first time project and lost


  #1  
Old 10-17-05, 06:54 AM
Dawn
Visiting Guest
Posts: n/a
Question first time project and lost

I have read through the threads and now have some ideas but still lost. I have some old wooden chairs that I have stripped and polyurethaned that wont dry. I am not sure of the type of wood except that it is soft with a beautiful grain. The original finish was a dark stain. I stripped all but the deepest of the grain stain (it was gorgeous that way). Cleaned it up with mineral spirits and then used coarse steel wool followed by fine till it was smooth. I applied a thin coat of polyurethane that after 72 hours had not even begun to dry. Thinking the poly no good (as it had been left in the unheated garage through last winter) I restripped them and purchased a 2 in 1 stain and poly (changed my mind about the stain ) It has now been 7 days and while they have dried somewhat they still remain sticky. I put them in the basement with a dehumidifier running and put a fan on them as well..is this normal for this time of year considering the humidity and temp? How long should I wait before doing something different or worse yet did I mess up from the start? Thank you now for all teachings that you can offer!
 
  #2  
Old 10-17-05, 08:54 AM
George's Avatar
Member
Join Date: Dec 1999
Location: South Hill, Va. USA
Posts: 2,817
Upvotes: 0
Received 0 Upvotes on 0 Posts
I have run into this problem when I don't clean the piece thoroughly. Since I use a solvent-based stripper, I ALWAYS use lacquer thinner to clean.

1- It penetrates better than paint thinner.

2- It neutralizes any stripper reminaing that I may not get off/out of the cracks and crevices.

I'd restrip (again!!!) and clean with lacquer thinner.

The rest of your process sounds OK - Poly shouldn't take more than 24 hours to dry even under humid conditions. One more thought - air circulation is just as important as heat and humidity in the drying process.
 
 

Thread Tools
Search this Thread
 
Ask a Question
Question Title:
Description:
Your question will be posted in: