This is exactly the video we needed. I co-own a small remodeling company and we needed some expert guidance for the staircase we are currently doing. Most videos on staining wood are for furniture and your video shows some distinct and important differences for stairs (like using mineral spirits rather than wood conditioner and not using as fine of grit of sand paper). Thanks so much for your detailed description of every step. I have no unanswered questions after this video (and I am an engineer so Iam very thorough🤓). You really hit it all including safety and cleanliness. I also appreciated you filming it as Day 1-5 so we have a good estimate of hours. Excellent work. Thanks so much!!
Oh nice! I’m glad you found it helpful! I’ve got another staircase coming up in January that I’ll be filming as well. I hope your staircase project turns out well! 🫡
Thanks for a great video. I am about to do this to a staircase. I am more experienced as a painter than a stainer so I found this helpful. But I was wondering about the painting. you free handed it and did a good job but I could see that where the riser met the step it wasn't always perfect. Is there a reason you didn't use tape on the steps to protect them and make a straighter line between the paint and stain? How did you keep the paint from running down? For me to keep the paint off the step without tape would have taken a tremendous amount of time, thanks
Thanks for watching and for the questions. Couple things. I’ve got a new video coming out next week on doing another set of stairs with my current process. You’d probably be interested in that. I no longer use oil primer and I’ve switched over to fresh start which is acrylic and way more pleasant to work with. I’ve gone back and forth on taping the treads before painting. Currently I still prefer to freehand them. They may not look perfect up close but when they’re viewed from where most people will see them they look nice. I’ve done a lot of staircases so I’ve had a lot of reps. I’m quite comfortable cutting clean lines with emerald urethane. That being said, when I do tape I use yellow frog tape on the treads. That’ll get you solid results as well, particularly if you use Fresh Start instead of an oil primer or BIN on the risers. The oil and BIN tend to seep under the tape which looks like sh*t.
Thanks for the reply. I agree that frog tape seems to do best. I'm not trying the yellow but I can certainly do that as well. Glad to hear about the latex primer. I'm looking forward to that new video
This is exactly the video I have been looking for. Very through and detailed. I'm sure I will be able to do a fantastic job on my stairs. I will study this video several more times before I start the process. The end result was absolutely stunning. Thank you for your professional video.
I just got a new oak wood staircase installed. I am looking to stain the treads, and paint the risers white. What I want to know is, can oak wood be painted? If I am to paint the risers white, will the paint go on smoothly, and will the wood grain be covered up? Thanks!
You can paint the oak. The best product combination that I have been using recently is to prime the risers with Fresh Start Primer from Benjamin Moore. It does a great job covering up any stain that may have gotten on the risers from staining the treads. Then go over it with your preferred trim paint. I'm a big fan of Emerald Urethane Trim-Enamel. If there is any tannin bleed-through then you may have to spot prime those areas with some Shellac, but you should probably be just fine with the fresh start.
Very cool and informative video 😀 I actually just startet too sand down our stairs who has been status quo for 40 years with lacquer. Starting now with 60 gritt and want too end up with 180 I think 🤔 Other videos that I have watched are strong bellivers of using conditioning before staining. Is the thinner doing the same job ? Best regards Mikael from Norway 🇳🇴
Thanks Mikael. Yes the thinner does the same job as the conditioner. You can't go wrong with the conditioner. We've had great results with the thinner, it has a potent smell tho. Good luck on our stair project!
We are towards the end of a 2 year self build and we have stairs coming up, which we’ve never done before. We’re too exhausted and under heavy time crunch now to spend much time researching how to do this. How you show every step from start to finish with just the right amount of explanations is perfect! This video was a little time investment that was absolutely worth all the time it has saved me and I feel way more confident now going into this project. A HUGE thank you!!
Thanks brah. Helped me out a lot with my current project. Trying to bring back to life a very old set of stairs. Must be over 100 years old at least. It was looking like a disaster, now it's starting to come back to life again. The stainer, wood filler and sanding is coming along fine. Just one question: I used wood colour filler and didn't have enough to finish. I used a white colour filler. After sanding do you think the white patches will have to be painted or should the stainer be enough?
I am not sure how that filler will take the stain. I’d run the stain over it and see how it looks. I usually use a tinted wood filler after the stairs have been stained and have one coat of poly. I’ve found that it gives me the best result.
Overall a good video but just a few points I think would be better advice for your viewers. You know they sell paintable caulk right? I think you were actually using it. DAP Alex paintable caulk . You are supposed to let the caulk skin over or dry completely unless spraying your paint on (as per DAP directions. There is nothing wrong with letting it fully dried before painting. Also, several light coats of paint will look much better than applying “heavy” coats of paint.
The caulk we use is Powerhouse from Sherwin Williams and it dries quickly. In my experience it’s a better product than DAP which I’ve used quite a bit. As long as the caulk is dry then you’re good to go. I’m not sure what you mean by “light coats”. With the products I use, like emerald urethane, you’ve got to put enough on so that the product can level out. You’d have to give me measurements to clarify what you mean by light and heavy.
Do you ever use something like a random orbit sander to prep the treads for stain instead of hand sanding everything? I’ve done a few stair cases where we have refaced and treaded the stairs with red oak treads and I’ve always prepped with an orbital equipped with fine grit sandpaper and then stained and applied the first coat of poly prior to the install. Just curious your opinion on that method, it’s been working for me well so far but always looking for a better way to do things.
The random orbit sander is an excellent choice. Usually when I'm brought in to do the treads, they're new and have been protected so I'm not doing a lot of sanding. Recently, I've had a few instances where I had to do more sanding then I would like. I'm interested in setting up my Festool with a finer grit sandpaper and giving it a go. I know there are good methods to do it, I've just also seen it where folks have used those tools improperly and put a bunch of swirls and weird patterns in the wood.
Great job! Thanks for this. Quick question.....Can i paint white on a stained riser? I have stained my thread and riser before deciding to paint riser white and stain tread alone.
Yes you can paint the risers. Check out this newer video I did on my stair process. I use fresh start primer and then emerald urethane for the exact process you’re asking about. I hope it’s helpful! Stain Stairs like a Pro th-cam.com/video/wro_ABm9blg/w-d-xo.html
Did you say you use the corona Cortez brush to apply the stain? I thought you need to use a natural brush fiber for oil based stains. The Cortez brush is a polyester blend right?
