sander by hand. I use a compressor to blow all of the dust off and then I wipe it down with a lightly damp rag a few times until all of the remaining dust is off.

I lay down a few 1m plastic tarps on the ground and then lay a canvas tarp on top of that. The canvas tarps are great because your wood will not stick as much and even if it does it not, normally, leave a bad mark.

I brush on a thick coat of stain/poly mix on one side and the edges. Remember the brush with the grains while you are brushing and try not to use a freshly dipped brush near the corners or you will get drips down the side and on the other side that will need to be cleaned up before it dries. Then continue onto the other pieces. Give it 5-10 minutes, depending on humidity, and lightly brush over the pieces to remove any big bubbles, drips, etc. The stain/varnish should be somewhat tacky and should smooth out nicely.

This may, or may not be important, but I am anal and I brush from one edge to the other edge in one complete, long, motion to insure a consistent amount of stain. I follow this method until the entire side has been brushed.

I then zip-up the brush in a bag, close the container and give it a few hours and I apply a second coat - yes I know you are not supposed to.. but I do.

I let that dry for the normal period and then I run over the wood with two different grades of steel wool. I blow it off again, and wipe it with a damp cloth and begin starting the process over again for as many times as I am satisfied with the color.

I have found that if you use the combo stain/poly(varnish) you will have less control over the color, but it gives you more flexability over drip marks. Normally, you can correct drip marks long after it begins setting it. If I am not mistaken, when I used strait stain it was harder to correct the dark impurities when left unnoticed for to long. The varnish coat was also always much nicer when it was applied as a solid product. One coat of varnish would probably be equal to 3 fully cured coats of the combo stuff - in terms of protection and gleen/shine.

I hope this helps... and this is really written as you were working with new wood. I have never bothered stripping and refinishing... at least not yet. I need to drill the new(er) tank first before I consider refinishing anything.. with my luck I will do a great job and then crack the tank rendering my hard work useless :)

Also.. wood is finicky. You can stain two pieces with the same stain and they can and will come out slightly different.
 
R

reeferwanabe

first a pre stain wood conditioner should be used. this will eliminate any blotches in the wood. the softer the wood the more this will occur. I would recommend ZAR stains.
you can work them in until you get the look you want. ZAR also makes aquarzar clear finishes in different sheens I use the exterior on doors etc. and they hold up extremely well. sand between coats lightly. I like to put 2 coats of this sealer on before I sand so I don't sand into the stain and wear it off. then a final coat.
 
J

jerzsky

i have done many stands/canopys before. for my self and friends. how i do it(and it comes out flawless) is to make sure your patience is in check!!! first, fill all the screw hole with wood putty. i cant recall off hand which brand i use, but its not visible once its stained.

then, start off with 80 grit sandpaper. go over the whole peice a couple times, amking sure to get all the major imperfections out. dont press or stay in one spot for too long! (obviously) then move on to 150-180-220. many will question this different levels of sand paper. but im tellin ya it comes out so smooth and natural!!

after sanding, blow off all sawdust!! i actually used my leaf blower!!!!!!!!!!!! worked reat!! then wiped it down with a wet rag, let dry and blow off again.

now you can begin staining. make sure you have the right color stain...or ya gotta start over. test the stain on the inside off the doors, to know how it will come out. just to make sure you like it. put one good coat of stain on, then let sit 24hr's. then second coat sit 24hr's. then third coat sit 24hr's. making sur to have even strokes, and even coverage!(no runs now...)

after this dries, your going to now have to apply a polyurethane varnish. a nice glossy one!!! apply one even coat. now this is improtant. when you snad this part, the wood will get a littlew lighter, but will look very very very natural!!!!!

after the first coat of varnish, you will lightly(lightly!) sand the whole stand down with 220g sand paper. (umm make sure the varnish is totally dry first) then add another coat. then sand again. then add a third coat.

at this point, your done. but if you want a lil smoother look, or little lighter, you could sand and varnish again.

but beleive me, after the three steps of varnish, you will not be dissapointed!!! hope i didnt bore you,, but just wanted to share how i make my beautiful stands!

good luck!!!
 
J

jceli728

I'm going to try in a piece of wood tomorrow and while a built the stand. I get my tank tomorrow and will start building this weekend.


Thanks
 
J

jerzsky

heres how the stand wa when i got it. i was gonna build my own stand for the 90, but my uncle gave me his stand. which u can see is ugly, so i went thru the processes i listed above, and it came out like it was done at a professional factory!!!
lightingsale150.jpg




heres the stand now.. after a couple days work, this is what it came out as. i added a larger peice of pine on top so that there is a ledge around the tank. its being used by my 40breeder now, but soon will have the 90gal on it.
stand322.jpg
 
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