Floor Stain Does Not Penetrate

Carefully vacuum up dust and grit from the sanding process and then wipe down the floor with a tack cloth to pick up any remaining dust.

Floor stain does not penetrate.

More on gel stains. If the surface is sealed or has some kind of wax or other coating it is advisable to use sandpaper to remove the top layer of the surface which is coated. Spots that are prone to blotching show up darker. Most people will spend some time applying stains to the surface before they realize that the stain is not penetrating.

Choose an option below to learn more about how stain colors help create design harmony throughout your home. Now you need to apply the stain before the conditioner completely dries usually within two hours or so. Over sanding the wood smooth can also cause a problem when using penetrating stains because you close the grain of the wood and it becomes difficult for the stain to penetrate. Stain manufacturers will recommend their own conditioners.

With sherwin williams stain colors you can let the natural wood shine through match grain colors or cover unsightly blemishes. Unfortunately it s not easy to tell which boards this will affect. One test is to wipe your board with mineral spirits. Follow the grain of the wood.

The best way to fix the problem is to check the surface on which the stain is applied. Try to apply as even a coating as possible. Dark splotches show up when stain pigments become lodged in areas of grain that are more open. Usually lightly wiping the stain with a rag and solvent allowing adequate dry time and applying new stain.

If applied too thickly they won t dry properly and will remain tacky to the touch. Basically conditioner will stabilize the wood to allow stain to penetrate more evenly. Unlike deep penetrating liquid stains gel stains hold their dye in suspension photo below so it can t oversaturate absorbent areas of the wood depending on the formula however some gel stains still produce high contrast between earlywood and latewood in pine photo below. Penetrating wood stains are not intended to be a surface finish.

Clean the surface of the floor. Wood stain is designed to penetrate into the grain of the wood not to remain on the surface. Giving your home a perfect color palette goes beyond paint. This can also happen if the wood wasn t stripped and sanded completely down to bare wood since the stain will sit on the surface rather than soaking into the wood.

Wood finish oil based penetrating stain. Penetrating stains are not designed to sit on the surface. If you happen to spread it too thickly or you forget to wipe off excess the material that remains on. But the best test is to apply stain to a sample of the wood you re using.