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I need to stain new window sashes. They are bare wood (pine), so they have to match the oak frames.
Do I use just stain alone, or put another coat on the top of it?
Better to use just a pure stain, especially if you are try to obtain a specific color to match. You can always stain again to go darker but cannot go lighter once the wood has absorbed the stain.
Obtain the color desired that matches and then use a top coat sealer with either a satin or gloss finish.
Preferably if you can take in a piece of the finished oak frame with a chunk of unfinished pine to a place like Sherwin Williams they can figure out a stain to match (or close).
Better to use just a pure stain, especially if you are try to obtain a specific color to match. You can always stain again to go darker but cannot go lighter once the wood has absorbed the stain.
Obtain the color desired that matches and then use a top coat sealer with either a satin or gloss finish.
Say I use oil pigment stain: what sealer do I use, please?
Stain alone will not protect the wood from eventual rot! Just “re-staining” only makes the wood darker- it doesn’t protect the wood.
If you are staining wood for exterior exposure- it will need a coat of some type of protection. I would recommend a urethane spar finish. It is available in several different sheens. If the wood is an interior finish- polyurethane would be my choice.
Sanding sealer is not considered a “finish coat”- it doesn’t have the durability. Consider sanding sealer as a “primer” for clear finishes. Sanding sealers are used primarily for closing the pores of wood before applying a finish. It is also used on certain woods BEFORE staining to achieve a uniform color (some woods can appear blotchy after staining because of their grain and texture).
Shellac is a (natural) finish coat- but also not of great durability. It also adds a distinctive amber color to the wood- which may change the color of a stain.
Well, first of all, pine will never really match oak; they're woods of drastically different types. Second, new pine will darken a lot in the first few years whereas your old oak has already done its darkening. So you need to go lighter with stain than you think. If you go with a dark stain on pine you end up with a blackish muddy mess.
Then, of course you need to put varnish over it. Use polyurethane spar varnish inside and out. (On the inside of a window is practically exterior exposure in terms of sunlight exposure, temperature extremes anyway.) Spar varnish has a certain amount of flexibility by intention. This means it'll never get really super hard or mirror glossy (which is why it's not a great choice for a tabletop) but it will flex under thermal cycling (which windows see a tremendous amount of). The name "Spar" implies its original purpose;
the spars and masts of sail boats. Heavy outdoor exposure, mirror finish not needed. You'll probably want two coats.
Pore sealers are irrelevant to this application. You're trying to protect windows, not make a mirror finish table top.
Shellac is a wonderful finish for the applications for which it works. I use shellac a lot. But NOT for window sashes! As I noted, for all intents and purposes you can consider the inside of window sash to be exterior exposure.
So, to summarize:
1) A lighter-colored stain than you would think.
2) Polyurethane spar varnish inside and out, probably two coats. (of course if the exterior's going to be painted a color, then use best practices there - a high quality oil base primer, then two coats of a high quality oil base exterior paint)
"Primer and paint in one" is probably fine for a child's art project, but not for things you actually want to hold up.
I need to stain new window sashes. They are bare wood (pine), so they have to match the oak frames.
Do I use just stain alone, or put another coat on the top of it?
I used to have wood windows (finally replaced them 2 years ago!) and would have to occasionally replace a sash. My frames were a light "oakish" color, so I stained with a "natural" color stain, which was a great match. I added two coats of Helmsman Spar Urethane, sanding in between coats. It's great stuff.
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