You’ll get a good idea of what things will look like when you wet it down with mineral spirits. Do a test area with your stain and see how it looks. If it looks weird then you can sand it down some more. The main thing is that you’re trying to get the surfaces to take the stain evenly.
Thank you for this great video. I followed your instructions and they were very helpful. When I went to purchase the Johnson wax I couldn't believe Pennsylvania was on Amazon, $169. Do you have any other recommendations for wax on top of polyurethane? Thank you.
Sorry about the wax. They no longer make that product anymore and I’m on my last container of it. I will be quite sad when it runs out because I haven’t found a good replacement for it yet 😔
I did see It all the Amazon for that huge price. Do you put it on all your services, like in table's a coffee too? We're worried about water stands on those so maybe it's worth biting the bullet and getting it for all those surfaces.
Haha, I’m glad it was useful. Here’s an updated version of that process Stain and Poly Your Staircase. Pro's Complete System th-cam.com/video/wro_ABm9blg/w-d-xo.html I think we barely used any porn music.
In my experience that’s not necessary. You just want to lightly sand in between coats. Although, I’m sure there are some sanding techniques that would work in between coats. I’ve just never used them for that 🤷♂️
Thanks Rt L. Electric sander my friend. Don't go too deep and you can finish sand with regular sandpaper. Do a test step first as well. We don't use stripper much, but maybe that could be a solution as well.
I'm about to strip and restain my treads to match. You had all raw wood, outside of: chemical stripper, LOTS of sanding really well and wiping with mineral spirits, any recommendations? Also which poly should I use? I have a Sherwin Williams custom tint water based wipe on stain. Thanks for the instruction, I was just here to find out which comes first, stain/finish treads or paint risers, but this was a great video! I also have Emerald trim paint, what a game changer when painting the rest of my house, it came out so smooth! Can't wait to take off all my doors and paint those! DR Horton did such a crap job on finishes, can't wait to finish giving this house the finishes it deserves.
I’d go with sanding and wiping with mineral spirits. You can use a belt sander but you gotta be careful as to not wreck the wood and you’ll still end up doing a fair amount of hand sanding. Chemical stripping is the other option, but I am not a fan. That’s not to say that it’s not effective, it’s just that the chemicals are pretty nasty and it can get messy if you’re not use to doing it.
Super helpful video! My 4 yo daughter was equally engrossed and complained if I tilted the screen away from her at all. 😂 We are about to replace our newel posts, handrails, and balusters (paying someone for that) - and sand down our stairs. We plan to sand, stain and poly ourselves. We are concerned about making the treads too slick. Would keeping the final sanding of the treads (pre staining) at a lower grit (like 100?) help prevent them from being too slick? I've also seen polyurethane that was specifically marketed for floors. Would that be good for the treads and still the handrails/newel posts? Do you have a poly you prefer? Thanks so much for the super helpful video and any info you're willing to share.
I’m glad it was helpful! My 2 year old likes that one too 🤷♂️. I totally understand the concern about the treads being too slick. In my experience they’re plenty grippy as long as you don’t sand after the last coat of poly. I like ZAR polyurethane. I usually use the satin version. You can usually find it at Benjamin Moore retailers.
They came out awesome; it is a lot of work, I should know, we are removing carpet and putting new maple threads in dark walnut and poplar risers in white; do you ever use a pre-stain conditioner on the threads? Also for durability, we are looking to apply Bona Traffic on both threads and risers and wondering if you think that will work, any advise would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much, enjoy your channel😊
I don’t have any experience with Bona products, but they seam to have a good reputation. The conditioner will do something similar to the treads as hitting them with mineral spirits. It’s prepping the wood to take the stain. Bona Traffic appears to be a solid product, but I’ve never used it. The process will be similar to what you saw me do in the video. Good luck with your stairs!
Thank you for sharing this video👍@25:20, I am wondering why the stain is mixed into the ploy? how much stain need to be mixed in? In my previous DIY project, I just stained then apply the clear ploy coat, but I was not very happy with the result. Could this process be a reason? Thanks.
Maybe, but not likely. I put some stain (little bit) in the poly because it will hid any light spots I missed on the original stain coat. I like the finish better when I do that.
Hello! Fisrt i have to tell you that I really Appreciate your Channel, very professional. And i have a question, if you have to caulk the stairs edges does the stain stays and looks the same color? And what type of Caulk do you recommend? Thank You.
Thank you kindly good sir. I’m not quite certain what you’re referring to when you say stair edges. I would only caulk a painted surface into another painted surface like the riser into the skirt board / stringer. There’s no part of a stained piece of stair that I would caulk.
Great suggestion of adding stain to poly! Are you fan of using a new clean sock for stain instead of brush in any projects if goal is to make it dark as possible. I'm planning on staining stairs black.
You can rag it on. In general the wood is going to take a set amount of the stain. I haven’t found much of a difference between brushing it on or ragging it on as far as making it darker.
That is unfortunate. I’ve used Minwax finishing wax and it’s ok. I’d try any finish wax made for wood. There’s several options on Amazon. I’ll have to figure that out myself when I run through my stash of SC Johnson.
How much time should you wait between coats when staining? And when you sand between polyurethane, do you use a manual hand sander or a mechanical sander?
You can do the first coat of poly within an hour of applying the stain. The poly I used dries in about 2 hours. I usually wait at least 2 hours between coats. I hand sand with 220 between coats of poly.
Thanks for that! The quote is going to depend slightly on the cost of living in your area. If they're doing a similar process to what you saw me do in the video then it's likely going to be between $1,650 and $2,890. Again, I'm basing this off of a similar job guessing and what I would charge. If you run into issues with the quote or have more questions, just leave a new comment on any of our videos. Good luck with your project!
