Removing minwax wood stain

Tater Head

Cadet
Joined
Oct 10, 2007
Messages
22
Any suggestions on how to remove min wax Stain & Polyurethane from a cherry bed that I am building?

Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Larry
 

newbie4life

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Jul 19, 2007
Messages
410
Re: Removing minwax wood stain

Any suggestions on how to remove min wax Stain & Polyurethane from a cherry bed that I am building?

Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Larry

Is this the Minwax Stain & Polyurethane all in one product? If it is, I understand why you want it removed. I used it ONE time, thinking I'd try it out to see -- very VERY disappointed with the results. To the point of throwing out the project, and building a new one.

I'm not sure you're gonna like the answers here. You could try stripper (easiest - ish). I don't like stripper, but it is easier. The other option is to sand -- and sand. The problem with stain is sinks into the wood.... doesn't stay on top, so, sanding will be inevitable anyway.
 

eurolarva

Rear Admiral
Joined
Jun 24, 2003
Messages
4,182
Re: Removing minwax wood stain

The is a citrusproduct out for stripping that works pretty good. Just brush it on and wait about an hour then use a plastic putty knife. You will have to do it a couple of times. Then you will have to wait a day for it to totally dry then sand starting with 100 grit till most of the stain is gone. The stripper mainly gets rid of the urethane and some of the stain. Sand paper will get through the rest of the stain. Keep this stuff away from pets. Just the smell of it made my cat sick for over a week.
 

Bigprairie1

Commander
Joined
Jun 13, 2007
Messages
2,568
Re: Removing minwax wood stain

I'm with Newbie on this one.
The combined product is crap. Minwax makes a reasonable stain but that catch-all stuff (which I've tried to use) leaves a poor result unless you are very, very carefull and very, very patient. It is supposed to be a 'quick and easy' replacement to the proven process of staining and then providing a top protective coat. (does this kind of substitution ever work?)
Anyways with respect to how to remove it. The 'heavy duty' way is to use a stripper. I don't like this process too much myself unless I have layers of paint, etc on something where I want to get back down to the wood.
A less intrusive way of doing it, is using Minwax 'Refinisher'. You can buy this usually at the same locations selling all the Minwax products (naturally). This is a much lighter duty product that will lightly remove/clean finishes. If you use this with a small dish/bowl and some fine grade steel wool you should get a good result without taking a wild, toxic chemical bath...such as with the H.D strippers. It is much easier to work with and you can see your results in a more predictable way as you apply it. It takes a bit of time tho'.
I would recommend trying a little bit of it on some hidden corner to see if you like the result and the process.
Wear gloves and goggles..always a good idea and follow the instructions.
Good luck and keep us posted.:)
 

Tater Head

Cadet
Joined
Oct 10, 2007
Messages
22
Re: Removing minwax wood stain

Yes newbie, that is the stain I use. Never do that again. I tried it on a piece of scrap and it looked good. But on the bigger piece it was imposable to work with.

Thanks for the information.

Larry
 

newbie4life

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Jul 19, 2007
Messages
410
Re: Removing minwax wood stain

Wish I could have given you a better idea or two, but there's just not a good solution.

I feel bad for you, as I know what it's like to pour your heart/soul/blood/sweat into something, and end up with results that are less than favorable. :(
 

turfman

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Sep 28, 2007
Messages
169
Re: Removing minwax wood stain

You could use a a stripper and then try to rub the rest of the stain out with alcahol. This might work if you get out the poly, and it doesn't really penetrate much so you might have a shot.

I don't think you'll get all the stain out; but you could go darker and blend the colors in.

turfman
 
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