Finishing a pine staircase - stain/varnish or oil?

[boxster9]

We have had a new pine staircase fitted in an annexe. Looking to have it finished in an oak colour, not too shiny though. There seems to be a number of options available, oil/wax/varnish/stains.

What do we all recommend?

Thanks

[bazjude2998]

I would wax. You may want to stain first to get the shade your happy with but bare in mind the colour will darken with time.Put the wax on with fine wire wool small areas at a time say one stair tread then buff with a shoe polish type brush.if you leave too long the wax will set its then a ball ache to polish up but with a heat gun you can remodel,it may sound complex but it’s simple.

[bazjude2998]

To add should have said only apply in the direction of the grain.

[bagusbagus]

LOOOL.. NEVER wax anything which is going to be touched in any way, wax is one of the most terrible finishes you could apply. Finish in good Oil ( such as from Fiddes/Osmo) .

I varnished my first pine staircase .. It was ok but really just meh.... the varnish after 2years of usage had started to come off and needed re-varnished + the feel wasn't really natural+ it didn't looked really good after some usage
. when I created next stairs, I made everything from Pine BUT first part of the step from Ash - Very similar to pine and blends in very well but so much more durable AND I finished it with Osmo Oil Finish - 3years later, it's the same as it was the first day!


Stains really aren't going to do anything to protect the wood tho.. So the only Option really is - OIL!
http://www.wood-finishes-direct.com/product/fiddes...
This one is fking AWESOME product, get some testers to check the shade first.
Don't get any other cheaper brands tho,
Source= selling &making my own furniture for the past 8years so have tried it all.

Edited by bagusbagus on Friday 15th December 03:01

[HOGEPH]

My pine staircase is finished in Danish oil. Hardwearing and a nice sheen.

[Perik Omo]

Danish oil every time, all of our chestnut flooring is done with it and it gives a very good finish.

[JackReacher]

I had this issue recently, it was only the pine handrail as the rest was painted white. I sampled a few different wax, oil, stains on spare bits of pine looking for a 'light oak' look. However, most turned a slight yellow colour and not what I wanted at all. I can to the conclusion you just can't make pine look like oak. In the end I went with a few coats of Danish oil as suggested above, darkens the wood slightly but not yellow. Very happy with it after all the trouble finding something, but it's not like a light oak.

Apologies for sideways picture!!

Edited by JackReacher on Friday 15th December 08:24

[C0ffin D0dger]

HOGEPH said:

My pine staircase is finished in Danish oil. Hardwearing and a nice sheen.

I really wish I hadn't finished my pine staircase in Danish Oil. It's taken on that orange pine effect as per all the cheap solid pine furniture that was sold in the 90s, really don't like it. I very much doubt there's any way to strip it off either so will probably be painting over it at some stage.

I'd use Polyx Oil next time: https://www.osmouk.com/sitechapter.cfm?chapter=82&...

You can buy small tester sachets on eBay to try on an off cut first.

[henrycrun]

We have open tread pine stairs - what woodcare to prevent marking from heels ?
(sadly, Minnie walks upstairs in her boots !)

[Harry Flashman]

I use Osmo Polyx oil now. I have used Danish oil in the past but the Osmo is easier to apply, more forgiving if you overdo it, much more pleasant to work with and tougher. Modern hard wax oils are great - and come in tints.

Varnish is never a good choice as it doesn't give a deep shine and is a pig to repair when it chips and flakes. People on here rave about Sadolin PV67. I tried it and hated it. It;s a two-pack so a pain to use, and gives an artificial, plasticky look to the surface.

Personally, I would paint a staircase, but Osmo (or the Fiddes equivalent) would be my choice for a natural wood finish. We have used it on all of our floors and kitchen worktops.

Here is a before and after of our old pitch pine floors - we sanded them and applied two coats of Osmo Polyx Clear gloss. It gave a lovely, deep, honey tone to the floor. New pine will be much more yellow (you can see a couple of the new boards in the photo, which look whiter/light yellow)

78 front bed by baconrashers, on Flickr

Untitled by baconrashers, on Flickr

Untitled by baconrashers, on Flickr

Edited by Harry Flashman on Friday 15th December 12:34

Edited by Harry Flashman on Friday 15th December 12:37

[GetCarter]

Osmo every time

[Harry Flashman]

GC should know - his house is entirely made of wood. Listen to him!

[boxster9]

Thanks all for the helpful advice.

I have ordered a few of the Osmo testers in a few different shades.

Will trial this on some pine before deciding. We will be carpeting the main stairs, so this is mainly for the spindles/rails and skirting.

[PositronicRay]

On this subject.

We have 12 internal pine doors and handrail on staircase, probably from 2002/03 when the house was extended. All varnished, and in good order, it just looks a bit orangey, like the 90s furniture mentioned above.

I don't really want to paint them, ideally we'd like a darker more antique pine look. We have some furniture made from reclaimed pine that we like very much, it just gets an occasional doing with some wire wool and beeswax polish.

Any way of achieving this without too much prep and labour (I do find prep boring and have a low boredom threshold)

[Woodsy1978]

Do I need to seal a new pine staircase prior to applying fiddes hard wax oil ?

[singlecoil]

No, absolutely not.