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preventing yellowing in maple

8/16/16       
Derek

I have a customer who wants maple cabinetry. The color they like is that of raw maple without any finish, which can be achieved by applying a very light white stain and then top coating. However, they want the color to remain that color indefinitely.

Can treating maple with oxalic acid slow or prevent the process of yellowing? The topcoat will be an acrylic conversion varnish with UV inhibitor, so I don't anticipate any yellowing within the finish. I am trying to prevent the yellowing of the wood itself.

8/17/16       #2: preventing yellowing in maple ...
nick Member

nothing lasts forever especially the color of many woods when subjected to UV light...maple being one although to a lesser degree then the most reactive...cherry and fir come to mind.
In my humble experience, if hard maple is turning yellowish it's usually the finish that's changing color. If it's turning to more of a pale burnt umber color, it's the wood.
That said, if I was trying to forestall the inevitable, I would go about it just as you laid out and be confident that the customers expectations will be met for many years...just not forever.

8/17/16       #3: preventing yellowing in maple ...
nick Member

whoops!, wood bleach would work better than oxalic acid in lightening the maple.

8/17/16       #4: preventing yellowing in maple ...
John Member

You need a finish that has a dual UV package. One component slows down the yellowing of the finish, the other does the same for the underlying wood. I believe the second component is a hindered amine. I'm not sure who, specifically, makes such a product, but I know I've read of some.

John

8/17/16       #5: preventing yellowing in maple ...
Leo G

They are asking the impossible. No matter what you do it's going to change color. UV coatings will slow it down, it will still change.

They won't notice. It'll be to slow a change and in their minds it won't seem like it changed.

I did a cherry job and about a year later they wanted a swinging door. I brought it in and they were amazed at how much the cherry had darkened on the original project. They hadn't noticed. And it was a very large change.

Maple won't change that much. Use a water white clear conversion varnish. Make sure there is no nitrocellulose in the mix, that's what turns yellow. A waterborne might even be better. They yellow less.

Bleach is going to make it whitish, not natural looking.

8/18/16       #6: preventing yellowing in maple ...
rich c.

How old is the customer? Check the actuary tables and see what indefinite will be for them, then choose a finish! Couldn't help myself, because I love the word indefinitely as a measure of time for humans.

8/18/16       #7: preventing yellowing in maple ...
RobertJ

Leo is correct that a waterborne lacquer will provide the best long term solution to 'yellowing' on maple or any other wood for that matter.

Use ICA or Ilva

8/18/16       #8: preventing yellowing in maple ...
Derek

Waterborne finishes use the same resin as the new conversion varnishes, which is acrylic. One uses water as the vehicle, the other uses a combination of solvents. The water and the solvents evaporate leaving just the acrylic resin on the surface. I'm no finish expert, but why would waterborne be less likely to yellow?

It's been many years since I played with waterborne, but when I sprayed it onto maple I remember it leaving a greyish/greenish hue.

8/18/16       #9: preventing yellowing in maple ...
John Member

Check out SW's Kem Aqua Plus (CC-F62).

John

8/18/16       #10: preventing yellowing in maple ...
JeffA

Good luck. I would just walk from this job. No one will be able to give them satisfaction. The phone will ring from them 'indefinitely'.

4/4/22       #11: preventing yellowing in maple ...
Julie

I bleach maple regularly with the 2 part bleach... my last piece turned buttercup yellow! in 40 years I have not experienced this before, wood was new, sanded to 220 and dust free. Anyone ever experience this? is there a solution? a chemical reaction?, old bleach? I ended up sanding it back down 80 150 220. not all of the pieces I bleached turned yellow, and they were from the same stick.
thanks for any ideas.


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