suzyq53:

I stripped a hickory dining room in a historic home 30 years ago. I could not get the last bit of white paint out of the wood grain. My finisher made up a glaze and showed me how to apply it. It covered the white paint flawlessly.

Wood finishing is a trade onto itself. Explain your predicament to a finisher and see what he can come up with. I promise you more abrasion will not be part of his recommendation (if he knows what he's doing) nor will the door look "dirty".

My guy is still in business. He is amazing.

After another day of sanding with grittier grit.

Thinking of using these.

did you go over the rough spots with at least 150? don't leave it at the 80 or a 100.

I got my gardener/handyman working on it today. My hands started cramping up like a lobster claw from squeezing the dang sponge. He is coming back tomorrow for more removal sanding with the door open and then going over all with 120 and 220. Its not going to be perfect by any means, but hopefully better and protected until I bite the bullet to replace it. I'm all about the backyard where we live, so its just hard to justify the hassle and expense at the front that is only visible to deliveries and some guests. When we have parties, everyone comes through the gate to the backyard. Some of the delivery people knock on the laundry room door which is first and closest to the driveway and pretty ugly too.

I don't care for Minwax stain. I have used it but prefer ZAR or General Finishes products. I used Old Masters Wiping Stain for a recent project with some cabinets and found it quite easy to work with. A quality paint store or woodworking store like Rockler would carry a higher end product line than a big box store

Thanks Lyndee. We have Rocklers but its far away. A lot of the stains say for interior use only. I don't know if I can use them outside even if I cover with spar varnish. This one says "interior/exterior".

suzy, then I think you'll be fine w/the walnut stain. I personally don't like using minwax for something like that door. if it's all you have and really don't care, then it will work, but I also prefer GF or the varathane. the gels will dry a bit faster, but in this heat, I don't think it matters!

and yes, my hands/fingers hurt for days after that door I did. use your pre stain conditioner and wipe up as much loose dust before you stain. i like to put it on w/a lint free rag ( wear gloves) and rub it in the wood as I go. since it is so warm, it will set fast, so try and wipe it on as evenly as possible. let it dry for a day and brush on your man o war.

Suzyq53, just another homeowner here and love wood as well but in this case, I would stop wasting my time and save my hands and just paint it, specially since you are looking to replace it and it's a door rarely used/seen by guests.

Here ya go, used the BM website to recolor.

suzyq,,agnes has a point. try the stain and varnish. if it still looks ratty, paint it. I actually think paint will look very nice. and both paint and varnish have the same upkeep. (actually, w/varnish, you're supposed to do it every year) .

That's what I was thinking too Beth. The only issue is on the inside the door is stained and matches all the wood and bannister and trim. The threshold on the door portion is both inside and outside so thats kind of weird.

that's ok. you can always get a new threshold made if you have to. or just try and salvage that one w/the stain. the painted portion of the exterior will look fine against it if it's stained.

oh that's easily fixed. wish I lived closer to you. I could do that in less than an hour. take your paper, 80-100, and sand off those scratches (on the inner edge) and stains. then do a 150 and a light go over w/220. pre condition, then stain. you should be fine. do the jamb while your at it. I like your dark tile.

Me too. I have so many projects for you. And you're so good at it. Just got back from UTC. Hot as hell there. Not bad outside here but have to flip the ac now its 79 in the house. I'm not going to scratch that bleeping door again until it cools off. I'd go to the beach but they have the 101 so screwed up its ridiculous. SDG&E thinks this is a good time to dig things up since school is out. Hello this is a beach town. Summer is the busiest. So many Arizona plates now and vacation renters. Also a hot area for AirBNB.

The wood itself is stained from water. You need to bleach the wood to even it out. Try oxalic acid or Barkeepers Friend which is made with oxalic acid.

This will get rid of those dark spots.

For an even finish use a gel stain. The gel stain will cover and blend what you miss with the sanding. The oxalic acid will also remove some of the previosu coatings. It is not a dangerous acid but of course use gloves and eye protection.

People always try and sand but for the flat parts a simple Bahco scraper which can be bought from Amazon will have that door down to fresh wood in 1/4 the time. They even sell a smaller version with different blades that would get into your molding details.

If you have ever used a cabinet or Bahco scraper you will barely need your sander. Apply firm pressure and pull towards you. Home Depot sells a cheap version that works well but only has flat 2" scrapers vs the versatilely of a Bahco.

A couple pulls and your a perfect fresh and now smooth wood ready to be stained. No messy strippers needed. I would only use strippers in the tightest details. Also you have to neutralize the strippers when your done.

After a few more days of sanding. My husband now says he doesn't want it stained dark. He's saying just a light stain in the faded areas on the door and a slightly darker stain on the threshold, followed by several thin coats of satin spar varnish. What color stain would you use?

Would weathered oak or natural oak work? I'm afraid golden oak or natural will be too yellow.

weathered oak is on the grayish side. have never used natural oak, but it's prob close to what the door is. here are some others. i think these are minwax or maybe varathane. not sure what you're using. light walnut wouldn't be too dark. maybe summer oak

That door isn't going to look good without a glaze.

