#STAINED MAPLE KITCHEN CABINETS HOW TO#

You have some protection from oversaturation from the shellac sanding sealer, but even with dye you can get slight blotching with maple. Mix aniline wood dye with water, apply by rag with a light hand. Coat thinly with Zinsser sanding sealer cut 50% with denatured alcohol.Ĥ. Sand to 120, 180, 220 to prep an even and smooth surface, knocking down all the raised grain.ģ. Moisten the wood with a slightly damp cloth to raise the grain.Ģ. This will give you the best chance of getting an even result.

If you are going to attempt stained maple cabinets on your own, ensure you’ve prepared your wood properly and apply the right finish. How should you prepare maple properly to help avoid an uneven finish? As such, we’ve addressed some of the more common staining problems and solutions below to help you troubleshoot maple wood stain. Maple Cabinet Door Staining Problems & SolutionsĪlthough staining maple is possible, it can certainly present some challenges. As such, it’s often the best finish for maple cabinets. It will also highlight the beautiful wood grain in your maple cabinet doors. Because wood dye is able to penetrate the wood and dye the wood cells themselves, rather than just sitting on top like a stain can with denser woods, you’ll get a more even appearance. If you’re hoping for stained maple cabinets, wood dye offers a solution that provides similar results to a stain, but works much better with dense and tight-grained woods. That way, if you hate the stain experiment, you won’t see it every day. Preferably on the drawer fronts if possible. However, if that option isn’t available, always start staining on the backs. Start on the back! Ideally, you’d always test your finish on a scrap of the same wood that your cabinets are made of. Aniline wood dyes show off the grain of the wood and impart color in the same way a stain would, but is less likely to be blotchy and uneven.Ģ. Wood dyes have smaller particles and are better able to penetrate dense wood like maple. Do not stain! If you want a darker finish on maple, use a wood dye rather than a stain. If you still want to get a darker finish on your maple cabinet doors, here are two helpful tips:ġ. Choosing the right finish can help, however. Not impossible, just difficult.Īdditionally, achieving darker maple cabinet stain colors can be particularly tricky on these types of woods. This is because staining maple cabinets and other tight-grained woods without blotches is difficult. For DIY homeowners the best advice is often to avoid staining maple, birch, and cherry altogether. Staining tight-grained woods like hard maple can be a problem for even experienced wood finishers. The Best Finish for Maple Cabinets: Stain vs. It’s important to note that getting a nice even stain on your maple cabinets is going to take a little more work than staining oak, for example, but with careful work and thoughtful preparation, it is doable.

#STAINED MAPLE KITCHEN CABINETS HOW TO#

You’ll also see a number of videos discussing various solutions for how to stain maple cabinets and achieve a more even finish. So, what’s the solution?īelow, you’ll learn the difference between maple wood stain and maple wood dye, and why you might choose one over the other. Because of this, staining can sometimes end up blotchy or uneven because the stain absorbs readily into areas with a more open grain, while the tighter-grained areas do not absorb as much. To make things even more complex, you will also find that maple has some density variations throughout the wood, so that there are some areas with a more open grain. Overall, maple is a tight-grained, denser wood, which means stain does not absorb particularly well. Staining maple cabinets can be a little trickier than you might anticipate because of the nature of maple wood. This post will help you choose the right stain or dye and show you how to stain maple cabinets to get an even finish. We provide high quality unfinished maple cabinet doors for your kitchens and bathrooms that are ready for finishing upon arrival at your door. If you’re looking for help staining maple cabinets, is here to help you.

Stained maple kitchen cabinets