Im wax would be your other option. You can order ZAR online as well if you can’t find what you’re looking for in a store. ZAR® Interior Oil Base Stain, Quart, Color - Silk Gray a.co/d/ir54szN
Very useful, I pre stained with conditioner and also taped my risers all and use a satin poly on the treads but I really like what you did and may try it especially like how you used the same brush to do the poly and mixing in the color with the poly !!!!SO SMART!!!! I like the cut pot you use too because for whatever reason I thought I could only use metal or glass with my oil stains and polys. Really awesome video thank you again! So helpful !
I'll preface this response with saying that I'm not a carpenter. However, it's been my experience that things tend to get dinged up during installation. All of the stairs I have ever worked on (which have been many) have been raw wood during installation and then I stain and poly after everything has been installed. You could probably stain before you install and then poly after they're installed? It just depends on your level of confidence in your carpentry and finish skills. I'm not sure you'd be saving any time staining them before installation, but again I don't know the type of staircase you're building out. Apologies for the rambling response, but there you go. Good luck with your project!
You may find this video useful as well. It’s my updated sequence for the same type of project Stain Stairs like a Pro th-cam.com/video/wro_ABm9blg/w-d-xo.html
I definitely did not charge near enough on my first couple of staircases, if that makes you feel any better. It’s one of the more technical and difficult jobs to do well. I’m not telling you what to do, but its not a bad idea to track your hours this time around so that you can adjust your price for the next one. Make sure to give yourself enough margin so that you don’t feel rushed while doing the work.
I wanted to thank you for your video. I am in the middle of redoing my stairs, sanding/staining/sealing the treads and painting the risers. This was very helpful. I am pretty good with a brush but not sure about painting without taping. How long does the poly need to cure before taping with the yellow frog tape?
You should be good to tape into the poly after about 24 hours if you’re using the yellow variety of frog tape. I’d recommend not leaving it on the treads for over 48 hours. The glue from the tape can form too strong of a bond and you can run into issues when you go to remove it. I’m glad the video was helpful! Good luck with your project 😃
Very nice video. I am a big time DIYer for everything. I just finished building my new staircase (first one I've done) and I grossly underestimated the amount of work that it is. Now that the build is done, I'm looking forward to the finishing process and you've detailed it nicely and I have saved this video for reference. Thank you! Dig the music. Is that vaporwave? And yes. I am into skiing. 🤣
Thanks for the kind words. Not sure what the music is, my editor (and cousin) did the editing for that video. Good luck on the staircase, hope it turns out how you want it!
Hi, just wondering if your method of staining differs depending on the species of wood, ie closed vs open grain woods. I know stained maple in particular can turn out blotchy.
The staining method changes for exotic hard woods like mahogany. Those woods you have to use a specialty stain like Penofin and you can't do a high build on it. Which means you just use the stain and can't do polyurethane. For everything else, my process is the same as I did in this video.
I caulked the painted parts of the risers and the stringers. I did not caulk the treads into the risers because that would negatively impact the staining and polyurethaning.
Hi, started watching quite a few of your videos. Thank you for doing an excellent job in explaining your projects. I will be finishing a new stair rail. Will be painting the caps and applying a finish. The wood is white oak, which looks great. I don't want to stain the newels or handrails, only apply a finish. Looking for more of a matt look than lacquer type of shine. - Do you feel it's okay to only add a finish to raw/new wood? - Do you think the Johnson paste wax would help in sealing? Appreciate your time and expertise!
If you like the look of the wood then you can just go straight over it with a polyurethane. If you want a matte finish I’d go with Zars oil based interior in the matte finish. Do a small section and see if you like the look of it. The Johnson paste wax is great for smoothing things out after all of your poly has dried. Good luck with your project!
I’m so sad I didn’t get pre finished treads this is a lot work, I didn’t realize you had to sand between urethane coats. A friend gave me a sealant and I applied one coat to one tread and realized I want to go dark like your mocha- now I’m really stressed wondering if I can sand down that tread and restain with a darker stain. We just installed see treads that have like a natural blond color (unfinished)
Yes you can absolutely sand off the sealer. You can use 100 grit to get the majority of it then hit it with 150 to smooth it out a bit. Wipe it down with mineral spirits and then apply your new stain. Sanding between coats of poly is just to keep things smooth and remove some of the particulate that settles in the poly as it dries. It’s less important on treads than on the handrails. You don’t want the treads to be too smooth cause then they get slippery.
Hey Vassar Brothers, currently refinishing my interior stairs, what is the difference between (1) mixing the stain and poly opposed to just (2) applying 100% poly to the stained stairs?
I prefer to add a dash of stain to the poly to tint it. A little goes a long way, so don’t over do it. In my opinion it darkens the poly and gives you a better looking finish particularly if you have some lighter spots in the staining. Generally tinting the poly will give you a more consistent / uniform looking finish. Good luck with your project homie 🤙
You are excellent at what you do In the future, could you show us more technique then go into time lapse Showing us how the filling goes with the minwax filler for example It is probably easy but.... Thanks
Another question I'm using Zar Poly OMU After the first coat I went to use 220 grit and it didn't powder up but took off some stain so I stopped What am I doing wrong?
I didn’t cover the treads while I painted the risers and stringers because I need to see the treads to cut a clean line. I also didn’t get any paint on the stained and polyed treads 😉
My oak stairs have been left unfinished for 5 years. Has some paper coverage on the steps, but noticed the risers where the wood was no covered has discoloration due to the sun. Can the riser be sanded and stained if parts of the riser are uv damaged? Hiw deep does the uv damage penetrate?
You’ll have to determine that on site. There’s no way for me to know based on your comment. If you’re going to stain them, then I’d recommend sanding until a uniform color is achieved then stain and poly.
@SuperVassarBrothers Thank you. What would you recommend to sand the riser with tool wise? Believe the risers have a 2mm thick oak veneer. 1. So a floor sander would be to heavy of a sand , perhaps an orbital sander would work, or sand it hand? 2. Would you use the same grit levels on the risers as you did on the tread? I hope the sun damage will be removed in sanding lightly the top layer off (i.e und we 1 mm), otherwise may be painting the risers white as you did it the video. That the most popular style people want these days? May be selling thr house soon, so the stairs finish be more for someone else.
Since the treads are new, is there a reason they aren’t stained and polyed before they’re installed? And the risers and stringers side trim painted before the treads are installed? Especially for a homeowner doing a DIY.
