Dry Stain in Between Planks Faster?

[Markfothebeast]

I had to intentionally apply the (Minwax) stain thicker to get it in the exposed gaps between these Amish cut hickory planks. I went through this process once before and it took about 36 hours for the bleed back to stop and about 72 hours for stain to dry in between the tongues and grooves.

However, I am running out of time with the cold weather and snow coming and I have a second coat of stain to complete yet. Would a hair dryer help speed up the drying of the stain in between planks? Will this cause harm to the wood or the stain drying process?

 

[C.J.]

Dehumidifier??? You’re not so much waiting for it to ‘dry’ as much as the VOC’s in the product are off gassing and evaporating into the air. I applied some poly finish to a live edge slab that I made into a table when I lived in SC and with the level of humidity it took damn near 2 weeks for it to not be sticky to the touch anymore.

 

[Markfothebeast]

I have a commercial dehumidifier running. But I should probably keep an eye on the humidity level inside. I need to keep a window or two open and it is snowing with 76% outdoor humidity.

 

[Markfothebeast]

It's been between 37% to 39% humidity indoors. It's still wet in between planks. I tried a blow dryer and it worked well. But I'm not going to sit there on my hands and knees and blow dry 1,280 SQ FT of floor!

 

[Mark Brown]

You are sitting at 37-39 humidity?? What is the temp? That is a bloody long time to wait.

Any idea what the wood MC was at the time it was stained??

 

[Markfothebeast]

The average plank MC was around 6 or 7 on the face. In between planks I can't get the meter to function. It's temperamental. I had the heat on 68 overnight.

I went through this once before with Minwax. There's an additive called gilsonite that causes this headache. I've been told not to use Minwax for this reason but I have to match the previously finished area.

 

[C.J.]

Nothing wrong with Minwax other than Minwax doesn’t always play nice with anything other than Minwax. It’s sucks but be patient. How about a fan in the room to move air around. Maybe not necessarily pointing at the floor but up in the air to increase circulation.

 

[Markfothebeast]

Nothing wrong with Minwax other than Minwax doesn’t always play nice with anything other than Minwax. It’s sucks but be patient. How about a fan in the room to move air around. Maybe not necessarily pointing at the floor but up in the air to increase circulation.

I have every fan I own blowing around. The air handler fan has been going non-stop. I went over the floor with a Bissell Crosswave to help suck up some of the stain and bleeding. This thing is a secret flooring machine . But seriously, this machine is great for cleaning up sanding dust as well.

 

[highup]

I have every fan I own blowing around. The air handler fan has been going non-stop. I went over the floor with a Bissell Crosswave to help suck up some of the stain and bleeding. This thing is a secret flooring machine . But seriously, this machine is great for cleaning up sanding dust as well.

 

[highup]

I can't wait to see an infomercial or an ad for that Bissell Crosswave sucking out stain from between the floorboards.
After watching the Bissell commercial/ infomercial, those units would be flying off the shelves in Walmart's "As seen on tv" end aisle racks.
..... Rethinking my original statement, maybe compressed air blown through the tongue would do the same thing.
That said, you would absolutely want a really good filter on your compressor so you didn't introduce moisture / condensation/oil or crud into that joint or onto the surface.
Let me add that a non OSHA approved air nozzle would work better than a newer design.
Not that I'm saying that you should use a non-OSHA approved air nozzle.
Those are incredibly unsafe.

 

[Markfothebeast]

It's a two in one Bissel.

 

[highup]

It's a two in one Bissel.View attachment 13392

Life is not possible without duct tape. That's something McGuiver would approve of.

 

[Markfothebeast]

Waddya think? Look wet or just hardened? It's been 6 days... It doesn't suck out of the cracks with a shopvac. I've went over it quite a few times in the last 5 days. When I initially wiped this Minwax stain off with a rag I could see the little reflective additive flakes and maybe that's what I'm seeing here. FYI, this is just a little closet and I didn't care to invest much time in it.

 

[C.J.]

Poke it with a toothpick and see if just the top has skinned over. If it’s just a closet that you’re not too worried about then I’d say roll with it.

 

[Markfothebeast]

It looks like that throughout minus the bleedback that's wiped up.