# Staining Pine Door



## BurtDiesel (Jan 31, 2010)

Newbie here. Just stained a six panel pine door. I used the prestain wood conditioner and then applied wood classics stain. The door did not come out the way I expected. Just looking for some feedback. The door has dried overnight. Should I apply another coat or leave it as is?


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## Alan P Oliver (Dec 26, 2008)

*Staining Pine Doors*

What were you hoping to achieve?


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## TimPa (Jan 27, 2010)

i would redo that one panel face, and any others like it. nature of the beast. i've found that if i dilute the staine 50/50 with mineral spirits, then brush it on like a (controlled) madman. works best for me and oine. second coat of stain, if needed, about 3/1 stain mix.


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## JW_in_Indy (Mar 20, 2009)

You used a decent quality stain.... and it doesn't look all _that_ bad.... but on a very soft wood like Pine.... a spray'ed "DYE" stain might be a better choice if you are looking for a more even color. But honestly, that door looks pretty good (from what you've shown us). What don't you like?


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## BurtDiesel (Jan 31, 2010)

I agree...it doesnt look that bad. The photo shows the trim in my house (along with the old luond doors which look darker than they were due to flash). It is a uniform brown color. I know pine is difficult to stain but the trim is all pine and seems to look uniform. Just not sure how you achieve a look like that. 

The doors looked a deeper brown (pretty close to old door) until you wipe the stain which makes the door lighter (must be fully saturated/sealed). I guess I never seem happy whenever I stain wood. Should be easy, wipe on wipe off, but as you guys know it never seems to come out the way you think it should (at least for me). What method do you think was used on the trim?


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## JW_in_Indy (Mar 20, 2009)

That trim looks as though it was sprayed with a dye stain.


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## GeorgeC (Jul 30, 2008)

You were staining to a medium light color. I do not find the results for that color to be bad. The wood used in commercial pine doors does not lend itself to achieving really even coloring. 

I think that I would be satisfied and proceed to the next door.

George


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## jacobsk (Jan 19, 2010)

what you've got there is a pine door with a nice stain job :thumbsup:


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## beerdog (Mar 13, 2009)

Pine is one of the hardest woods to stain evenly. Even harder is making it stain up to match existing stained wood. Is the trim in your house pine? 

I read in Flexner's finishing book (considered the finishing bible) that the preconditioners should cure over night, not 15minutes like the cans say. His recommendation is to not stain pine because it is so hard to do well and to just clear it with varnish or shellac. 

It does not look bad at all, although you can see some splotching. Especiallyat the end grain areas on the raised panels. Did you sand those areas very smooth.


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## BurtDiesel (Jan 31, 2010)

I hit it with 220 before staining. The trim is all pine. What would happen if I were to give it another light sanding with 220 and then stain again. Do you have to use another pre conditioniner when staining another coat?

Do they have a shillac/varnish that is brown or are they typically just the clear/amber mixes?


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## beerdog (Mar 13, 2009)

Shellacs and varnishes can be dyed. If you have a wood working store near you they might be able to help you. Are you sure the trim is stained? Pine kind of turn that color over time if it is only coated with a top coat.

The pine trim is probably pretty well sealed at this point. retreating it with a pretreater would probably not do much unlee you sand completely below the current finish.

The difficult part is you have no idea of how they colored the trim. How old is it? It was probably done by a professional who could have any number of "trade Secrets" to get good results on pine. It looks like the trim matches that windo so it was probably done on site.and not at a factory.


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## beerdog (Mar 13, 2009)

I ws just watching a TV show and a painter was staining pine trim. HE said to pretreat it with water to open the pores. It looked like it was working for him. Sound slike an old timers secret.


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