Unless they’re using prefinished treads, which I have seen, most carpenters are going to be using raw wood. That’s not my call…I’m just the painter. In this video the stringers were previously painted but they needed to be repainted after the staircase work. I understand the appeal of what you’re describing, but I’ve never seen it done like that. Even if you pre-finished all the pieces, you’d still have a lot of work to do after the install. Filling nail holes, caulking, sanding, and probably at least one more top coat on the stringers and risers.
My preference is microfiber rags. If I don't have any of those, then I use whatever rags I have in my truck. It's a very similar end process to waxing a car. I try and use rags that don't have a lot of lint.
The stain gets wiped off with rags after it gets brushed on, so there's no issues with brush marks there. You will however, get brush marks applying the polyurethane, which is unavoidable. You can mitigate it somewhat, by putting enough product on so that it levels out and sanding between coats.
That somewhat depends on what the cost of living is in the area you are working. Staining stairs correctly takes a good amount of time. You should aim for between $1,500 and $2,500 for something that is similar to what I did in the video. Good luck with your job!
I’ve done it both ways. You can see me tape them in this video: Paint a Staircase like a Pro th-cam.com/video/lUxBwdsAE7I/w-d-xo.html I prefer not to tape, but you can give it a go if you’d be more comfortable taping it out.
In my experience cleaning and opening the grain with mineral spirits does the same thing as wood conditioner. I’ve never had an issue with the wood taking the stain well after my prep process. I have used wood conditioners in the past and it didn’t seem to make a difference at least to me 🤷♂️
Excellent question. Polyurethane provides a protective coating to raw or stained wood. It seals in all of the pours and if applied properly has a smooth and shiny finish (depending on what sheen you choose). On things like the handrails in this video, it makes them very smooth and prevents splintering, which would be no fun in a handrail. Long story short, polyurethane is applied to wooden surfaces to protect the finish, protect the wood, and provide a smooth durable surface that will hold up to wear and tear and cleaning.
I can show more of that on the next one. I’m pretty sure I’m doing another staircase soon. Use the tinted putties and do it after the first coat of poly. Smear a bit in each hole then lightly sand and wipe away the excess.
We’re in the process of doing our stairs and I have a question about the putty, you suggest not filling any wholes prior to staining and poly? Just apply it after staining? We definitely have touch ups to do but I want to do it the right way. Any info you have would be greatly appreciated Thank you!
This is exactly the video we needed. I co-own a small remodeling company and we needed some expert guidance for the staircase we are currently doing. Most videos on staining wood are for furniture and your video shows some distinct and important differences for stairs (like using mineral spirits rather than wood conditioner and not using as fine of grit of sand paper). Thanks so much for your detailed description of every step. I have no unanswered questions after this video (and I am an engineer so Iam very thorough🤓). You really hit it all including safety and cleanliness. I also appreciated you filming it as Day 1-5 so we have a good estimate of hours. Excellent work. Thanks so much!!
Oh nice! I’m glad you found it helpful! I’ve got another staircase coming up in January that I’ll be filming as well. I hope your staircase project turns out well! 🫡
Thanks for a great video. I am about to do this to a staircase. I am more experienced as a painter than a stainer so I found this helpful. But I was wondering about the painting. you free handed it and did a good job but I could see that where the riser met the step it wasn't always perfect. Is there a reason you didn't use tape on the steps to protect them and make a straighter line between the paint and stain? How did you keep the paint from running down? For me to keep the paint off the step without tape would have taken a tremendous amount of time, thanks
Thanks for watching and for the questions. Couple things. I’ve got a new video coming out next week on doing another set of stairs with my current process. You’d probably be interested in that. I no longer use oil primer and I’ve switched over to fresh start which is acrylic and way more pleasant to work with. I’ve gone back and forth on taping the treads before painting. Currently I still prefer to freehand them. They may not look perfect up close but when they’re viewed from where most people will see them they look nice. I’ve done a lot of staircases so I’ve had a lot of reps. I’m quite comfortable cutting clean lines with emerald urethane. That being said, when I do tape I use yellow frog tape on the treads. That’ll get you solid results as well, particularly if you use Fresh Start instead of an oil primer or BIN on the risers. The oil and BIN tend to seep under the tape which looks like sh*t.
Thanks for the reply. I agree that frog tape seems to do best. I'm not trying the yellow but I can certainly do that as well. Glad to hear about the latex primer. I'm looking forward to that new video
Sorry, I meant to say that I haven't tried the yellow yet. 😊
This is exactly the video I have been looking for. Very through and detailed. I'm sure I will be able to do a fantastic job on my stairs. I will study this video several more times before I start the process. The end result was absolutely stunning. Thank you for your professional video.
You are most welcome! I'm glad you found the video useful!
Good luck with your job!
I just got a new oak wood staircase installed. I am looking to stain the treads, and paint the risers white. What I want to know is, can oak wood be painted? If I am to paint the risers white, will the paint go on smoothly, and will the wood grain be covered up? Thanks!
You can paint the oak. The best product combination that I have been using recently is to prime the risers with Fresh Start Primer from Benjamin Moore. It does a great job covering up any stain that may have gotten on the risers from staining the treads. Then go over it with your preferred trim paint. I'm a big fan of Emerald Urethane Trim-Enamel. If there is any tannin bleed-through then you may have to spot prime those areas with some Shellac, but you should probably be just fine with the fresh start.
Very cool and informative video 😀
I actually just startet too sand down our stairs who has been status quo for 40 years with lacquer. Starting now with 60 gritt and want too end up with 180 I think 🤔
Other videos that I have watched are strong bellivers of using conditioning before staining. Is the thinner doing the same job ?
Best regards Mikael from Norway 🇳🇴
Thanks Mikael. Yes the thinner does the same job as the conditioner. You can't go wrong with the conditioner. We've had great results with the thinner, it has a potent smell tho. Good luck on our stair project!
@@SuperVassarBrothers thank you 😊
Is it necessary to mix the stain with the polyurethane?
Nope. It’s not necessary. Sometimes I do it and sometimes I don’t
Why don't you apply stain to the treads before mounting them?
