How to Stain and Finish Wood Furniture | This Old House

Wood finishing expert Bruce Johnson shares tips for refinishing new and old furniture. See below for a shopping list and tools. SUBSCRIBE to This Old House: http://bit.ly/SubscribeThisOldHouse Up in the loft, Kevin was joined by Bruce Johnson, a wood finishing expert. Bruce showed Kevin how to prepare new, unfinished furniture by sanding it with sandpaper and cleaning the dust off using a tack cloth. He then showed how to apply "wood conditioner," which helps wood absorb stain more evenly. Once it was dry, Bruce applied an oil-based penetrating stain using a soft cloth and wiped off the excess. Next, he showed how to apply polyurethane, which leaves a clear protective coating. Bruce also showed how to clean old furniture using a readily-available "wood cleaner" and he showed how to completely remove old finishes by using an "antique furniture refinisher," which is a blend of solvents that dissolves several types of old finishes. Shopping List for How to Stain and Finish Wood Furniture: - 150-grit sandpaper, to remove nicks, scratches, and to open up the wood grain - tack cloth, used to wipe off sanding dust - wood conditioner, used to prep bare wood prior to staining - oil-based wood stain, used to color bare wood surfaces - clean cotton cloths, used to wipe on finishes - commercial wood cleaner, used to clean old, dirty finishes - antique wood refinisher, for stripping off old finishes Tools for How to Stain and Finish Wood Furniture: - paintbrushes, for applying polyurethane - rubber gloves, used to keep hands clean Bruce Johnson, furniture finishing expert [https://blog.minwax.com/about-bruce-johnson/] showed Kevin how to use wood conditioner, penetrating stain, polyurethane, wood cleaner, and antique furniture refinisher manufactured by Minwax® [https://www.minwax.com/] to finish both old and new furniture pieces. About Ask This Old House TV: Homeowners have a virtual truckload of questions for us on smaller projects, and we re ready to answer. Ask This Old House solves the steady stream of home improvement problems faced by our viewers—and we make house calls! Ask This Old House features some familiar faces from This Old House, including Kevin O Connor, general contractor Tom Silva, plumbing and heating expert Richard Trethewey, and landscape contractor Roger Cook. Looking for more step by step guidance on how to complete projects around the house? Join This Old House Insider to stream over 1,000 episodes commercial-free: https://bit.ly/2GPiYbH   Plus, download our FREE app for full-episode streaming to your connected TV, phone or tablet: https://www.thisoldhouse.com/pages/streaming-app Follow This Old House and Ask This Old House: Facebook: http://bit.ly/ThisOldHouseFB Twitter: http://bit.ly/AskTOHTwitter Pinterest: http://bit.ly/ThisOldHousePinterest Instagram: http://bit.ly/AskTOHIG For more on This Old House and Ask This Old House, visit us at: http://bit.ly/ThisOldHouseWebsite How to Stain and Finish Wood Furniture | This Old House https://www.youtube.com/user/thisoldhouse/