questions about sanding and staining wood?

Question

I have a couple of questions about sanding and staining wood

1. after sanding, what's the best way to get rid of all the sawdust?
2. how does the grit and quality of the sanding affect the stain? (I'm using pine wood). Does a rough sand make the stain not take as well? Does a bad (ie uneven) job sanding mean dark and light patches of stain?

Thanks !!

Answer 1

The best way to get all of the dust off, is to use a Tack Cloth. I don't care for them myself. I do make furniture out of Pine. I like the way the knots look. I use instead of the tack cloth, mineral spirits,or paint thinner( same thing) and yes ,uneven sanding will cause variations in the finish. You use a coarse grit for paint removing, Medium to smooth out the surface,and then if you are staining,don't go over a 220 or 240 grit for the final sanding or it acts like a sealer on the wood. It won't stain evenly. Also on pine you need to use a staining primer first. That kind of evens out the way the stain soaks into the wood. You can use a 400 grit in between layers if you are applying more than one coat. The moisture sometimes lifts the grain of the wood. And if you want to get all the dust off, the best thing to do before you start,after rubbing it with the thinner,is to run your bare hands over the wood. That picks up any dust left behind. Good luck on your project. Byee

Answer 2

if you haven't all ready sanded the floor
First use a nail punch and punch down all the nail heads to about 1 eighth of an inch below the surface. If you do not do this the nails will rip your sandpaper to pieces.
best sandpaper to do job is 40 grit, which is a very coarse paper,(only if floor old and uneven ) first sand
80 grit, a medium paper second sand
120 grit final sand
the quality of the finished job will depend on how you sand the floor ie deep scratches will be darker than the surface of the timber more so on light coloured woods try to get as smooth surface as possible
and yes the sanding does affect the stain say if you use 40grit then stained it would be darker than say if you sanded with the 120 grit because the deeper the scratches the more stain will be absorbed so you need nice even finish
use dust free sanders that way you get hardly any dust at all if not remember to cover door ways with plastic sheet or dust will get in every room
Hoover the floor completely, then leave for a couple of hours and repeat
Different timbers will absorb penetrating wood stains at different rates. there are then two methods of application
(1)Brush the stain liberally onto the surface (with the grain) wiping off the excess with a lint free cotton cloth. Wipe over with a clean lint free cotton cloth and leave to dry.
(2)Wipe the stain onto the wood (along the grain) using a lint free cotton cloth, covering the surface uniformly. Dip up the cloth regularly making sure you push the stain deep into the wood.

Answer 3

1

Answer 4

After sanding, I use a paint brush to dust off the wood and all the cracks, corners and crevices. Then I use a tack cloth to get the really find stuff.

About sanding, you need to sand with the grain and use several grits to get things smooth. I usually used 100, 150 and then 220 grit. If the wood is in good shape, I skip the 100 grit.

The finer the final sanding grit the lighter the stain tends to be. The key to any stain job is care in sanding everything smoothly and consistently. End grain tends to really soak up the stain, so it needs to be sanding very smooth. This seals the ends of the pores and it will take up less stain.

A word of warning about pine. It doesn't have a consistent porosity and the stain tends to blotch. You can get a stain conditioner from MinWax that will help reduce that problem.

Answer 5

If you have compressed air, that's good for cleaning off sawdust. Otherwise, just use rags and wipe it down well. Pine is a pain for staining. Turns blotchy and can just look dirty. There are pre-stain conditioners for pine. Or, I've used mineral spirits on a rag over the surface to be stained first, and that does the same thing - allows the stain to absorb evenly. Best to practice on the back side or on scrap first, to get the hang of how much and how long. Not a big deal, but that little practice in technique will make a better result. Oh, and you can use what ever grit of sand paper is necessary for the job, just use a 220 last to sand out scratches from the more course papers used prior.

Answer 6

As mentioned a tack cloth is cheap & easy.
Also ,as mentioned the finer the grit ...the finer the finish.
Trade secret.... a well crumpled paper grocery bag used as a final rub will burnish the wood to a fine surface & help knock down any remaining "hairs"
Also, very good as a rub in between finish coats .
Pine, though it is a soft wood has hard areas in the grain which will not absorb stain as the rest.
A matter of taste ..some like the way it looks.
Basically , stains should penetrate the wood to add color .
You will know you have gone as far as you can when the stain
is removed or streaked when applying additional coats even when well dried.
Same will happen when applying finishes .
Several thin finish coats are the way to go to build up a smooth finish.
Additional color can be achieved by using tinted clearcoats.
which are best sprayed on.
Spraycans are perfectly good & much more forgiving than tinted( esp polyurethanes ).finishes applied w/ a brush.
Best regards

Answer 7

After sanding pine you need to take a wet rag and wipe the piece down.Moisture will raise the grain.Then sand it again with a 220 paper.If you just stain it without the wet rag the stain will raise the grain and you will not get a smooth finish.I remove the sawdust with a dry paint brush.

Answer 8

Use a tackcloth to remove dust. You want a nice smooth finish on the wood. I use 220 grit paper on a random orbital sander. You want all the surfaces to be sanded the same.

Answer 9

challenging subject. do a search over yahoo and bing. this could help!

Answer 10

Lots of refinishing advice here... ( http://contributor.yahoo.com/user/9341/sincerity_anna.html )