# Help!!! Can't remove wood stain



## Warnerm3 (Aug 6, 2014)

Hi all, I am new to woodworking and I am having trouble staining a recently completed cabinet. I used a minwax oil based stain and needlessly to say it turned out terrible. First, the stain didn't properly absorb into wood and I used a minwax stainable wood filler to close up some glued seams that opened up and the stain didn't absorb into the wood filler at all. Therefore, I decided I would strip the stain, sand the whole thing all over again and focus on the areas with the wood filler. The problem is I have used a klean 30min stain stripper, paint thinner, and 3 applications of ready strip and it has not worked. I've followed the directions on the strippers and it has reduced the stain color a few shades but most of the stain still remains. I decided to try to just give up on the stripper and sand the entire cabinet but the stain is getting caked in the sandpaper basically rendering it useless. I'm not sure where to go from here I was thinking of painting over the stain but will I still have a problem with paint sticking to the wood without sanding? Any help would be greatly appreciated and the wood I used I believe was pine.


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## mikeswoods (May 18, 2009)

Your wood is still wet from the chemicals---that is why the paper is clogging---

Sorry to hear your first experience with stain was so difficult---it is an art---and is learned by trial and error---

What wood is the cabinet made from?


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## Steve Neul (Sep 2, 2011)

Warnerm3 said:


> Hi all, I am new to woodworking and I am having trouble staining a recently completed cabinet. I used a minwax oil based stain and needlessly to say it turned out terrible. First, the stain didn't properly absorb into wood and I used a minwax stainable wood filler to close up some glued seams that opened up and the stain didn't absorb into the wood filler at all. Therefore, I decided I would strip the stain, sand the whole thing all over again and focus on the areas with the wood filler. The problem is I have used a klean 30min stain stripper, paint thinner, and 3 applications of ready strip and it has not worked. I've followed the directions on the strippers and it has reduced the stain color a few shades but most of the stain still remains. I decided to try to just give up on the stripper and sand the entire cabinet but the stain is getting caked in the sandpaper basically rendering it useless. I'm not sure where to go from here I was thinking of painting over the stain but will I still have a problem with paint sticking to the wood without sanding? Any help would be greatly appreciated and the wood I used I believe was pine.


I'm not a fan of Minwax stain however it's one of the easiest to apply with good results. If the wood was pine you needed to use a wood conditioner prior to staining to keep the color from going blotchy. The issue I have with Minwax stains is it's prone to fade as it ages. 

Your first problem was reading the directions on the Kleen Strip where it said to rinse the residue off with mineral spirits. Mineral spirits is a poor solvent for this purpose. It would be far better to use lacquer thinner to rinse the residue off and get the oils from the the wood to where you could sand it. It would remove the stain better if the residue was rinsed off with a power washer however the difference would be slight compared to lacquer thinner. Still you can't expect a remover to remove all of the stain. Even a commercial remover won't do that. It would take bleaching to get more of the color off. 

Often a wood filler will stain too light or too dark so you have to touch it up after you seal the wood and see exactly what color the finish will be. You can use touch up markers to color the filler.


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## Warnerm3 (Aug 6, 2014)

The wood is pine and the areas I've tried to sand haven't been touched with stain, stripper, or anything for at least 3 or 4 days. Would wiping the cabinet with a lacquer thinner allow me to sand it without the stain caking to sandpaper?


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## EastEndWS (Aug 6, 2014)

we've found that by using metal bristle toothbrushes, and lacquer thinner, we are able to get most or all of a minwax stain out. whatever remains would probably need to be bleached


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## Rick Mosher (Feb 26, 2009)

Excellent advise above, I will add one thing only. In the future make a sample using scrap from the project and finish it all the way to make sure you are happy with the finish schedule. That will prevent this from occurring on your next project. :yes:


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## Steve Neul (Sep 2, 2011)

Warnerm3 said:


> The wood is pine and the areas I've tried to sand haven't been touched with stain, stripper, or anything for at least 3 or 4 days. Would wiping the cabinet with a lacquer thinner allow me to sand it without the stain caking to sandpaper?


I think the lacquer thinner would help. It wouldn't hurt anything to give it a try. After 3-4 days and the stain is still wet enough to give you sanding problems leads me to believe you left the stain on too long. When you use a wiping stain you wipe it off almost immediately after applying it.


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## RandyReed (Jul 30, 2014)

I always like to use MEK or Acetone to wash furniture. These are a little stronger solvents than lacquer thinner and both dry faster. Even then you will still have a light stain on the wood that you cant wash off. All you can do is sand the wood back down after you wash it off then restain the wood.

Like mentioned above, always try to do a sample before doing a project if possible. That's the best advice anyone could ever give someone when it comes to finishing wood.


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## Warnerm3 (Aug 6, 2014)

Thanks for the help. I'll try everything mentioned above and I did leave the stain on longer then advised hoping it would darken the wood filler. I started with lacquer thinner and coarse steel wool and it seems to helping slowly but much quicker than the strippers. As far as using stainable wood filler/ putty in the future is it better to wait until after staining? I've read to wait until after the stain is applied to use wood filler and mix the stain in with it prior to applying it to areas.


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## Balfour Refinishing (Jul 20, 2014)

You should use the wood filler prior to staining. You might experiment with different brands. Some resist staining more than others and it's always good to select a color wood filler appropriate for the project. I've had good luck with Famowood wood filler. It comes in a many different colors. The worst I've used to accept stain is Plastic Wood. 

You can alter the color of wood filler but not with the stain you are using. You use a universal tinting color. It's the pigment the paint stores used to color paint.


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## HowardAcheson (Nov 25, 2011)

Here are some things to keep in mind if you use Minwax oil based stains. Minwax Wood Finish stain contains both pigment and dye stain. Chemical paint removers will only remove the pigment stain. The dye stain is removed, or at least reduced, by using a chlorine bleach. Use a swimming pool chlorine bleach which is stronger than something like Clorox. You may need to apply multiple treatments and even then, you will not be able to remove all the coloring.

When using a filler, wait until you have stained the wood and applied the first coat your clear. Now you know what color filler you need to most closely match your finish. Some fillers can be tinted to get the best match. But, when using dyes and pigment stains and fillers to effect repairs, don't expect too much. It requires skill and practice to get the best results. That's the reason that trying out you finishing plans on scrap is the process most experience and professional finisher use.


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## nwoodward (Feb 2, 2014)

Get sanding paper that is clog free or even clogs less. Typical sand paper for wood will clog nearly all the time.


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