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Stain and Paint - What's the Difference?
Question
Forum Responses
From contributor R: It's possible to take a paint and thin it with the appropriate solvent. Depending on how much you thin it, it's possible to create a stain from a paint. Milk paints, oil based paints, and even latexes make good stains. Thinned down lacquers can work too. From contributor B: Let's take two types of solvent based, not water based, stain - pigmented stain and dye stain. Dye stain has very small particles of color (and is generally sprayed, but can be brushed if you have the skills and technique). The color particles actually are in a solvent solution. Pigmented stains are larger particles and are suspended in a solvent solution. Difference is like this... In solution, as salt dissolved in water is in solution, and will not need stirring again once dissolved - that would be the dye stain. In suspension would be like pebbles stirred in water - they will settle to the bottom and need to be stirred constantly or at least repeatedly. That would be pigmented stain. If it sits a while there is much stirring to do. You can make your own by using asphaltum in mineral spirits. Also you can use a measure of paint in mineral spirits as well. I personally don't like making my own stains because I need the consistency that comes from the types sold by Campbell's and other companies. Water based stains work the same, I just do not use them. So to actually answer your question, you can take a tablespoon or more of paint and dissolve it in mineral spirits to use as a stain, I guess.
From the original questioner: Thanks. Actually, I'm translating a wood finishing chapter and I'm wondering how I can differ between the words paint and stain. I think that I should use this sentence for stain: a penetrating and also transparent paint is actually stain. I know the kind of stain I mean - I read it in the book - pigmented or semi-transparent stain... And I just want to know how I can differ between the two words in my translation. From contributor G: Had you asked for definitions, you'd likely have gotten different answers. Paint: –noun
Stain: -noun
Note the "especially to wood" part in the stain definition and the "various surfaces" part in the paint definition. Would you like to add information to this article? Interested in writing or submitting an article? Have a question about this article? Have you reviewed the related Knowledge Base areas below? 
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