It's not going to look much better than it is now w/that light stain he wants. It really isn't going to do much. So suzyq,,,fair warning. (paint the door and save yourself the time/hassle)

(and glazing is a coating of color that sits atop another color or stain. really not going to help out on this raw oak surface. glazing is not a stain. you can't just put it on that raw door. stain has to go on first, and then the glaze, if you want to go that route.)

also Joseph, her husband doesn't want a dark stain. glazes are usually dark, unless you want a whitewash type of look. So stop w/the glazing already. it's not the look they want.

suzyq,,,here is a video on glazing,,,AFTER the stain and a clear coat lacquer is applied.

part II glazing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?annotation_id=annotation_847875051&feature=iv&src_vid=wTbBgdA_yFk&v=Nh3NtZqtJ8I

here is part 1, staining

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wTbBgdA_yFk

I tried to tell him that. I thought special walnut would at least blend it better. He has taken numerous woodworking classes at the community college and made some pretty serving/cutting/pizza boards, so now he's Bob Vila. It does look slightly better in person. At least it will look fresher with the marine varnish.

bob villa! lmao. ok. can't wait to see this! (and you can add a little stain color to the marine varnish,,,just make sure if using oil base varnish, you use the oil stain. ditto if using water based stuff)

Okay - More sanding and mineral spirits. Its looking pretty good except needs work at the bottom of the door. More sanding there? Or bleach there? Or condition there and stain to match the rest of the door? Or thats as good as it gets and just marine varnish?

“...so now he’s Bob Villa.” Lmao.

looks like the bottom part is going to suck up more stain. could because that's the part that got most of the water absorption, so the grain has been expanded more than up top. let that mineral spirits dry out a bit. use the condition first and apply the stain. I'd go very lightly w/the stain at the bottom. maybe just a quick brush on an off. for the upper part, let it stay on a bit longer. hopefully you can even it out that way.

The person who does the sanding picks the stain color! Bystanders get no say.

Call it good enough and get a kick plate for the bottom of the door.

I added a brass kickplate to one of my old doors and it is very practical and looks great too. We originally were only going to do one door, but it worked out so well we went back for two more and did the entry door from the garage and the front door as well as the side door.

Lyndee, just read your post about not liking Minwax stain.

I don't like Minwax stain, either. Seem to be skimpy on pigment and take forever to dry. (The oil based stains.)

And more sanding. The bottoms are better. I'm going to gel stain the threshold with hickory color today and see how it looks.

Suzyq, get to the store and buy yourself a Bosch random orbit sander. They're at least 10x better/ faster than those pad sanders.

https://www.amazon.com/Bosch-Random-Polisher-ROS20VSC-Carrying/dp/B00BD5G9VA

I have one and love it. Had a Porter Cable one before; got it at a garage sale and then found another one & gave it to my son. Both PC's are history. Garbage so don't waste your money on a Porter Cable.

Oh, & the door is looking good!

Started staining the door today. I think its gonna need at least two coats of stain. Its looking better than I thought.

Now the whole thing has been stained once. Just finished the door part so its still wet. Tomorrow I'll go over the lighter areas again. The next day I'll begin the marine varnish. It definitely looks better than I thought it would. Glad I went with the hickory stain.

nice suzy. it does look better. I like the color.

Thanks Beth! Even DH who wanted it light says it looks good as is. I talked him out of the light stain by saying it would look more blotchy and wouldn't go with the moody gray stone. I think the spar varnish will really help too and darken it a little more and kind of even things out with the satin finish.

Stained again today. I'll post again this evening when it soaks in. Hopefully I'm almost done with the stain. This is too much work and its too hot!

you really only need to do one coat of stain. usually it absorbs all it's going to absorb. any new coats and you may get a very tacky, sticky finish. wipe off any residue and let it dry.

Thanks again Beth. Its not sticky; it just keeps absorbing it. Its gel stain applied with a cloth and wiped off/in after a few minutes. I'm done staining now. Tomorrow is the first thin coat of varnish. I'm gonna do the sidelights first. I've got my ac going full blast so I need to keep the door closed as much as possible. It will dry fast in this heat.

ok good. sounds like it needed the extra coat. and yes, try and do it early in the morning before that door heats up. brushing on the varnish when it's hot, and it will gum up on you, or dry as you're brushing.

if you need to, it's perfectly ok to thin it w/a bit of mineral spirits. (which exterior varnish are you using?)

I have this kind, but it says do not thin. It seems like its already pretty thin. I have been using a little mineral spirits to blend in the stain in some places.

When I bought the spar varnish, I was shaking it and the lady helping me said don't shake it, it will make bubbles. She got me a different can and paint stirrers. She said just barely mix it a few times with those.

I'm looking for a 5x8 outdoor rug to use as a door mat once its all spruced up. My handyman wants to polish the handle and dead bolt thing with Brasso, but I kind of like the patina.

it's ok to thin it if you have to. yes, I've used that kind on my own wood. varnish is 1/3 mix of poly, mineral spirts and some type of oil (linseed usually). using a bit more spirits to thin it won't hurt it.

I used that same product for either my wood gate or the bridge over the pond.

First coat of varnish today. Not perfect but looking much better to me.

it's actually looking pretty good suzy. much better than the before shot. nice work!

Its def better than it was. I generally ignore the exterior because I just don't like the style and I can't fix it. But it was embarrassing how shabby the door looked. I think I can live with it like this for a while. Rather put the money where I live. Thanks for sticking with me Beth. Maybe this will help someone else too.

I hope so. and kudos to you for doing all the work.

I had a little help from my friends, you and Arturo. I used to live in Tucson in the 70s. I would buy old furniture at thrift stores and estate sales and fix it up for my little houses. Most of it would be genuine antiques today. But back in the day, you could take it to be dipped in huge lye vats that would strip it to the bone. That was the last time I tried refinishing anything except just rubbing Restore-a-finish on old cabs. This door is my final attempt at refinishing I think.

lol. they are a pain, aren't they? I did that one front door for a client,,,sanded stained and then painted (she wanted that distressed, Spanish paint sort of finish) w/chalk/milk paint. I know I didn't charge enough! Last time I do that.

your next one (yes, you'll do something in the future!) will go a lot easier.