Oil or Latex Stain?

[Mak Wilson]

I realize that staining and finishing wood can get pretty complicated when you consider all the choices out there, but I'm not finishing antiques or anything very special. I just want something that looks nice with typical durability.

So, for general purpose wood staining, is oil based stain considered better quality than latex? If not, why is oil still around being that latex dries more quickly and makes for a much easier clean up?

Same question again for polyurethane finish (to go over stain)...

Thanks!

PS: I've seen some older posts regarding this issue, but I wanted to see if there was any new perspective in the last 2 or 3 years.

[Sporkman]

While I can't say that oil isn't better, I find that latex is pretty darn good. Both deck stains that Lowe's sells (Olympic and one other -- I forget) are latex. We used the Olympic and are happy with the results. Since decks typically get a LOT more wear than house siding, what do you think about the fact that the deck stains are sold as latex and not oil? And yes, it's awful nice to be able to clean up with water.

Mark 'Sporky' Stapleton Watermark Design, LLC

[Toller]

Are you talking about outdoor stain or woodworking stain?

For outdoor use I use water based. Don't really know how good it is, but clean up with oil is such a PITA that I don't really care.

For woodworking I use only oil; I don't think anyone uses water based. It just doesn't look right, and oil clean up is not a big deal.

[jtees4]

I second that 100%.

NEVER FORGET!!!

[nospambob]

[nospambob]

[Mak Wilson]

Very foolish of me not to mention this was for furniture. I realized it right away but because I'm posting with a google groups account it takes a while for the post to appear and I couldn't respond to it to post my error.

I've read all the comments so far and I'm thankful for the help. The stain and finish is for interior furniture.

[Mak Wilson]

Thanks everyone...

I'll stick with oil-based stain for my indoor furniture. But what about polyurethane finishes? Oil based or latex? I think there's also a Gel-style finish. Is that worth using?

[Edwin Pawlowski]

You mentioned furniture. There are many other finishes that are appropriate either on their own of over stain. Danish oil, varnish oil, tung oil, shellac to name a few. One of my favorites is Tried and True Varnish oil. It build a finish after a few applications and has a moderate sheen.

Check out places like

or the Tried and True web page. Watco brand is also highly though of. If you have a Woodcraft store near you, stop in and you can probably see some samples of the finishes. Ed

[nospambob]