That is a strategy. For our workflow and working with the carpenters its more efficient to stain and poly after construction
We are towards the end of a 2 year self build and we have stairs coming up, which we’ve never done before. We’re too exhausted and under heavy time crunch now to spend much time researching how to do this. How you show every step from start to finish with just the right amount of explanations is perfect! This video was a little time investment that was absolutely worth all the time it has saved me and I feel way more confident now going into this project. A HUGE thank you!!
Happy to help and thanks for watching. Good luck on the stairs!
Thanks brah. Helped me out a lot with my current project. Trying to bring back to life a very old set of stairs. Must be over 100 years old at least. It was looking like a disaster, now it's starting to come back to life again. The stainer, wood filler and sanding is coming along fine.
Just one question: I used wood colour filler and didn't have enough to finish. I used a white colour filler. After sanding do you think the white patches will have to be painted or should the stainer be enough?
I am not sure how that filler will take the stain. I’d run the stain over it and see how it looks. I usually use a tinted wood filler after the stairs have been stained and have one coat of poly. I’ve found that it gives me the best result.
Overall a good video but just a few points I think would be better advice for your viewers. You know they sell paintable caulk right? I think you were actually using it. DAP Alex paintable caulk .
You are supposed to let the caulk skin over or dry completely unless spraying your paint on (as per DAP directions. There is nothing wrong with letting it fully dried before painting.
Also, several light coats of paint will look much better than applying “heavy” coats of paint.
The caulk we use is Powerhouse from Sherwin Williams and it dries quickly. In my experience it’s a better product than DAP which I’ve used quite a bit. As long as the caulk is dry then you’re good to go. I’m not sure what you mean by “light coats”. With the products I use, like emerald urethane, you’ve got to put enough on so that the product can level out. You’d have to give me measurements to clarify what you mean by light and heavy.
Do you ever use something like a random orbit sander to prep the treads for stain instead of hand sanding everything? I’ve done a few stair cases where we have refaced and treaded the stairs with red oak treads and I’ve always prepped with an orbital equipped with fine grit sandpaper and then stained and applied the first coat of poly prior to the install. Just curious your opinion on that method, it’s been working for me well so far but always looking for a better way to do things.
The random orbit sander is an excellent choice. Usually when I'm brought in to do the treads, they're new and have been protected so I'm not doing a lot of sanding. Recently, I've had a few instances where I had to do more sanding then I would like. I'm interested in setting up my Festool with a finer grit sandpaper and giving it a go. I know there are good methods to do it, I've just also seen it where folks have used those tools improperly and put a bunch of swirls and weird patterns in the wood.
Great job! Thanks for this. Quick question.....Can i paint white on a stained riser? I have stained my thread and riser before deciding to paint riser white and stain tread alone.
Yes you can paint the risers. Check out this newer video I did on my stair process. I use fresh start primer and then emerald urethane for the exact process you’re asking about. I hope it’s helpful! Stain Stairs like a Pro
th-cam.com/video/wro_ABm9blg/w-d-xo.html
What type of white paint should be used for the risers
My current favorite is Emerald Urethane Trim Enamel from Sherwin Williams. We usually use it in the untinted extra white base.
Did you say you use the corona Cortez brush to apply the stain? I thought you need to use a natural brush fiber for oil based stains. The Cortez brush is a polyester blend right?
Both work. You just need to use mineral spirits to clean it out.
How do you know if you sanded enough? I ripped up carpet on my steps inside , looks ok but unsure if it’s down enough
You’ll get a good idea of what things will look like when you wet it down with mineral spirits. Do a test area with your stain and see how it looks. If it looks weird then you can sand it down some more. The main thing is that you’re trying to get the surfaces to take the stain evenly.
Thank you for this great video. I followed your instructions and they were very helpful. When I went to purchase the Johnson wax I couldn't believe Pennsylvania was on Amazon, $169. Do you have any other recommendations for wax on top of polyurethane? Thank you.
Sorry about the wax. They no longer make that product anymore and I’m on my last container of it. I will be quite sad when it runs out because I haven’t found a good replacement for it yet 😔
I did see It all the Amazon for that huge price. Do you put it on all your services, like in table's a coffee too? We're worried about water stands on those so maybe it's worth biting the bullet and getting it for all those surfaces.
The best video I ever watched I subscribe
Thanks Nada. Pretty sure its not the best video you ever watched, but we'll take any compliment we can get. Thanks :)
Thank you for the video 90's porn music 🎵 aside this was so helpful.
Haha, I’m glad it was useful. Here’s an updated version of that process Stain and Poly Your Staircase. Pro's Complete System
th-cam.com/video/wro_ABm9blg/w-d-xo.html
I think we barely used any porn music.
Great video. Do I put the stain on before the mineral spirits dry?
It doesn’t really matter. I usually give it about 20 minutes after I put the mineral spirits on before I start laying down the stain
is it ok to use a sander machine to sand in between poly coats? rather than by hand?
In my experience that’s not necessary. You just want to lightly sand in between coats. Although, I’m sure there are some sanding techniques that would work in between coats. I’ve just never used them for that 🤷♂️
That looks amazing. Incidental question: how do you suggest removing old latex paint from (stained) wood steps?
Thanks Rt L. Electric sander my friend. Don't go too deep and you can finish sand with regular sandpaper. Do a test step first as well. We don't use stripper much, but maybe that could be a solution as well.
Do you apply polyurethane to the risers after they are painted or just the stained treads?
Just the stained treads. No risers. Good luck Mr. Powers
What grit sandpaper did you use to sand the treads?
You can use 150 or 220
Did you mix the stain with the polly on the second and third coat as well?
There was still a bit mixed for those coats. A little stain goes a long way.
@@SuperVassarBrothers thank you so much
Amazing work. Thank you so much for all this great information. We look forward to going through previous and future videos.
You're welcome! Thanks for watching!
Dont the stairs get slippery?
as slippery as any stained and polyurethaned wood i suppose.
