Staining a MDF Veneer Entrance Door

[midnite1969]

Hi, I bought a Hume Entrance door from Bunnings last week..I showed the guy the door I purchased and that I would pick the stain later later but bought 2 litres of Cabots exterior clear in satin for it...I rang Cabot's on Friday and they advised me they dont recommend I stain it as the outside of the door is made of mdf veneer...I rang the supplier and they said its fine to stain..so Im really confused..I cant take it back as I tried a small amount of stain on the side to see if it soaked in but cant really tell..my doorframe is a browny/red colour..can anyone offer any advice on what would happen if I tried to stain it or is it safer to just use several coats of exterior clear on it? Any advice would be appreciated..thanks...

[midnite1969]

Anyone?

[NCArcher]

I'd just go ahead and stain it. If it doesn't look right, stain it darker.
I should think it will be ok to stain. I doubt that the colour needs to go deeper than the veneer.
I should clarify that I know nothing about staining.

[Master Splinter]

From the Hume doors website:

"Immediately after fitting, and prior to hanging, the entire door, including the top and bottom edges, must receive two coats of undercoat and two coats of paint. If staining, exterior grade varnish or sealer must be used and its application to be equivalent to paint finish, to prevent absorption of moisture. Semi gloss or satin finishes are recommended for all doors to reduce “show-through”.

Exterior finishes to be applied strictly in accordance with paint manufacturers instructions. Entrance and exterior doors should be finished in light reflective colours to reduce the risk of heat absorption which may cause warping."

[midnite1969]

Cheers guys..im assuming that means if i do 2 coats of stain and 2 or 3 coats of exterior clear in satin then i should be cool bananas...it does say on the side of the door not to paint it a dark colour so i mite just go a baltic pine or walnut colour..Ive been told the door darkens with colour once the interior clear is applied?

[nrb]

As Master Splinter said make sure you paint ALL SIX SIDES don't use acrylic !!! oil paint only on exterior doors.

[rod1949]

Is the MDF the moisture resistant type?

[midnite1969]

It just says Veneered MDF fielded panels solid construction..the doors quite heavy...so an oil based stain then how many coats of satin Exterior clear would i need to apply? thanks!

[FletcherP]

Solvents in oil based paints and stains can degrade and dissolve the glue used in MDF. Most coating suppliers will recommend a water based product for this reason.

Fletch

[Master Splinter]

Water based products on MDF can raise the grain: never use a water based product as the primer, always something solvent based, especially if you've been sanding. My preferred MDF paint finish is automotive acrylic lacquer as it dries quickly and you can really 'piano gloss' it if that's the sort of look you are after.

[midnite1969]

Umm no wasnt thinking of painting it an acrylic colour..just wanted to stain it and then do the exterior clear over the top

[midnite1969]

Umm..well Ive done 2 coats of an oil based stain on the door and the outside part of the door the stain looks blotchy...should i sand it back and apply another coat? The first coat went on well..maybe i shoulda left it at that!

[Christos]

Now blotchy not something that you really wanted to deal with. It is my understanding to resolve the blotchy would require to sand back the stain. But this is veneer and the risk of sanding too much could sand through the veneer.

Now exactly how bad or distinguishable does it look?

[midnite1969]

Just to let everyone know i stained it in a reddy/brown colour ..the first coat just soaked in, the 2nd coat looked blotchy so did a 3rd coat and looked heaps better...then applied a few coats of exterior clear over the top ( all oil based and i sanded back between sand coats) and the door looks great..ive had lotsa good comments on it..thanks for your help guys!

[ian]

did you paint all 6 sides with the same number of coats?