6 Wood Finishing Myths You Should Stop Believing

Time and material cost spent in a woodworking project have the ability to turn the final finishing stage into a stressed situation. There are range of ideas you can click when concerned about finishing. Take a look at the usual wood finishing myths along with the actual concepts. Do read it, as you may come across some really useful details about wood finishing products.

1. Myth:Finishing on both sides of wood prevents or decreases warping.
   Fact: Finishing only slows but doesn’t reduce or prevent warping that results from wood shrinking. This is because moisture vapor goes through the finish and leads to warping up to an extent. Warping that’s caused by compression shrinkage on areas open to wetting & drying are not hindered.

2. Myth: For better results, sand to #440 or finer grit.
   Fact: Wood sanded to #440-grit has high gloss as compared to wood sanded to #180-grit, as #440-grit polishes more than #180-grit. However, no major difference is seen after application of any film finish. How about trying it and seeing how many hours you save.

3. Myth:Slow brushing leads to best results.
   Fact: Slow performance isn’t appreciated anywhere. Hence, brushing needs to be done rapidly. Make sure maintaining the control.

4. Myth:Brush should be applied across the grain first and then with the grain.
   Fact: You can opt for slow-curing finishes, like varnishes. Though you may get a coat that’s little more even in thickness but it won’t be visible.

5. Myth:The longer deck stain colors are left on the wood, the deeper they soak in the wood and the darker the wood turns.
   Fact: Yes, wood turns darker when stain is left for longer but the reason is different. Actually, some of the thinner in the stain evaporates, which increases the ratio of colorant to liquid. With high concentrations of colorant, darker colors are produced.

6. Myth:Apply and wipe off stain with the grain.
   Fact: When excess stain is wiped off, direction of stain application doesn’t matter. Also, it doesn’t matter in which direction stain is wiped off. What matters is making final pass with the grain, to ensure that streaks left are not noticeable.

Stop following anything you just hear from someone. Trust the proven results that have been explained to you quite clearly. Good luck!

 

The Role Of Temperature In Staining Outdoor Wood With Perfection

Nobody could ever deny the importance of staining his outdoor wood assets. From decks and patios to benches and railings everything should be treated with superior quality of wood finishing products. It is essential not only for defending them from decay but also they appear as beautiful as new after this.

When homeowners are keen to add to the curb appeal of their property they can select the best from variety of deck stain colors and apply them on the lumber. For staining you can hire professionals or you may keep the job with you if you have got the right tools, enough patience and time and most importantly knowledge of temperature.

Did you read it right? Was it knowledge of temperature? Yes it is all about temperature at the time when you took up the task of staining your external wood. For beginners it can be perfect to plan it on a weekend. After you get up late in the morning, naturally because it is a holiday, you spend some leisure time with your spouse and kids in preparing luxury breakfast. Post breakfast it may again take half an hour to one hour in collecting the things that will assist you in cleaning and staining your deck. Stop if it is already 1 or 2 in the clock. Many of you may ask why?

Well it is important to look for an ideal temperature so as to get the best staining results. For many homeowners it may come as a surprise that they should make use of deck sealer and stain after looking the weather forecast.

Noteworthy Points That Relate Temperature and Staining

1. High temperature may not be conducive for staining schedule as stain may dry too quickly. This will not allow penetration of stain deep into wood and therefore it is important to choose a day when temperature is either less than 90 degrees Fahrenheit or stain early in the morning.
2. A cloudy day is much better choice than a sunny day to stain your outdoor wood, but if rains are predictable refrain yourself from staining. Moisture and rain will not let the stain dry and it might get washed away with a pour.

 

Summer Special Tips For Staining Outdoor Wood

For deck owners summertime is deck time. Modern American homeowners understand the significance of their decks and patios. They are not mere extensions of your living space but they are perfect spots for all family gatherings and BBQs. This is possibly why they buy best of stain colors to beautify the wood decks and keep them in best state.

External wood especially that forms your deck is exposed to lot much of physical abuse. It is undoubtedly the highest traffic area of your house and is not spared from the Sun, wind, snow and much more on any given day.

