I have used shellac as a wood sealer under decorating projects like painting large wood boxes etc in a class setting. It was suggested that we use two coats sanding between each especially when the wood has knots. The materials were typically pine and I felt the shellac raised the grain ON NEW WOOD. Once the shellac was dry I sanded with 220 grit and the piece felt super smooth and created a perfect surface for our decorative paint projects. It would seem to me that the first coat at least should be sanded. There is a huge difference between sanding and not in my opinion. Maybe it was just more noticeable in small projects where the final ultra smooth finish on the project is critical. You provide many good points in this video that will save many viewers some serious headaches. TFS!
Thanks for your video! Very helpful to see how to apply shellac. I've never used it before, but your video makes me feel a lot more confident about an upcoming project.
Thank you Michael, your video totally helped me with my shellacing project. I also could not find any info until I came across your video Your room looked incredible. Thank you again and wish you all the best on your future projects.....
This is a very helpful video. I'm sure I would have made many of the same mistakes you demonstrated. Thanks for posting this. The single coat of shellac looks great!
I installed Evertrue wood planking on a kitchen wall and ceiling. I used Minwax polyurethane (two coats). Looks great without the smell of oil based products.
I'm dead in the middle of spraying it on my pine panels but I'm doing them before installation, one at a time with a spray gun in a spray booth, and having great results. Initially I tried brushing it on but found shellac dries much too fast for brushing, it is also prone to running, dripping, etc, spraying it is 100x easier and gives even coverage. I'm using Zinser clear, no amber, and am pretty sure 1 coat is all I want, I did add some alcohol for thinning but think it could be sprayed with no thinning. Goes on glossy-wet looking but it soaks into the wood ending in a satin/semi-gloss look. The grain and figure are enhanced and the knots darken so you don't get the plastic look some water-born finishes can give. Yet it still stays very close to the color you started with yet just a bit more golden. Can claims it will not yellow, but I think the wood itself can and will turn more naturally amber or reddish, so if you re-decorate you might end up with lighter color shadows on the panels. I have a spray booth with exhaust fan in the window, open window at other end of house for cross-ventalation, using a compressed air gun as I'm really into spraying lacquer on guitars..but a spray booth could be built on the fly..just search for info on making a spray booth. You'd need about 1/2 gallon of alcohol to clean out the shellac from a good brush you don't want to throw away and don't ask how I found out.
I sprayed a small bathroom. Obviously you want to spray with the grain of the wood. There is a slight darkening where you start as it's next to impossible to not get a slight build up when you first hit the trigger. To me, it still rather splotchy looking. I thought using a spray gun would allow for more even coverage, but can also say the wood is going to absorb the finish differently, and you're going to end up with different colors. IOW, don't expect perfection, not going to happen. I'm almost thinking a person would be better off with a clear coat to start, followed by the color. I'm going to go back over the sprayed area with the thinned out ( 75% clear and 25% amber) to try to even things out a bit, and will probably touch up with a brush. I can also say based on my experience, that two thinner coats (maybe a 50-50 between clear and Amber) would probably make for a more even appearance. There's a lot of color in this, and any place you overlap, you're going to have problems. I was trying to save money by just buying the Amber, but wish I would have mixed the clear with amber now. So, I suspect spraying is going to be more even than a brush, but pay close attention to the angle of the gun, precise distance, etc. I have been spraying finishes for many years, and still found this difficult to control. Again, a thinned out version I think would work better. And when I say thinned I don't mean with alcohol, I mean with clear, so viscosity would stay the same. It's plenty thin for spraying. I can say it is quite yellow, so still questioning whether it was the best choice. There are other "all in one" finishes that may be better suited too. I suggest you do some experimenting. I played around on a few scrap pieces, but still wasn't prepared for what it would look like on a larger area. Good luck to all with your projects!
Great video. I just bought the exact same shellac. I have a couple test strips in the garage some with a single coat, single +stain, double, double+stain, and I'm going to finish all with a poly finish . I was going to apply a very light stain, but the amber shellac alone looks great. They don't recommend a poly finish, but I'm doing it any way. I recommend gloves. i was lazy and didn't use them. Now i have a couple fingers that are orange.
