If the oil or grease stain is fairly fresh on the wood, you may be able to remove it by scrubbing with an abrasive cleanser, such as Ajax or Comet. But if the stain has been there for a while—for example, a can of motor oil that has leaked on a tabletop in a...
Don’t be fooled into thinking that you should use a product labeled “Teak Oil” on teak wood, either exterior or interior. Teak Oil is a marketing term. It has nothing to do with teak. Teak trees aren’t squeezed to retrieve the oil. Brands of teak oil can be anything...
A spray pattern, with all the controls on the spray gun wide open, is supposed to be an even, elongated oval shape. If the pattern is heavier on one end than the other, the likely cause is that one or more of the holes in the air cap is plugged up. It’s also possible...
Oil finishes provide very little moisture resistance. This is because oil finishes (boiled linseed oil, 100% tung oil and mixtures of oil and varnish, often sold as Danish Oil) don’t get hard, so they can’t be built up on the wood to provide a thicker moisture...
You may have noticed that acetone is becoming more widely available. This is primarily because it’s the only commonly available solvent (not counting water) that isn’t classified as a VOC or HAP. VOC is the acronym for volatile organic compound—that is, an...
Ultra-violet light, especially sunlight, causes finishes to deteriorate. Many finishes sold at marinas and home centers claim UV resistance, but those sold at marinas are much more expensive. If both work the same, why would you pay more at the marinas? So I did a...
It’s more efficient to use widely available Color Putty or similar product to fill small nail or brad holes in furniture after the sealer coat has been applied than it is to use wood putty before applying the stain and finish. There are three reasons. First, using...
All dyes fade much faster than pigment when exposed to bright light—sunlight and fluorescent light being the worst culprits. But some types of dyes fade faster than others. The worst for fading are the natural vegetable dyes, such as walnut husks and berries. These...
If you experience oil-based polyurethane not drying well, it’s not likely that it’s bad polyurethane. It’s more likely that the wood you’re finishing contains a natural oil or you have applied an oil to the wood and the oil hasn’t dried. In both cases we’re talking...
If you are brushing a water-based finish over a water-soluble dye, you should be aware that the finish can dissolve the dye and the brush will pick it up and cause streaks. To keep this from happening, seal the wood first with another finish that doesn’t contain...