What Comes Before Beautification of Deck?

Summer season is not difficult for human but for your wood too. While your expectations from your lumber patio and decks are high, they in turn need to be properly maintained and prepared for summer gatherings with the help of best quality of deck stain and sealer. You can do a lot like adding hanging pots to your deck for giving it a cool look. Some home owners prefer to shade it up with big and beautiful umbrellas while others bring some artificial fountains to give it special effects. From seating arrangements to lighting you can make it favorite spot for all because it is suitable to host friends’ reunion or family get together. But in absence of below mentioned small but very important steps it can all prove to be a failure.

Look out for dangerous signs. Your wood is subject to rotting and cupping. These when avoided can bring up the cases of injuries and tripping. Get them mended before you get into cleaning and staining your wood surface.

Ask questions to professionals. They know the best what kind of wood finishing products will suit the local climate. In many areas oil based premium wood deck finish will serve for two years or so.

Get engaged in cleaning. Don’t let the BBQ stains settle on wood surface. Clean the spills immediately as grease is not good for the finish. Make sure you don’t leave the debris over a week.

To help it look young and strong season after season you should do a lot when it comes to care and maintenance of timber deck.

How Hiring Deck Staining Professionals Save Your Money?

Home owners who have decks at their homes enjoy advantage of additional living space. While in cold evenings they can enjoy a mug of coffee there, summer evenings witness cool indoor games sessions played among family and friends. Wood decks add to the aesthetic appeal of your property from the selling point of view too. However you cannot ignore the deck maintenance as the consequences can be multiple and serious. Besides purchasing eco-friendly deck stain and sealer there is a lot you can do for your wood. Don’t go anywhere and check it out right below.

How To Maintain Well Stained Deck?

A properly maintained wood deck enhances its beauty. Staining deck is the best way to extend the lifespan of the wood deck too. Of course wood finish used should be of premium quality but would you be able to complete the process of staining on your own? You can either consider it as a DIY project trying your hands on it or professional assistance can be sought.

Looking at it superficially you may think that hiring professional will be an expensive affair. On the contrary hiring a deck staining expert will help you save lot on your side. It will save enormous stress that you will go through while taking up the job. You will have to start from scratch like cleaning and buying the tools.

Since you do not have professional exposure of staining you will not be able to get the desired results even from the best of wood stain colors. Deck staining is a long procedure that needs lots of patience to perform the job with consistency. As mentioned earlier you might not have all the required tools also. Moreover the time consumed in the whole process can be better utilized by you. Deck staining professionals can stain your deck in less of time and with less of wastage of stain colors and other products.

Wood Stains Are Worth Spending Money & Time

To improve the look and overall appeal of outdoor wood projects, wood stains are the best way. A number of advantages are offered by them along with cost-efficiency and convenience.

Want to know these wonderful reasons? Want to know why wood stains should be used on outdoor furniture, fences, decks and other projects? Check out the below given points:

1. Prevention of Rotting

   Wood when used outdoors without sealing, is highly prone to rotting. Apart from giving the unpleasant look, it creates a hazard of collapse. Though rot develops in many ways, mildew, mold and termites are the common reasons. Staining help to avoid rotting; however, you have to be careful regarding re-application of coats.

2. Protection from Sun and Moisture
   Water when enter inside the wood not only leads to rotting but causes other issues too. Yes, that’s right and one of the possibilities is breakage of wood. If this happens frequently, complete damage of wood is also possible. Also, sunlight destroys unsealed wood and results in discoloration. To preserve appearance, seal the wood with deck stain colors.
3. Cost Efficiency
   Wood is an exceptional surface for outdoor walking areas like decks. However food traffic leads to strain, which can be protected with sealant. Apart from being easy to apply and affordable, it lasts longer.
4. Preservation of Aesthetics
   Curb appeal of wood remains in its natural look. Stain keeps the grain visible. Moreover, it is available in variety of tints and colors; hence, customization can be expected. Uncolored stain can also be used to get the natural look.