I'm about to strip and restain my treads to match. You had all raw wood, outside of: chemical stripper, LOTS of sanding really well and wiping with mineral spirits, any recommendations? Also which poly should I use? I have a Sherwin Williams custom tint water based wipe on stain. Thanks for the instruction, I was just here to find out which comes first, stain/finish treads or paint risers, but this was a great video! I also have Emerald trim paint, what a game changer when painting the rest of my house, it came out so smooth! Can't wait to take off all my doors and paint those! DR Horton did such a crap job on finishes, can't wait to finish giving this house the finishes it deserves.
I’d go with sanding and wiping with mineral spirits. You can use a belt sander but you gotta be careful as to not wreck the wood and you’ll still end up doing a fair amount of hand sanding.
Chemical stripping is the other option, but I am not a fan. That’s not to say that it’s not effective, it’s just that the chemicals are pretty nasty and it can get messy if you’re not use to doing it.
Super helpful video! My 4 yo daughter was equally engrossed and complained if I tilted the screen away from her at all. 😂
We are about to replace our newel posts, handrails, and balusters (paying someone for that) - and sand down our stairs. We plan to sand, stain and poly ourselves. We are concerned about making the treads too slick. Would keeping the final sanding of the treads (pre staining) at a lower grit (like 100?) help prevent them from being too slick? I've also seen polyurethane that was specifically marketed for floors. Would that be good for the treads and still the handrails/newel posts? Do you have a poly you prefer? Thanks so much for the super helpful video and any info you're willing to share.
I’m glad it was helpful! My 2 year old likes that one too 🤷♂️.
I totally understand the concern about the treads being too slick. In my experience they’re plenty grippy as long as you don’t sand after the last coat of poly.
I like ZAR polyurethane. I usually use the satin version. You can usually find it at Benjamin Moore retailers.
Great job 👌🏼
Thanks! 🤙
They came out awesome; it is a lot of work, I should know, we are removing carpet and putting new maple threads in dark walnut and poplar risers in white; do you ever use a pre-stain conditioner on the threads? Also for durability, we are looking to apply Bona Traffic on both threads and risers and wondering if you think that will work, any advise would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much, enjoy your channel😊
I don’t have any experience with Bona products, but they seam to have a good reputation. The conditioner will do something similar to the treads as hitting them with mineral spirits. It’s prepping the wood to take the stain. Bona Traffic appears to be a solid product, but I’ve never used it. The process will be similar to what you saw me do in the video.
Good luck with your stairs!
Thank you for sharing this video👍@25:20, I am wondering why the stain is mixed into the ploy? how much stain need to be mixed in? In my previous DIY project, I just stained then apply the clear ploy coat, but I was not very happy with the result. Could this process be a reason? Thanks.
Maybe, but not likely. I put some stain (little bit) in the poly because it will hid any light spots I missed on the original stain coat. I like the finish better when I do that.
Hello! Fisrt i have to tell you that I really Appreciate your Channel, very professional.
And i have a question, if you have to caulk the stairs edges does the stain stays and looks the same color? And what type of Caulk do you recommend? Thank You.
Thank you kindly good sir.
I’m not quite certain what you’re referring to when you say stair edges. I would only caulk a painted surface into another painted surface like the riser into the skirt board / stringer. There’s no part of a stained piece of stair that I would caulk.
You tolking so much....
I’ll do the next one in complete silence
Great suggestion of adding stain to poly! Are you fan of using a new clean sock for stain instead of brush in any projects if goal is to make it dark as possible. I'm planning on staining stairs black.
You can rag it on. In general the wood is going to take a set amount of the stain. I haven’t found much of a difference between brushing it on or ragging it on as far as making it darker.
With oils based products now being replaced with water based. What water based primer and stain products you recommend for going over wood?
I still use oil based products. I don’t have any water based products to recommend for a project like this although they do exist.
I can't seem to find the SC Johnson wax anywhere. I've read that its discontinued. Whats the next product you recommend using?
That is unfortunate. I’ve used Minwax finishing wax and it’s ok. I’d try any finish wax made for wood. There’s several options on Amazon. I’ll have to figure that out myself when I run through my stash of SC Johnson.
Great video! Wondering what that light you used on your brush during the painting of the risers and stringer was? Thanks
The light on my hat is an Olight Baton 3 or the Baton S2R II
How much time should you wait between coats when staining? And when you sand between polyurethane, do you use a manual hand sander or a mechanical sander?
You can do the first coat of poly within an hour of applying the stain. The poly I used dries in about 2 hours. I usually wait at least 2 hours between coats. I hand sand with 220 between coats of poly.
Wow, Awesome job, getting ready to do the same job to my steps, you answer so many good questions, Thank you for this video and for all your help!!
I’m glad you found it helpful! Good luck with your stairs!
Very skilled work, I wish you were in my area. Would you mind sharing approximately what I should expect quotes to come in at on a job like this?
Thanks for that! The quote is going to depend slightly on the cost of living in your area. If they're doing a similar process to what you saw me do in the video then it's likely going to be between $1,650 and $2,890. Again, I'm basing this off of a similar job guessing and what I would charge. If you run into issues with the quote or have more questions, just leave a new comment on any of our videos.
Good luck with your project!
excellent video with so much tips and tricks...I'm so happy I watched your video before I started my project!!
I hope it helps! Good luck with your project!
What other oil based interior staining would you recommend? I can't find a light gray colour from Zar unfortunately
Im wax would be your other option. You can order ZAR online as well if you can’t find what you’re looking for in a store.
ZAR® Interior Oil Base Stain, Quart, Color - Silk Gray a.co/d/ir54szN
Sorry for the typo
No worries!
What makes czar polyurethane better than all of the typical in-store brands by Minwax
For my purposes it's easier to apply and the dry time works well with my process.
Very useful, I pre stained with conditioner and also taped my risers all and use a satin poly on the treads but I really like what you did and may try it especially like how you used the same brush to do the poly and mixing in the color with the poly !!!!SO SMART!!!! I like the cut pot you use too because for whatever reason I thought I could only use metal or glass with my oil stains and polys. Really awesome video thank you again! So helpful !
I’m glad you found it useful! Staircases are a lot of work but it’s worth when they turn out well 🤙
Any reason not to stain the treads prior to installing them? I’m building the stairs myself so it wouldn’t be difficult.
