Wood stain has some real advantages over paint when it comes to finishing decks and furniture. Stain enhances and highlights the natural beauty of wood. It needs fewer coats than paint and never chips.
What is the Best Stain Applicator?
Never plan to use a brush for your entire project. While brushes are great for corners and hard-to-reach areas, they are also the slowest and least even way of applying stain. Stain pumps and sprayers are efficient but they are also difficult to use properly and complicated to clean. The best way to stain a large area is to use purpose-made stain pad applicators. Applicators cover large areas smoothly, quickly and with minimal fuss. When staining a floor or a deck, get a large applicator that can be screwed onto a broomstick.
Pads are Good for Furniture, Too
There are smaller applicator pads designed for staining furniture and other small surfaces. Stain should be wiped, not brushed, onto furniture. While some professional refinishers use rags drenched in stain, rags create a lot of mess, especially for the less experienced. Pads are perfect for the job. Like soaked rags they hold lots of stain but are less likely to drip on clothing, floors and bodies.
Choose the Right Cover
Stain pad applicators can come with either synthetic or lambskin covers. Synthetic pads are required when using some synthetic finishes like water-based urethane. Lambskin pads are the best choice for oil-based stains because they are much more absorbent than synthetics and therefore hold a lot more stain.