You can get many other perks when working with stains. Best part is that they are easy to apply; thus, implementing the right technique can help you get the needed results. Take a look at the collection available and buy the best deck stain. Keep your wooden stuff look like new and maintained for years.

The Many Benefits of Hiring Deck Staining Professional

Deck owners are so much soaked in the pleasure of having deck that they forget that lot of responsibilities come with this part of ownership. They sometimes think that buying wood finishing products will preserve and protect their wood. Unfortunately it does not happen. Your external wood gets abused and exposed to many harmful elements like harsh Sun, heavy rainfall and much more.

Why to hire professionals?

Deck maintenance is no choice but is obligatory for every wood deck’s long life. By maintaining the wood deck you will not only beautify your wood, but also you will extend the life of your wood.

Deck maintenance requires lot of attention. Your outdoor decks need to host guests and hold family dinners too. Enjoying barbecues in the greatness of the outdoors is out of this world experience. Compromise with the quality and beauty of your deck can be an unsightly sight. Of course quality wood finish paint can help you get rid of temporary stains but for the finest staining results you need to hire the professionals.

They are worth hiring for the experience and exposure they have gained over number of years. They not only get your outdoor wood the best exterior wood finish but also they have the tools and technique to complete the staining project.

Your deck is part of your home and overlooking its health for long will affect your whole house’s appearance. Hiring professionals have some clear benefits such as saving time. You being an inexperienced person cannot do justice to the staining job. It demands high level of knowledge and proficiency to complete the staining project. Moreover it is very difficult to carry out the project with consistency throughout the period. It requires a lot of patience and focus. In the absence of which you will find unevenly stained surfaces with patches.

On the other hand if you hire the professionals to do the job, you will be able to enjoy a weekend with your family.

 

Experts Advice: Water-Based Or Oil-Based Stain Color For Your Deck

Stain colors are slowly gaining the attention of their consumers as they have proved their worth by saving the wooden furniture, floor and walls due to the application of some of the best products. Having a deck that lays around like a wrecked ship will only make your house look untidy and you don’t want that people should avert your house for parties and get together. Stain Colors will come to your rescue and bring peace to your life. But how do you come to a conclusion that which type of stain is best suited for you?

From a long time, water-based and oil-based stains are fighting the battle to get the tag of being the best but the science differs and both of them get the fair chance of being the number 1 choice of the customers.

Let’s look down to the circumstances when one of them is favored:

1. Water-Based Products

   These days, the experts are openly favoring water-based exterior wood stain as it has the following list of benefits:

   • Last longer than any other as their effects retain on wood surface
   • Protect the wood from UV rays and color fading
   • Doesn’t peel off that easily even after several footsteps or wiping
   • Inhibit the growth of pests, algae and mold

   • Easier to maintain due to longer durability

   The only problem here would be the tough application. This needs right equipment and skills to apply the stain on the deck in proper order and stay patient while doing the task.

2. Oil-Based Products

   Wood deck stain that are affordable and easily penetrates into the surface without many efforts are oil-based. If you are not looking out for something too durable rather more affordable then this is the apt choice. However, due to certain resin contents, you might expect pests growth. This makes the cleaning process more important due to which early peeling off occurs. Rest assured, if you’re a great care taker then these won’t trouble you at all.

Be conscious about your choice and needs before making a purchase. Experts are the best people to consult in case of any doubts.

How Wood Stains Work?

You may not realize the importance of staining your wood until there comes a time when you have to spend your weekend doing it. Seeing a porch or log home that needs staining badly is also a situation when you have no choice but staining.

Let’s explore how these stains work and why are they important…

Protection of the wood

Before talking about the way stains work, let’s discuss what makes them important. The most vital thing they do is protecting the wood from water. Moving on to other benefit, it is protection of wood against rotting and deteriorating. What else? Well, protection from the harmful sunlight.

How stain works

Generally, stain colors are available in three forms. Resin, oil and alkyd act as binders and attach to the pigment present on the wooden surface. The stain sinks in the wood in order to protect it deep into the layer.

