Q: A person helping my boyfriend re-finish my hardwood floors used a non stain-able, yellow carpenters wood glue to float the entire floor. The floor ended up with a blotchy stain job, so we re-sanded. Do you know of anything that may work to remove it or cover it up? Do you think we can cover it up by going over it with the correct product? Do you think we can use a stain with the varathane already in it or that a gel stain will work?
In addition, my boyfriend thinks the bubbles and dirt particles I saw when he applied a coat of varathane are no big deal because they will sand out and I disagree. Who is right?
A: The best answer I can give you is this is not DIY work, as your floors appearance will testify. You need to hire a professional who knows what they are doing. I could sit here for the next hour outlining the various procedures for every step involved in producing a good looking stained floor, but that wouldn’t help you much because it still requires months to years of practice.
Related Q: After 1st coat of stain floor looked blotchy, where some areas had a sheen and some didn’t. After 2nd coat there were fewer blotchy areas, some areas looked dry or dull. Will the sealer even this out or does something else need to be done?
A: When you applied the stain did you wipe it on an area and then go back and wipe off the excess as you are suppose to do? Why two coats of stain? Some woods such as maple an birch will present a blotchy appearance. Otherwise, in applying it you have to be fairly quick, not leaving puddles of stain sit in one spot. The finish will help a bit, but if you made mistakes when applying the stain I wouldn’t expect those blotches to totally disappear.