Finishing Tips

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“Do not use wood conditioners prior to staining mahogany, oak, cherry. Conditioner is good on woods with wild grain variations and most softwood products. On hardwoods, it most often seals the wood and prevents your stain from doing its job and penetrating the wood grain.  Your finishes will tend to be light and off color.”

To obtain a quality stain or clear finish, step 1 is to sand the door.  Step 2 clean the door using paint thinner or acetone. Now, follow the finishing procedure according to the instructions of the product you are using.  We use Sikkens which is a brush on finish.  Brush on 1st coat,  let dry & lightly sand.  Repeat for 2nd coat.  Apply 3rd coat. Done.

To obtain a quality painted finish, first use a good quality oil-base primer manufactured for exterior use.  Sand lightly when dry.  The second and third coats are "color" coats and may be either oil-base or latex-base exterior paints.

Finishing Tips:
Whatever finish desired, use sealers, primers, stains and finish coatings from the same manufacturer, if possible, to insure compatibility.  Follow the manufacturer's instructions.  Consult your paint dealer.
Use sealer, primer, clear finishes and paint liberally to fill in and bridge all voids in the joints between wood sections and between the wood and any glass or insets in the door.
Sand lightly between coats of sealer, stain, and clear finishes.  Never use lacquer-base stains or finishes on wood panel doors.  Nor should lacquer-thinner be used to clean any acrylic doors.

Painting a previously finished wood door:
If you would like to paint a previously finished door, we recommend using KILZ as the base coat.  It can be mixed to a tint close to your paint choice and comes in standard white.  Available at Lowes, Home Depot and paint stores everywhere.
 

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