I'll preface this response with saying that I'm not a carpenter. However, it's been my experience that things tend to get dinged up during installation. All of the stairs I have ever worked on (which have been many) have been raw wood during installation and then I stain and poly after everything has been installed. You could probably stain before you install and then poly after they're installed? It just depends on your level of confidence in your carpentry and finish skills. I'm not sure you'd be saving any time staining them before installation, but again I don't know the type of staircase you're building out.
Apologies for the rambling response, but there you go. Good luck with your project!
Looked beautiful. Going to be doing this soon. Nice color choice.
You may find this video useful as well. It’s my updated sequence for the same type of project Stain Stairs like a Pro
th-cam.com/video/wro_ABm9blg/w-d-xo.html
Very detailed. Appreciate it. Shocked you don't have more views. You take pride in your work, it's "clear" to see...poly joke.
Hahaha, I like the polyurethane related humor. Thanks for watching! I'm doing my best and we're growing. Lots more content coming!
Im in the middle of something just like tha Im questioning my self if I charge enough first time doing this
I definitely did not charge near enough on my first couple of staircases, if that makes you feel any better. It’s one of the more technical and difficult jobs to do well.
I’m not telling you what to do, but its not a bad idea to track your hours this time around so that you can adjust your price for the next one. Make sure to give yourself enough margin so that you don’t feel rushed while doing the work.
I wanted to thank you for your video. I am in the middle of redoing my stairs, sanding/staining/sealing the treads and painting the risers. This was very helpful. I am pretty good with a brush but not sure about painting without taping. How long does the poly need to cure before taping with the yellow frog tape?
You should be good to tape into the poly after about 24 hours if you’re using the yellow variety of frog tape. I’d recommend not leaving it on the treads for over 48 hours. The glue from the tape can form too strong of a bond and you can run into issues when you go to remove it.
I’m glad the video was helpful! Good luck with your project 😃
Thank you for taking the time to answer my question. I really appreciate it.
Very nice video. I am a big time DIYer for everything. I just finished building my new staircase (first one I've done) and I grossly underestimated the amount of work that it is. Now that the build is done, I'm looking forward to the finishing process and you've detailed it nicely and I have saved this video for reference. Thank you!
Dig the music. Is that vaporwave?
And yes. I am into skiing. 🤣
Thanks for the kind words. Not sure what the music is, my editor (and cousin) did the editing for that video. Good luck on the staircase, hope it turns out how you want it!
Hi, just wondering if your method of staining differs depending on the species of wood, ie closed vs open grain woods. I know stained maple in particular can turn out blotchy.
The staining method changes for exotic hard woods like mahogany. Those woods you have to use a specialty stain like Penofin and you can't do a high build on it. Which means you just use the stain and can't do polyurethane. For everything else, my process is the same as I did in this video.
Do you caulk between the treads and stringers before priming and painting them?
I caulked the painted parts of the risers and the stringers. I did not caulk the treads into the risers because that would negatively impact the staining and polyurethaning.
Hi, started watching quite a few of your videos. Thank you for doing an excellent job in explaining your projects. I will be finishing a new stair rail. Will be painting the caps and applying a finish. The wood is white oak, which looks great. I don't want to stain the newels or handrails, only apply a finish. Looking for more of a matt look than lacquer type of shine.
- Do you feel it's okay to only add a finish to raw/new wood?
- Do you think the Johnson paste wax would help in sealing?
Appreciate your time and expertise!
If you like the look of the wood then you can just go straight over it with a polyurethane. If you want a matte finish I’d go with Zars oil based interior in the matte finish. Do a small section and see if you like the look of it.
The Johnson paste wax is great for smoothing things out after all of your poly has dried.
Good luck with your project!
@@SuperVassarBrothers appreciate your time and info!!
Wish I seen it before I did my stairs 😆 keep working hard and making awesome videos!
I’m on’ er your honor 🫡. Thanks for watching!
For the third sand before the final layer of poly, what grit sandpaper did you use?
220 or lightly with 150
I’m so sad I didn’t get pre finished treads this is a lot work, I didn’t realize you had to sand between urethane coats. A friend gave me a sealant and I applied one coat to one tread and realized I want to go dark like your mocha- now I’m really stressed wondering if I can sand down that tread and restain with a darker stain. We just installed see treads that have like a natural blond color (unfinished)
Yes you can absolutely sand off the sealer. You can use 100 grit to get the majority of it then hit it with 150 to smooth it out a bit. Wipe it down with mineral spirits and then apply your new stain.
Sanding between coats of poly is just to keep things smooth and remove some of the particulate that settles in the poly as it dries. It’s less important on treads than on the handrails. You don’t want the treads to be too smooth cause then they get slippery.
@@SuperVassarBrothers thanks appreciate you so much. So 210 grit between poly and 150 to prep the treads before staining?
Hey Vassar Brothers, currently refinishing my interior stairs, what is the difference between (1) mixing the stain and poly opposed to just (2) applying 100% poly to the stained stairs?
I prefer to add a dash of stain to the poly to tint it. A little goes a long way, so don’t over do it. In my opinion it darkens the poly and gives you a better looking finish particularly if you have some lighter spots in the staining. Generally tinting the poly will give you a more consistent / uniform looking finish.
Good luck with your project homie 🤙
@@SuperVassarBrothers Thank you, very helpful! I kept seeing people saying to mix them together, but couldn't find an exact reason why.
You are excellent at what you do
In the future, could you show us more technique then go into time lapse
Showing us how the filling goes with the minwax filler for example
It is probably easy but....
Thanks
Sounds good. Good idea for another video. Thanks!
Another question
I'm using Zar Poly OMU
After the first coat I went to use 220 grit and it didn't powder up but took off some stain so I stopped
What am I doing wrong?
What a great video mate! Thank you so much for sharing this information! 🔝 🔝 🔝
You are quite welcome good sir 🫡
Thank you so much! I am following all the steps.
Looks great
I hope it works out well for you! Good luck!
Great video but you didnt cover the stain risers while painting
I didn’t cover the treads while I painted the risers and stringers because I need to see the treads to cut a clean line. I also didn’t get any paint on the stained and polyed treads 😉
Great information! The stairs look beautiful!
Thanks! That project turned out great 😃
Thanks!
