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Preventing Blotching on Vertical-Grain Fir
Question
Forum Responses
From the original questioner: I was going over some notes from a class I took with ML and they had mentioned a 10% wash coat on blotchy woods. I'm not too far along in the project as most that I've stained so far is for cabinet interiors and therefore a more consistent look anyway. I'm about to go experiment a little to see if the washcoat helps. From contributor F: When I took the ML spray course, one of their solutions for blotchiness was first staining the piece with clear wiping stain base, let dry, then use the wiping stain. It works very well on cherry, and helps on maple. From the original questioner: At first my ML rep was going to start with a 10% stain base and then go to the full stain but then decided it could be done in one step - not a very dark stain. In hindsight it probably might have helped like what you mentioned. From contributor F: Whenever I have to use a wiping stain on a wood that is even slightly prone to blotching, I always wipe first with the stain base, let dry, then proceed with the tinted wiping stain. It’s actually surprising how well it works. Works okay on maple with light colored stains, but not great. From contributor R: Some of the "gelled" type of stains I have tried worked pretty well on maple and cherry. Rotary and other cuts of fir might well benefit with a sealer coat of sorts prior to staining. Just because the can says it’s not necessary to apply a sealer coat is just one reason to create a complete sample from start to finish. If you had done that you could have called the can a liar right to its round face. From Paul Snyder, forum technical advisor: Usually whenever I use a new stain, even if it's just a new color from the same brand I normally use, I'll do some sampling on the veneered ply and solid wood from the job. But one time I used a new color and only did the sample on veneer. It looked fine and I started in on the cabinetry. We were doing European cabinets so there weren't any face frames. The boxes all stained nicely and then I started in on the doors. The first door I started with blotched so bad it looked horrible. Since the cabinet boxes were already stained, I couldn't change the schedule and use different steps/products to avoid the problem. I had to use the same stain. So what I did was seal the doors with a washcoat of vinyl sealer, stained them, and sprayed a coat of sealer. Because the washcoat partially sealed the wood, the stain didn't soak into the wood as much and the color was lighter. To add more color, after sanding the sealer smooth, I added a little of the stain to some highly thinned finish and sprayed on a very light, even wet coat. Using the stain as a toner kept the color the same and made it as dark as the cabinet boxes. Right after the toner flashed off, I sprayed the topcoat. The color was more even on the doors than it was on the boxes, but it looked good and no one besides me ever noticed. Make a Washcoat to Eliminate Blotching
From the original questioner: Thanks for the advice. I've been so busy lately, I should have spent more time making sure I had the whole process down. I probably let that part slide and just figured the tech matching the stain sample to my sample would lay the whole process out to me and that probably wasn't a fair assumption. I'm a cabinetmaker first and a finisher second! As it turns out, the painting contractor that did the millwork is going to do the finishing so everything will match and I don't have to match them but with different products. I've worked with them a lot so it should be fine. I'm way behind schedule on this and the contractor is getting a little upset. It's his own house and as about 60% of my work is with him, I need to keep him happy! This has definitely been a learning experience though.
The comments below were added after this Forum discussion was archived as a Knowledge Base article (add your comment). Comment from contributor J:
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