can you just Polyurathene wood and seal it or do you need to stain it to?

Question

if you poly bare wood does it seal it from getting moisture or do you have to stain the wood before poly to seal it?
I mainly work with oak.

Answer 1

Polyurathene and stains have different purposes. Stain is usually applied first, to make the wood the desired color, usually stain mimics a type of wood color, oak, cherry, walnut, etc. The polyurathene is a sealant of sorts to prevent water, moisture and even mold and insects from entering the wood. It also gives the wood a shine finish, ranging from low to high satin sheen apperance. Usually nice hardwoods like those above and many others are not stained, since they already have a natural look sought by most wood workers. They will simply seal the wood to protect it for the future. Good luck.

Answer 2

I never understood the drive to stain everything....if you like the color of the wood, its all good.

I bought a junker house, and replaced all the inside doors with oak veneer doors that I just polyurethaned over....the wood grain was just too pretty to hide with stain.

Answer 3

No need to stain. My husband makes clocks and he never stains them. He likes the real wood color.

Answer 4

You don't have to stain it. But, you do need to clean it and sand it well.

Answer 5

You don't need to stain it.