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| Leave it to the pro. Michael Dresdner, a nationally known wood finishing and woodworking expert, has answered hundreds of common wood finishing questions in Varathane’s Q&A library to help you successfully complete your project. Click on a link to the left for help and solid advice. |
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| Q: I noticed when I had to dismantle stair railings that the oak newels and railings only have one thin coat of something that changed the colour to a beautiful oak yellow with a nice but not too shiny a finish. What could do that in one thin coat?
A: Any staining varnish, such as One-Step Stain and Polyurethane or one of the tinted colours of Watco Danish Oil will color and seal in one coat, but don’t be too sure that is what was done. There is absolutely no way to tell whether someone wiped on stain, wiped it off, then applied a thin coat of finish, such as Danish oil or Wipe-on Poly, or whether they wiped on and wiped off one coat of a one step version. Both look the same. |  | |
| Q: Varathane recommend applying wood conditioner to maple and to allow it to dry for 30 minutes before applying the stain. Does that not mean that one can wait one day or one week before applying the stain?
A: No, just the opposite. In fact, in my opinion you don’t need to wait at all. Flood the conditioner on, wipe it all off, and stain immediately and it will work just fine. However, once the conditioner dries, it no longer works, and you cannot reapply it to make it work again. You end up with partially sealed wood that may not take color evenly at all. | | |
| Q: I recently made two new cherry coffee tables which I stained with an oil based product. I would like to use Watco Danish oil as a finish coat. Will this product work on the stain?
A: Yep, it sure will. | | |
| Q: Can I use Varathane waterbased floor finish as a final coat over Varathane waterbased furniture finish, and would it flow better?
A: Yes, and yes, though it might flow too much better. Beware of using floor finish on vertical surfaces, as it may be more prone to sagging, but other than that gentle heads up, there’s no reason you cannot use waterbased floor finish atop waterbased furniture finish. |
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