Using floor polyurethane for furniture

[DaveVman]

Hi guys, please help a newbie.

As a beginner I am lazy and impatient with finishes. However I am trying to improve get a better end result with each project.

I am close to completing some stands to raise my computer monitors off the desk. Rather like simple cabinets.
They are pine with some darker brown hardwood face trim for the front.

The radiata pine is new. The hardwood trim are old ex wall panels from my house which had some nice varnish. I don't know the timber but it has a pleasant smell when worked. Pleasant to me anyway. I am sanding that varnish off back to bare wood.

I have almost 4 litres of left over floor polyurethane. I used this on another piece and I found it was very thick and doesn't give an ideal result.
So now I am thinking that I could water down the floor polyurethane with white spirits and apply more than 2 coats.

Is that a good idea?
Should I mix something else?
What proportions should I use?

Should I apply with a rag, rather than a brush?
How many coats should I aim for?

I already have this polyurethane some white spirits, plenty of terps and I think I have some meths. I would like to use what I've got if it is OK.

Thanks in advance.
Dave.

[NCArcher]

You should be able to thin the poly ok. Try the turps/white spirits, or check the can for the recommended thinner. Mix up small batches and test on scrap. Try 3:1, 2:1 or 1:1 (depends on how thick it is to start with) - poly:thinner
I would aim for 2 coats minimum and see how it looks. Again, test on scrap.

[Simplicity]

WHS


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[DaveVman]

OK So I tried this. I thought I'd give you an update on attempts. I am spraying the oil based floor polyurethane with an air compressor.
The spray gun is cheap and I don't know what I am doing. When I adjust it, it is very hard to see any difference with the almost invisible ployu spray. So that could be part of my problem but I don't think that is the main issue.

(He says without taking the time to test various settings on scrap and wait for them to dry)

Of course being a beginner and lacking patience I completely ignored the sage advice to test on scrap first. That would have taken days. Pffst!! I did test each mixture on the underside where it is not visible so your assistance is not completely wasted on me. Well I'm calling it a test. Well I sprayed the underside. Waited a whole 20 seconds. Decided that was fine and then did the whole lot. Yeah I know, I know - still a long way to go on the patience front.

First I thinned it with terps. About 5:1 or so. I did 3 coats. This left some runs which I had to sand back by hand each time. Particularly on the hardwood drawer fronts. This was too time consuming to sand back each time.
I tried about about 10:1 (roughly). This avoided the runs. However there is very little material in the spray. Hence each coat was very fine and made the most minor difference.
It was not smooth once it dried either. However a rub down just with my bare hands made it acceptably smooth. I did about 4 coats like this before I just ran out of patience to persevere.
The problem is that rather than a high gloss protective finish I have a much more subtle finish.
I say 'problem' but that is the wrong word. I don't have that thick high gloss finish one gets from polyu. I have a much more natural looking finish. So perhaps I should be glad. However it is like I ended up with the opposite extreme so I'd left wondering if there is sufficient protection - AFTER 7 COATS!!!
(Did I mention patience was a work in progress)?

Of course the obvious thing I should have done is try 8:1 or 7:1 and perhaps I would have found a happy balance. But bugger it. I've decided the project is finished. So it's finished.

As I said, at the start, my patience for finishing has a tremendously long way to go.

Anyway I didn't find the correct ratio but I think it is somewhere between 5:1 and 10:1.
I did get much more efficient at setting up and cleaning out the sprayer. So if I can find the right mix it will be a lot faster and better than a brush.
I still have over 3 litres of this stuff so I'm sure there will be another project to try it on.
However next project I'm going to try a Cabots combination stain and gloss with a brush or rag.

I also just bought some shellac to try in the future. I suppose I could spray that on a future project and see how that goes with a sprayer.
I know, I know, test it with some scrap. Psft!! Yeah right. That would take days!

[Lappa]

Only 7 coats? You wuss! I put on 20 coats of shellac by hand with cloth. Even with 20 coats it's still a very thin finish though and I still wonder whether they are enough.

[ian]

If your level of patience level is that low, perhaps you should accept surfaces with no finish or take up a hobby other than building stuff out of wood.

as a general rule of thumb -- achieving a good to excellent finish takes almost as long the actual build. Factoring in drying / curing time, the finishing step can be much longer

[Arron]

If your level of patience level is that low, perhaps you should accept surfaces with no finish or take up a hobby other than building stuff out of wood.

as a general rule of thumb -- achieving a good to excellent finish takes almost as long the actual build. Factoring in drying / curing time, the finishing step can be much longer

I can't agree more. I'm really irritated by the people who ask for help but frankly admit that they are 'lazy' and lack patience - like we are supposed to make up for their shortcomings. How do they think we acquired sufficient knowledge to achieve good finishing. I recall it was a long hard slog and there were no shortcuts.

[Sawdust Maker]

not sure what the problem is
water it down until it's about the consistency of water. wipe on with a rag (lint free, old sheets are good or t-shirts)
wander off and do something else. When dry - a few hours, another coat
next day light sand with 400 or 500 grip - another coat, repeat until happy with build up - no drips and super finish - wax at end if you want.

You've got to take it easy otherwise it will always look pretty sh*thouse

I'd also suggest you buy ubeauts finishing book - on his website

[DaveVman]

not sure what the problem is
water it down until it's about the consistency of water. wipe on with a rag (lint free, old sheets are good or t-shirts)
wander off and do something else. When dry - a few hours, another coat
next day light sand with 400 or 500 grip - another coat, repeat until happy with build up - no drips and super finish - wax at end if you want.

You've got to take it easy otherwise it will always look pretty sh*thouse

I'd also suggest you buy ubeauts finishing book - on his website

In hindsight this is what I should do. I thought the spray would give me a superior result but I'm going to try a better quality finish with a rag and perhaps it will not only be better but also a little faster in the end.

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[DaveVman]

I can't agree more. I'm really irritated by the people who ask for help but frankly admit that they are 'lazy' and lack patience - like we are supposed to make up for their shortcomings. How do they think we acquired sufficient knowledge to achieve good finishing. I recall it was a long hard slog and there were no shortcuts.

Wow!
I was trying to be light humored but I guess my dry sence of humour is not for everyone.
I'm sorry you feel that I expected you to 'make up for [my] shortcomings'.
How exactly you got that expectation I don't know but it wasn't my intention.

I would like to think I have enough brain cells left to realise I need to do a few hard yards. I just deal with it with a little self depreciating humor. Obviously not everyone's cup of tea I guess.

Sorry if I hit a raw nerve for some people.

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[ian]

not so much a raw nerve but it was a little difficult to determine if you were being slap-dash or humorous.

I gleamed more more towards the slap-dash than humorous.

[richmond68]

you're using solvent borne poly on floors? I haven't used that in about twenty years. Went to water borne polyurethane and haven't looked back, much quicker dry times and easy to work with. Sprays nicely with a hvlp gun and 1mm tip.

[Lappa]

I took it as good natured humour hence my response.

[rob streeper]

I strongly recommend against the idea of putting floor finishes on anything but the floor. Doing otherwise just encourages people to put their feet on your furniture.

[ian]

only if you tell 'em



it's a bit like a reverse of the Palmolive (R) dishwashing commercial "you're soaking in it"