How to re-stain baseboard?


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Old 10-10-17, 10:19 AM
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How to re-stain baseboard?

I've purchased some pre-finish baseboards from a local store. It was badly stained. I wanted to re-stain so they match each other. Do I have to remove all the previous stain or can I just stain over the existing stain? By the way, I did get the same stain that was supposed to be on the pre-finish baseboards. It just that some baseboards are lighter and some are darker.
 
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Old 10-10-17, 10:30 AM
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Stain works partially by being absorbed into the wood. Once that happens, subsequent coats cannot penetrate. Best bet is to use a stripper to remove the stain and get back to raw wood so you can start over.
 
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Old 10-10-17, 11:10 AM
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Your prefinished baseboard probably has a clear coat over the top of the stain. You will not be able to stain over the existing finish, and stripping and refinishing would cost more in time and materials than just buying new bare trim, and starting over.

Wood naturally has different hues, some is light, some is dark... some is hard, some is soft. Wood accepts stain differently, so your best bet is to take back what you purchased, and pay more attention as you select all your prefinished boards so that they all match.
 
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Old 10-10-17, 11:38 AM
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I can't take it back. It's already cut to fit on my room but not nail in yet. Will lightly sand the top coat works?
 
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Old 10-10-17, 12:57 PM
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You could 'paint' the light colored boards with a tinted poly like Minwax's PolyShades. As the others have said, stain will not work unless you remove ALL of the existing finish.
 
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Old 10-10-17, 01:23 PM
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I'm not being sarcastic here - if lightly sanding would work, I would have suggested that instead of all the work of stripping the finish.
 
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Old 10-10-17, 03:40 PM
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I know hindsight is 20:20, but...

Just to add to what's already been said... anytime you install prefinished trim, you ALWAYS have to sort the trim into piles of similar colors. That way you can figure out what group of trim goes where... so that you don't end up with 2 completely different pieces RIGHT NEXT to each other. If you have 4 light pieces, put them all in a separate room. Or if you have a couple odd or ugly ones, use them in a closet. Don't put them right next to another one that is completely different. That's just basic stuff.

Add to that, you generally want to buy the longest lengths you can so that you don't have any more joints in a room than is absolutely necessary. For example, 16' trim is commonly available, as is 12'. So in a 12x16 room, you would use 4 pieces... 2 @ 12' and 2 @ 16' that all color match each other... not parts and pieces of 8 different colored 8' long pieces... just cuz that's all that will fit in your car. More joints than needed always looks like crap... and it looks even worse if you didn't color match your trim before you cut it.

Not trying to be hard on you... just trying to help you learn something from this experience.
 
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Old 10-10-17, 05:53 PM
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Yes, sounds like I've learned this lesson the hard way. I was debating whether I should make the baseboards my self or purchase pre-finish...but I was in a hurry and didn't pay attention on the different color until it was all cut. Anyways, thanks guys! I'll give the poiy a try on a scrap baseboard to test it out.
 
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Old 10-11-17, 03:50 AM
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PolyShades comes in different colors. You want to pick one that will be used just over the light pieces to darken them up so they better match the darker ones. It's not a poly that lends it self to touch up or being applied to partial boards. Any runs or lap marks will be darker, missed or thin spots lighter. It pays to apply it neatly!
 
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Old 10-12-17, 09:03 AM
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It looks likePolyShade do not have English Chestnut. I wonder if it's the same as American Chestnut.
 
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Old 10-12-17, 09:45 AM
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I don't pay much attention to the name but rather whether or not that particular color will darken up or otherwise change the color of the wood the way I need it to. I'd try to match up the darkest piece with the PolyShades color chart.


It might be easiest to go to a real paint store with your sample and ask for their help. They can custom tint poly if need be.
 
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Old 10-12-17, 12:05 PM
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Sounds like Menards trim. I know exactly what you mean.
 
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Old 10-12-17, 03:35 PM
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Worst case, install the trim and paint.

Painted baseboards are more the norm today than stained anyway!
 
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Old 10-13-17, 09:04 AM
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Painted baseboards are more the norm today than stained anyway!
Yuck. That doesn't mean it's a good thing....
 
 

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