Staining Wood Furniture

PATRICIA: Well, I’m getting a bookcase which is all the natural wood …

TOM: OK.

PATRICIA: … self-stained type, you know? And looking at, you know, getting at it at different angles to do it. So I’m just wondering how that stain would work with this; that Krylon, I guess is what it’s called.

TOM: Oh, the new spray stain in a can?

PATRICIA: Yeah.

TOM: Yeah. Well, I mean it’s a good stain product. Now, the bookcase that you’re doing, it’s unfinished right now; so it’s just the raw wood?

PATRICIA: Mm-hmm, it’s the natural wood.

TOM: OK.

LESLIE: So there’s nothing on it. You shouldn’t have to sand it at all.

TOM: Right. Yeah.

PATRICIA: Uh-uh.

LESLIE: Good.

TOM: OK, so this is something that you can basically take and work on it outside or work on it in the basement or something like that, right?

PATRICIA: Uh-huh.

TOM: Well, OK. So the wood stain is a good product. It’s easy to use because it’s in a spray can but, you know, I mean you don’t have to use the spray can stain for this. You could use a traditional Minwax stain, for example, that you apply with a brush and wipe down. Either is fine but the key here is that the wood has to be unfinished and has to be natural and that’s what you have.

LESLIE: (overlapping voices) And clean and dry.

TOM: Yep, exactly.

LESLIE: Yeah, a good test to make sure that there’s nothing on it – because I’m not sure if those unfinished wood stores may put like a wax or something just to protect it a little bit.

TOM: Or a sealer.

LESLIE: Yeah.

TOM: Sometimes they’ll put a sanding sealer on it.

LESLIE: You want to make sure – like take a little drop of water and sprinkle it on the wood surface. If the wood absorbs the water, then it’s ready to go. But if it doesn’t – if it sort of beads up or rolls away – then there’s something on there and you want to give it a light sanding and then wipe away all the dust and then make sure that it’s clean and clear and ready to go.

PATRICIA: OK.

TOM: Now Patricia, remember; when you’re done with the stain you’re going to have to coat it with a clearcoat finish. So for that, I would use a water-based polyurethane. It goes on sort of like a milky, white color but then it dries clear and it dries quickly as well.

PATRICIA: OK. Alright.

TOM: Alright, Patricia. Good luck with that project. Thanks so much for calling us at 1-888-MONEY-PIT.