Michael Dresdner

Q: When you say to control the color by how you mix the stain not how you apply I am a little confused. My stain is premixed. It is General Finishes water based dye stain. Can that be thinned using water and do I need to thin it?
A: You can thin any stain, should you need to, but most pre-mixed stains are designed to be used as is from the can, which means you can make it weaker but not stronger. That’s one reason most finishers prefer dye concentrates or powders, which allow them more flexibility in stain control. Such raw ingredients also allow you to omit or add binder as you choose. Pre-mixed stains offer convenience, but the price of that convenience is reduced versatility.

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This entry was posted on Monday, August 9th, 2010 at 6:00 am and is filed under Coloring options, dye, stain. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.