The people at those big box stores will say any stupid thing instead of saying “I don’t know”. Shellac isn’t sold only in quarts because of its flammability. Hell, right down the aisle are one gallon cans of denatured alcohol which is what is used to turn shellac flakes or buttons into liquid form and what makes shellac so flammable in the first place. Shellac is sold by the quart because it isn’t as in demand as polyurethane and it has a VERY limited shelf life once mixed with alcohol. As a result what isn’t sold has to be discarded and discarding gallons instead of quarts isn’t economically viable. Of course since it’s Lowes I wouldn’t trust them to get rid of the old which is why you should always check the code on the bottom of the can. It doesn’t look like it but the code contains the month, day and year of manufacture. Decoding information is available on the web.
9988ScooterGirl exactly!!! Don’t listen to people that have never touched the stuff. Shellac is an amazing product if you need more then a quart buy the flakes. just be safe and don’t use an electric fan!!!
Thanks Mike, having bad experience with Zinsser brush on and spray. Dries too fast, what can I do? my work makes me look like a loser and I want it to be perfect
I like your video....,however... you should not use an electric fan for ventilation....I was a floor refinisher and dealt with all flammable finishes ..My view is ..most electrical motors could have some minor sparking going on inside the motor (brush's to armature) and could ignite the fumes and actually act like a flame thrower.I knew someone who had it happen....even the flick of a light switch can ignite fumes .I know someone who died like that (the house blew up windows were closed) so unless you have a fan specifically made for that .I advise caution to all .☺
If you do guitars you want to use pure de-waxed shellac flakes such as sold in bags at woodworker or luthier supply stores such as LMI, not the pre-mixed type in the can..I use it as the sealer coat but not as a final finish, for that I use nitro lacquer, sanding between coats. Sure you could "french polish" it but shellac is easier to control by spraying due it drying so fast.
I don’t remember exactly how long it took to not smell like shellac. But it definitely still smells like pine. Because it’s alcohol based it drys real fast and the smell didn’t linger as long as paint in my opinion. But 100% still smells like pine and 0% shellac smell.
@@MrMikepaul8 okay thank you! I have just had maple plywood installed with a thin layer of natural polywhey 3 weeks ago and the wood smell is still so strong it burns my eyes so I was hoping shellac would seal in some of the wood terpenes. Good to know it didn't change the strength of the wood smell. Thank you!
It’s made from bug poop, look it up! I’ve used it a lot and learned right away to finish what you started. If you start a board do the entire board before you start the next. Any overlapping will leave it noticeably darker and blotchy. If you must discontinue something really feather it out a lot to avoid the start stop lines.
Can anyone tell me if I should do this process before putting it up on my ceiling? I am converting a shed into a pool house and I bought knotty pine for the ceiling. Or should I do it after it is up? Thanks
I don’t think it’s worth the trouble of doing before it goes up. You will inevitably have to do some touch up and it will not look right and you will end up re-coating the whole thing. It’s relatively easy to apply
Definitely do not do that. It will really change the color of the wood and just make a huge mess. That stuff is no joke. I had some black oil base paint splatter on some white painted metal. I took a little denatured alcohol to it and it took the white paint (all 3 coats) down to bare metal. I'm the only one that notices the places I put to much on. Best bet is to leave it be
First coat always looks the best. Try putting a second on with that carp. U will ruin that whole room. That stuff is garbage and it's impossible to use.
Just did my entire garage in this and am about to apply shellac. Thanks for the tips - great upload.
Thank you for your video! We also couldn't find information about painting shellac on knotted pine walls. Your video was really helpful!! Thank you!!
fantastic description of his shellac finish of knotty pine job, errors made, observations. Great job.
I have used shellac as a wood sealer under decorating projects like painting large wood boxes etc in a class setting. It was suggested that we use two coats sanding between each especially when the wood has knots. The materials were typically pine and I felt the shellac raised the grain ON NEW WOOD. Once the shellac was dry I sanded with 220 grit and the piece felt super smooth and created a perfect surface for our decorative paint projects. It would seem to me that the first coat at least should be sanded. There is a huge difference between sanding and not in my opinion. Maybe it was just more noticeable in small projects where the final ultra smooth finish on the project is critical. You provide many good points in this video that will save many viewers some serious headaches. TFS!
Thanks for your video! Very helpful to see how to apply shellac. I've never used it before, but your video makes me feel a lot more confident about an upcoming project.
Thank you Michael, your video totally helped me with my shellacing project. I also could not find any info until I came across your video Your room looked incredible. Thank you again and wish you all the best on your future projects.....
