# Best Way To Finish Standing Desk Made From Various Left Over Lumber (Paint?)



## tkleff (Feb 5, 2012)

Hi, 

I'm building a standing desk (see, Standing Desk - Lowe's Creative Ideas). 

I have used an odd assortment of materials. I used the odd assortment, because I got wood either free or for a nominal charge (I dismantled a bookcase someone gave me on craigslist). 

I used 4x4 posts for the legs; I used finished oak (free) plywood scraps for the sides; and I'll use framing 2x4s -- trimmed to size -- for the top of the desk. 

So, I know next to nothing about finishing wood. I expect I'd need to paint this with the different surfaces. That said, what would happen if I tried to stain it? Would you expect the stains to take differently to each type of wood and make a mess? 

Thoughts appreciated. 

cek.


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## crowie (Apr 14, 2011)

G'day "cek",
How about a woodgrain stain to hide all the timber types but still show off the woodwork??
Let's see a photo, please.
Cheers, crowie


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## mgmine (Jan 16, 2012)

Craig I think you are right about it looking like a mess if you stained it. No matter what you do it will still look bad (IMHO) I would paint it with a good brand of Acrylic enamel like Sherwin Williams. What ever you do don't use a semi gloss paint on it, semi gloss is not hard enough for furniture and gives a bad finish.


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## AndyL (Jun 3, 2011)

mgmine said:


> What ever you do don't use a semi gloss paint on it, semi gloss is not hard enough for furniture and gives a bad finish.


While regular emulsion (latex) paint wouldn't be tough enough on its own, you can put a water-based polyurethane varnish over the top for a hard-wearing finish. I did that on a bookcase a few years ago and it's holding up perfectly so far.


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## JOAT (Apr 9, 2010)

tkleff said:


> That said, what would happen if I tried to stain it? Would you expect the stains to take differently to each type of wood and make a mess?


Yep, I would expect stains to take differently to each type of wood. Make a mess? Depends on what you mean by mess. 

Me, I say stain it. It'll be a learning experience, and you might wind up liking the results. And, if you don't like it, you can always paint it.


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## tkleff (Feb 5, 2012)

Hey All -- 

Thanks for the notes. 

I'm partial to the idea of staining it -- with full knowledge that if it fails, then I can paint over it anyway. It's just some wasted time -- but time that I enjoy spending on the project anyway.

With that in mind, it leads to the next couple of questions: 

1) what kind of stain would you suggest? 
2) I have sanded the pieces as I installed them; I expect to do a fine sand at the end of the project. What grit sandpaper would you recommend I sand down to? 
3) The desk includes two drawers - would you suggest staing the drawers and the underside of the desk? how about the inside of the desk enclosure?
4) With paint, I undertand I normally prime underneath the paint coat -- is there any primer of any sort required for stain? 
5) After the stain is on, do you recommend a final coat on top -- is it called a sealer? 
6) Does the sealer change the look of the stain? If not, can I just paint over the stain, or would I need to paint primer over the stain, then paint with a few coats? 

Help always appreciated. 


Thanks!

--cek. 

ps - trying to upload photo -- didn't have url just image on desktop -- I'll work on it.


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## tkleff (Feb 5, 2012)

*desk photo*

i think I figured it out. here's the desk I want to stain (with the multiple wood types). 

thoughts always appreciated. 

cek.


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## Knothead47 (Feb 10, 2010)

Stain it. My wife painted the vanity in our master bath. Looks like something you get at Wally World.


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## c-123 (Jan 10, 2012)

*Stain/paint*

Contrasting colors of wood can make a project become outstanding. My suggestion would be to use a light colored stain and see the result. If it seems offensive then go with the paint color of your choice. Water base polyurethane would be my choice.

David


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## dustmagnet (Jul 24, 2012)

if you stain it then put poly on, be sure the stain and poly are the same base, oil or water.


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## tkleff (Feb 5, 2012)

Knothead47 said:


> Stain it. My wife painted the vanity in our master bath. Looks like something you get at Wally World.


But do you LIKE Wally World?


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## mgmine (Jan 16, 2012)

If you stain it and put a varnish on it then that is the way you will have to leave it. It is very difficult to get a paint job to stick on top of varnish. You can sand it or use chemicals but paint and varnish don't go well together. As far as paint Acrylic enamal is the best product. Talk to someone at Sherwin Williams.


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## JOAT (Apr 9, 2010)

WAAAY too many types and colors of stains for me to recommend any to you. If it was me, I'd read up on various types and try what sounds/looks best to you. 

There's Rit dye, walnut husks, food dyes, then all the regular wood dyes, tea, coffee, and the list goes on and on and on. So, you can see why I won't recommend any for you. I've tried tea, and it takes multiple applications, but I like the look, dries fast too. Coffe dries a lot slower then tea, but ends up dark easier. Wanut husks soaked in water work, but if you get it on you it will stain you for days. Next time I dye any wood it will be for a chess set and I'm going to try Rit clothing dye, in alcohol, only tried it with water or oil before.


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## Relative (Apr 24, 2008)

Recently, my wife purchased a painted mirror frame that was quite elaborate. After stripping it, I discovered it was put together with various woods - no idea what they were. But it looked obvious to me that stain might not be the answer. However, after some investigation with the paint guy at my local Ace Hardware I wound up using a Chestnut Gel Stain by Minwax. The key was to use the Minwax wood pre-conditioner. That seemed to allow the stain to apply with the same amount of darkness over the entire surface. I tried it on the back of the frame first and liked what I saw. One coat of the conditioner and two coats of the Gel Stain did the trick to match the frame to our Chestnut bedroom furniture. It looks great and I am now a supporter of Gel stains.

Mike Cebula


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