NOTE: Softwoods such as cedar accept stains more readily than hardwoods such as oak.

As far as excess stain is concerned, it can be wiped away after the pigment once absorbed in the binder. This extra stain occurs after the solvent evaporates. After completing the staining process, finishing the job with a protective coat is essential to wrap up the task. Few options available are wax, varnish and polyurethane.

How often staining is needed?

To achieve the best results for the wooden surfaces, make sure staining smaller area every single year. For log homes, staining is needed every 2 years; however, you need to do less of it at times because it all depends on the stain used.

When staining and caring for the wood, preparation is the key. Here, it is useful to know that staining done in the afternoon gives good results because there’s neither morning dew not extra moisture.

If you don’t have time to do the staining on your own, there are many professionals who can help. Be it your porch, log home, deck or any other wood outdoors, they provide the exterior wood stain solutions for all.

Avoid Deck Finishing Disappointment

Do you want to impress your special guests at home? Deck owners have easy way out for doing this. They can buy some excellent wood finishing products from reputed company and use them to protect and beautify the deck or patio you have in your backyard. Most of the deck owners trust the deck staining professionals to give them exceptional results. But some differ in their perception and try to carry out the project of deck staining on their own. While you take up the responsibility of revamping your wood deck you should learn a lot about the variety of wood stain colors available in market. However staining is a lot more than just selection of the right colors for your wood floor.

Tips To Get Best Wood Staining Results

• Wood deck gets weathered due to unlimited exposure to Mother Nature elements. Remove the left out paint or stain coatings before starting the application of new stain. This will avoid the bad results of staining.
• Before you start the actual process of staining be it a year or two after building it, make sure it is structurally sound. Any cracks, loose nuts and such things may cause injuries to the person working on the deck.
• Don’t keep unrealistic expectations from your deck; it will not be getting ready any sooner. Yes it will take more time than your wife takes to get ready for any party.
• Achieving optimal results from staining project will depend on how well you prepare your deck surface. It requires you to clean the dirt and dust of the deck, pressure clean the deck you want to beautify.
• Apply the wood deck stain on the fences first and then get down to the floor. This will be saving the mess done on the just stained deck as even when the stain spills over the floor it can be easily corrected while staining the floor.
• Leaving the deck floor and fences to dry naturally will allow a better penetration of the stain and don’t forget to seal for the lasting results and best finish.

Deck Stains – Take Precautions While Staining Deck

Deck gets lots of harshness from climate and man. Natural elements like Sun rays, rain, and moisture conspire against the wood floor stains applied couple of months or years back. For protecting wood from permanent damage, the deck owners should find out the best deck stains. The application of stains can either be done personally or professionally. While doing it on your own may seem easy, it requires lot of experience and patience to complete the job safely.

• You should wear gloves and masks. When the deck owners decide to perform the staining of deck on their own, they should take all the precautions to protect you from the harmful effects of chemicals present in stain colors.Wearing gloves and masks will prevent ingestion of harmful chemicals through mouth and nose.
• Protect your clothes too. Getting stain on your clothes is not that unusual. This is why you should wear old clothes so that you don’t regret messing up your new clothes while taking up the staining job.
• Purchase the good quality wood stain colors. Like every other thing you should be investing in quality products for staining. This will not only ensure that your wood will be safe there are high possibilities that the content of volatile organic compounds is less in those products.
• Keep stains away from fire. They can easily catch fire this is why you should keep them at a big distance from inflammable things. Have water nearby to use in emergency situations.
• Children should not be in vicinity.It will be in the best interest of the kids and pets to be not around where the staining is done. It will be good if you don’t have kids around as the side-effects of staining include dizziness, light-headedness and vomiting are common.
• Seal you hair too. Tie your hair into a bun and cover it with the scarf or big cotton piece to protect them from the harsh effect of stains.
• Hire the experts. The best was saved for last. Hire the deck staining professionals as they are familiar with the techniques of staining that are fast and effective.