I hope it was helpful! Thanks for watching!
My oak stairs have been left unfinished for 5 years. Has some paper coverage on the steps, but noticed the risers where the wood was no covered has discoloration due to the sun. Can the riser be sanded and stained if parts of the riser are uv damaged? Hiw deep does the uv damage penetrate?
You’ll have to determine that on site. There’s no way for me to know based on your comment. If you’re going to stain them, then I’d recommend sanding until a uniform color is achieved then stain and poly.
@SuperVassarBrothers Thank you. What would you recommend to sand the riser with tool wise? Believe the risers have a 2mm thick oak veneer.
1. So a floor sander would be to heavy of a sand , perhaps an orbital sander would work, or sand it hand?
2. Would you use the same grit levels on the risers as you did on the tread?
I hope the sun damage will be removed in sanding lightly the top layer off (i.e und we 1 mm), otherwise may be painting the risers white as you did it the video. That the most popular style people want these days? May be selling thr house soon, so the stairs finish be more for someone else.
Since the treads are new, is there a reason they aren’t stained and polyed before they’re installed?
And the risers and stringers side trim painted before the treads are installed? Especially for a homeowner doing a DIY.
Unless they’re using prefinished treads, which I have seen, most carpenters are going to be using raw wood. That’s not my call…I’m just the painter. In this video the stringers were previously painted but they needed to be repainted after the staircase work.
I understand the appeal of what you’re describing, but I’ve never seen it done like that. Even if you pre-finished all the pieces, you’d still have a lot of work to do after the install. Filling nail holes, caulking, sanding, and probably at least one more top coat on the stringers and risers.
@@SuperVassarBrothers Thanks for your response.
What resperator mask is recommended for the stain and poly?
I use the 3m mask with the pink filters
what did you buff with after applying wax and letting it haze?
My preference is microfiber rags. If I don't have any of those, then I use whatever rags I have in my truck. It's a very similar end process to waxing a car. I try and use rags that don't have a lot of lint.
Doing exactly this! Old house, same rules apply. Thank you!
I'm glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching!
you filmed an orb at 24:31. nice to see someone's there with you
I work with my brother. He's in some other videos.
Thank you for the video, I never would of known what I was doing without this!!
I’m glad it was helpful!
Thank you so much for getting back to me, all the best!
You are most welcome 🫡
Excellent video. Great explanations. Thank you.
I’m glad it was useful!
So with windows would be same process or is there something different? Thnx for video
If it’s raw wood then it’s the same process.
@@SuperVassarBrothers thank you I appreciate the fast response. Great videos
Could I have your cell or email? Thanks
thepracticalpainters@gmail.com
you don't get any brush marks like that on the stain?
The stain gets wiped off with rags after it gets brushed on, so there's no issues with brush marks there. You will however, get brush marks applying the polyurethane, which is unavoidable. You can mitigate it somewhat, by putting enough product on so that it levels out and sanding between coats.
Great great video mate! Perfection job! Golden state warriors fan only!
Thanks my friend!
What sheen do you normally go with to paint the risers?
I paint the risers the same sheen as the trim in the rest of the room which is usually semi-gloss.
You did an excellent job! Too much work. Thanks for sharing.
Why thank you. And I agree, that was a lot of work 😛
Hi, I would like to know how much to charge for a job like that. Thank you
That somewhat depends on what the cost of living is in the area you are working. Staining stairs correctly takes a good amount of time. You should aim for between $1,500 and $2,500 for something that is similar to what I did in the video.
Good luck with your job!
Thank you very much!!!!!!!!
So no taping before painting the raisers?
I’ve done it both ways. You can see me tape them in this video:
Paint a Staircase like a Pro
th-cam.com/video/lUxBwdsAE7I/w-d-xo.html
I prefer not to tape, but you can give it a go if you’d be more comfortable taping it out.
This is a great video. Keep up the videos!
Thanks for watching! We've got a lot more content coming soon!
Bro that looks amazing 👏
Thank you kind sir. These turned pretty good 🤙
Why do you not use wood conditioner?
In my experience cleaning and opening the grain with mineral spirits does the same thing as wood conditioner. I’ve never had an issue with the wood taking the stain well after my prep process. I have used wood conditioners in the past and it didn’t seem to make a difference at least to me 🤷♂️
What is the importance of polyurethane? I am a complete rookie
Excellent question. Polyurethane provides a protective coating to raw or stained wood. It seals in all of the pours and if applied properly has a smooth and shiny finish (depending on what sheen you choose). On things like the handrails in this video, it makes them very smooth and prevents splintering, which would be no fun in a handrail.
Long story short, polyurethane is applied to wooden surfaces to protect the finish, protect the wood, and provide a smooth durable surface that will hold up to wear and tear and cleaning.
I am looking at zar poliurethane and find there are diferent steps of it ,did you use the same 1 for all coats of poli? Thanks in advance!
I would have liked to see exactly how you filled the nail holes with the wood putty! 🤔
I can show more of that on the next one. I’m pretty sure I’m doing another staircase soon.
Use the tinted putties and do it after the first coat of poly. Smear a bit in each hole then lightly sand and wipe away the excess.
@@SuperVassarBrothers THANKS!
We’re in the process of doing our stairs and I have a question about the putty, you suggest not filling any wholes prior to staining and poly? Just apply it after staining? We definitely have touch ups to do but I want to do it the right way. Any info you have would be greatly appreciated Thank you!
Awesome Video! Thanksk!
You are most welcome! 🫡
Amazing job
Why thank you! This one turned out pretty well 🤙
Thank you!
You are most welcome! I hope it was helpful!
Looks ESPECTACULAR!!! 👏👏
Thanks! 🫡
Awesome... thank you...
I'm glad you found it useful! Thanks for watching!!
Thanks for a great video!!!!
Glad it was helpful Bill !
great job!
Thanks! It turned out well 🫡
What type of wood are the treads in this video?
We filmed this a hot second ago, so I'm not quite sure. I think they were either oak or pine. 😬
@@SuperVassarBrothers Ok. Thanks!
Great video
Thanks for watching!
good stuff
Thanks Mr. Toner !
Talks too much
Agreed