That's the perfect finish for pine. Great job, great pointers
Thanks for the tips. Helpful, straightforward video.
Very helpful, especially what NOT to do. Thanks, Michael.
This is a very helpful video. I'm sure I would have made many of the same mistakes you demonstrated. Thanks for posting this. The single coat of shellac looks great!
I installed Evertrue wood planking on a kitchen wall and ceiling. I used Minwax polyurethane (two coats). Looks great without the smell of oil based products.
I'm dead in the middle of spraying it on my pine panels but I'm doing them before installation, one at a time with a spray gun in a spray booth, and having great results.
Initially I tried brushing it on but found shellac dries much too fast for brushing, it is also prone to running, dripping, etc, spraying it is 100x easier and gives even coverage. I'm using Zinser clear, no amber, and am pretty sure 1 coat is all I want, I did add some alcohol for thinning but think it could be sprayed with no thinning. Goes on glossy-wet looking but it soaks into the wood ending in a satin/semi-gloss look. The grain and figure are enhanced and the knots darken so you don't get the plastic look some water-born finishes can give. Yet it still stays very close to the color you started with yet just a bit more golden. Can claims it will not yellow, but I think the wood itself can and will turn more naturally amber or reddish, so if you re-decorate you might end up with lighter color shadows on the panels. I have a spray booth with exhaust fan in the window, open window at other end of house for cross-ventalation, using a compressed air gun as I'm really into spraying lacquer on guitars..but a spray booth could be built on the fly..just search for info on making a spray booth. You'd need about 1/2 gallon of alcohol to clean out the shellac from a good brush you don't want to throw away and don't ask how I found out.
I sprayed a small bathroom. Obviously you want to spray with the grain of the wood. There is a slight darkening where you start as it's next to impossible to not get a slight build up when you first hit the trigger. To me, it still rather splotchy looking. I thought using a spray gun would allow for more even coverage, but can also say the wood is going to absorb the finish differently, and you're going to end up with different colors. IOW, don't expect perfection, not going to happen.
I'm almost thinking a person would be better off with a clear coat to start, followed by the color. I'm going to go back over the sprayed area with the thinned out ( 75% clear and 25% amber) to try to even things out a bit, and will probably touch up with a brush.
I can also say based on my experience, that two thinner coats (maybe a 50-50 between clear and Amber) would probably make for a more even appearance. There's a lot of color in this, and any place you overlap, you're going to have problems. I was trying to save money by just buying the Amber, but wish I would have mixed the clear with amber now.
So, I suspect spraying is going to be more even than a brush, but pay close attention to the angle of the gun, precise distance, etc. I have been spraying finishes for many years, and still found this difficult to control. Again, a thinned out version I think would work better. And when I say thinned I don't mean with alcohol, I mean with clear, so viscosity would stay the same. It's plenty thin for spraying.
I can say it is quite yellow, so still questioning whether it was the best choice. There are other "all in one" finishes that may be better suited too. I suggest you do some experimenting. I played around on a few scrap pieces, but still wasn't prepared for what it would look like on a larger area.
Good luck to all with your projects!
Great video. I just bought the exact same shellac. I have a couple test strips in the garage some with a single coat, single +stain, double, double+stain, and I'm going to finish all with a poly finish . I was going to apply a very light stain, but the amber shellac alone looks great. They don't recommend a poly finish, but I'm doing it any way. I recommend gloves. i was lazy and didn't use them. Now i have a couple fingers that are orange.
Why would you poly over shellac?
Just what I needed to see! Thanks!
Hey thanks for the video, that's exactly what I'm going to do on my conversion now,cheers
thank you for an absolutely awesome and informative video
Thank you! Been looking for some concise information on how to get that warm finish to pine.
The people at those big box stores will say any stupid thing instead of saying “I don’t know”.
Shellac isn’t sold only in quarts because of its flammability. Hell, right down the aisle are one gallon cans of denatured alcohol which is what is used to turn shellac flakes or buttons into liquid form and what makes shellac so flammable in the first place. Shellac is sold by the quart because it isn’t as in demand as polyurethane and it has a VERY limited shelf life once mixed with alcohol. As a result what isn’t sold has to be discarded and discarding gallons instead of quarts isn’t economically viable. Of course since it’s Lowes I wouldn’t trust them to get rid of the old which is why you should always check the code on the bottom of the can. It doesn’t look like it but the code contains the month, day and year of manufacture. Decoding information is available on the web.
