stain won't dry - what now?

[Dave Loebach]

I made some corner trim (out of pine) and stained it. I'm ready to move ahead with a polyurethane finish, but the stain hasn't fired in almost two weeks. What do I do now? What is the likely outcome if I mixed a little japan drier with mineral spirits and brushed on a coat?

Thanks all.

[phil harold]

what stain?
brand? color? solvent base?

[Cliff Rohrabacher]

Id try some of that drier on a sample first.
If it's an oil based stain like a minwax product that might be the only solution short of eternal patience.

[Angie Orfanedes]

This has happened to me a time or two when I let the stain dry on its own without wiping it down. You can try wiping it hard with a rag dampened with mineral spirits - that has worked for me in the past.

[george wilson]

Turpentine is a powerful oxident to wipe down with. However,you haven't mentioned if your stain is oil based,or what?

[Steve Rozmiarek]

One of my first projects was a bed that I still sleep on today. The stain failed, and I half dealt with it before I covered it with poly. Don't do that! It still feels soft, and that was 10 years ago or so! I've had some luck wiping off oil base stain with turpentine to rescue a piece.

[Dave Loebach]

The stain is oil based (mineral spirits based), custom cherry flavor mixed by my local Porter Paint store to match my cherry kitchen cabinets when used on pine.

[Rich Engelhardt]

Hello,
Non drying is a clue that the material may have too much universal colorant in it. That's the tint they use to custom blend the color. If they played around with the color too much trying to match it, they may have super saturated the stain.

An easy test for this, since it's an oil based material, is to see if water will cut it or remove it. normally water wouldn't affect the oil product, but when too much ethylene glycol (the stuff that makes universal colorant "universal") has been added, it results in an emulsion.

You say the wood is pine?
Did you pretreat it by sealing it with a wash coat of pre-stain so the stain would take evenly?
If so, what did you use & in what strength?

[Dave Loebach]

I used shellac cut about 50% with alcohol to treat the pine, followed by light sanding.

[Conrad Fiore]

Dave,
Is the stain a wiping stain? If so, did you wipe off all the excess stain after applying it, or did you brush on the stain and leave it?

[Howard Acheson]

The stain is oil based (mineral spirits based), custom cherry flavor mixed by my local Porter Paint store to match my cherry kitchen cabinets when used on pine.

Do the stain instructions call for applying the stain, letting it set for 15-20 minutes and then wiping off the excess?

The most often cause of an oil based pigment stain not drying is applying it as if it were a paint. The excess must be wiped off or it will not dry properly. Pigment stains contain a small amount of resin to adhere the pigment to the wood after the thinner evaporates. The resin will not dry if the excess stain is not wiped off. Any clear coat applied will not dry properly either.

If the above is the case, you should use mineral spirits rubbed in aggressively to soften the stain. Then wipe off all the gunk using lots of paper towels. Let the wood dry overnight and see how it looks. If if looks OK, let it dry another day and then apply your clear coat.

If the above does not work, you may have to use a chemical paint remover to get the stain off.

[Bob Reda]

wipe it down with denatured alcohol. That will remove any stain not dried.

[Jason White]

+1.

Mineral spirits and a rag for Minwax stain that sat too long without having wiped it down.

Jason


This has happened to me a time or two when I let the stain dry on its own without wiping it down. You can try wiping it hard with a rag dampened with mineral spirits - that has worked for me in the past.

[Rich Engelhardt]

Hello,

I used shellac cut about 50% with alcohol to treat the pine, followed by light sanding.

I'd suggest taking a trip back to the store where you bought the stain.
Take along the can of shellac also and go over each step of your finishing schedule with someone at the store.