# Blotchy oak veneer . Fix?



## DynaPLLC (Oct 25, 2013)

Hey guys, quick question for the stain veterans . I refinished an old oak kitchen which is solid oak, went through the grits as high as 180 before I applied an old masters gel stain(Spanish oak finish) and everything looks perfect except an end panel which has just been replaced and it's an oak veneer.

Problem is, this panel stained very uneven, in some places the dark blotchy spots look like transporting marks from sliding around, some look like stains.Either way, it looks ugly. What could have caused this ?

Everything was vacuumed and wiped with denaturated alcohol before staining. 

It's not light spots like you'd see from glue telegraphing through a thin veneer. These are dark spots, same thing you'd get from maple if you apply a stain on raw wood. 

Any help is appreciated!


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## journeymanPainter (Feb 26, 2014)

It's to bad is not solid. What I would do would be strip the panel, scrub it with methyl hydrate and restain.


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## stelzerpaintinginc. (May 9, 2012)

Hard to say without pics. Could be iron stains, which is very common with oak veneers. Tannic Acid comes into contact with either heavy moisture, humidity, and/or iron. These kind of stains usually have a bluish-black cast to them. Could be uneven sanding. Could be contamination, although less likely if you sanded and cleaned thoroughly with denatured alcohol.


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## DynaPLLC (Oct 25, 2013)

stelzerpaintinginc. said:


> Hard to say without pics. Could be iron stains, which is very common with oak veneers. Tannic Acid comes into contact with either heavy moisture, humidity, and/or iron. These kind of stains usually have a bluish-black cast to them. Could be uneven sanding. Could be contamination, although less likely if you sanded and cleaned thoroughly with denatured alcohol.


Yes they do have a black appearance . Weird.so you think it's something like iron stains? How can you avoid them? Or get rid of them? The veneer is pretty thin. I applied another coat of stain and it did hide a lot more than before, customers are happy but I'm not. I'd like to avoid this in the future if possible.


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## stelzerpaintinginc. (May 9, 2012)

DynaPLLC said:


> Yes they do have a black appearance . Weird.so you think it's something like iron stains? How can you avoid them? Or get rid of them? The veneer is pretty thin. I applied another coat of stain and it did hide a lot more than before, customers are happy but I'm not. I'd like to avoid this in the future if possible.


I'm not saying I think it's iron stains. I'm saying it might be, but without pics it's an ever bigger guess than with pics. Best thing to do to avoid them is use a shellac wash coat. It works especially well for veneers, since it will not only help with making sure you get an even stained finish, but it also helps to seal any contaminants.


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## propainterJ (Jan 31, 2011)

Try wiping it with lacquer thinner,restain

Or lightly sand it with 320 paper,then wash it,then restain

Sand lightly,it should even out the blotch

How to avoid it in the future is dont stain

Wood is wood,therefore,when you stain it,sometimes theres some blotch,even if you control it first

It's all about how you deal with the speed bumps in the road


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## Wolfgang (Nov 16, 2008)

A veneer isn't the same as a solid piece, so consider it a "soft wood". You can use a pre-stain wood conditioner on it for a nice even finish.


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## DynaPLLC (Oct 25, 2013)

Wolfgang said:


> A veneer isn't the same as a solid piece, so consider it a "soft wood". You can use a pre-stain wood conditioner on it for a nice even finish.


Didn't think of treating it as a "soft wood". These cabinets are old as I said. 
All sides are veneer but this particular side was new since one of the cabinets was extended to they could accommodate a new dishwasher . 

So the sides of the cabinets where the electric range is, are old veneer. Those were the first ones I stained and they came out beautifully. 

I thought the new one will stain just as well, but I guess I should have treated it differently. 

So as far as fixing the mess, I guess there's nothing I can do right?

Like I said, it's got 2 coats of stain now, but I'm still not 100% happy even if the owners are.

I'd like to make it look like the rest if possible...

Should have done some tests on some of the new veneer first...oh well. I'll know better next time.


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## TrueColors (Jul 30, 2010)

Strip it, then use a wash coat of shellac. Re stain with Spanish oak gel and you should be good to go. The wash coat of shellac thinned with methyl hydrate will even the porosity and give you a even stained finish. Hopefully 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## DynaPLLC (Oct 25, 2013)

I always get good results with Benite by Daly's. Dumb move not to use it on this veneer. Thank you guys for the advice!


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