9988ScooterGirl exactly!!! Don’t listen to people that have never touched the stuff. Shellac is an amazing product if you need more then a quart buy the flakes. just be safe and don’t use an electric fan!!!
Good looking attic. Thanks!
Excellent video and really appreciate you making it !
Did the odor linger? How long did the smell take to go away? Thanks for the video.
Looks great, thanks for sharing. I'll be doing this in about two weeks.
Thanks. I've been getting information on how to do stuff on here for years so I figured it was time I contributed a little myself.
Thanks for letting us know not to cut it in!!
Great info about how to use this product. Thanks.
If your looking for an amber look, use golden oak Danish oil. It's like stain and you can polyurethane over it
help for sure thanks for the video
Thanks Mike, having bad experience with Zinsser brush on and spray. Dries too fast, what can I do? my work makes me look like a loser and I want it to be perfect
I like your video....,however... you should not use an electric fan for ventilation....I was a floor refinisher and dealt with all flammable finishes ..My view is ..most electrical motors could have some minor sparking going on inside the motor (brush's to armature) and could ignite the fumes and actually act like a flame thrower.I knew someone who had it happen....even the flick of a light switch can ignite fumes .I know someone who died like that (the house blew up windows were closed) so unless you have a fan specifically made for that .I advise caution to all .☺
I haven't seen brushes on a fan motor in over 55 years. The majority are induction motors without a special start capacitor....even the Chinese junk.
I like that upstairs room. Looks great. Did you build it? I just started using shellac on my pine trim, it looks awesome. Great tips.
Please, did you apply only Amber Shellac ? Thanks for the video. It's encouraging me to use Shellac on a knotty pine guitar project.
dekzan yes all I used was the Amber Shellac. 1 coat
If you do guitars you want to use pure de-waxed shellac flakes such as sold in bags at woodworker or luthier supply stores such as LMI, not the pre-mixed type in the can..I use it as the sealer coat but not as a final finish, for that I use nitro lacquer, sanding between coats. Sure you could "french polish" it but shellac is easier to control by spraying due it drying so fast.
Did the shellac reduce the pine smell in your attic? Also, how long did it take to stop smelling of shellac. Thanks!
I don’t remember exactly how long it took to not smell like shellac. But it definitely still smells like pine. Because it’s alcohol based it drys real fast and the smell didn’t linger as long as paint in my opinion. But 100% still smells like pine and 0% shellac smell.
@@MrMikepaul8 okay thank you! I have just had maple plywood installed with a thin layer of natural polywhey 3 weeks ago and the wood smell is still so strong it burns my eyes so I was hoping shellac would seal in some of the wood terpenes. Good to know it didn't change the strength of the wood smell. Thank you!
If you were shooting for making the wood light colored, you should have went with a clear or blonde shellac.
It’s made from bug poop, look it up! I’ve used it a lot and learned right away to finish what you started. If you start a board do the entire board before you start the next. Any overlapping will leave it noticeably darker and blotchy. If you must discontinue something really feather it out a lot to avoid the start stop lines.
Thank you! Great information!
How do you get water out of wood stain ?
Does this yellow the wood?
Does it need sanding?
Super, super, fantastic
Thanks a lot, very helpful!
Can you thin it & have a lighter finish...?
I am not sure. Just thin out a little bit in a separate container and try it on a scrap piece of wood.
Well done!
Nice..thanks for video.
Can anyone tell me if I should do this process before putting it up on my ceiling? I am converting a shed into a pool house and I bought knotty pine for the ceiling. Or should I do it after it is up? Thanks
I don’t think it’s worth the trouble of doing before it goes up. You will inevitably have to do some touch up and it will not look right and you will end up re-coating the whole thing. It’s relatively easy to apply
@@MrMikepaul8 Thank you very much I appreciate it!
Are those the tounge and groove boards that are 1/4 thick ?
Kevin Sorenson yes. 1/4 thick 6 inch tongue and grove white pine
@@MrMikepaul8 thanks . Looks awesome I'm about to start a project with those same boards from Lowe's.
You can get it in gallons at sherwin williams
First use a clear coat to seal the wood - the color coats are then more even
if you want the surface silky smooth, sand it.
On the places you overkilled, maybe you can rub denaturated alcohol with a cloth in it to lighten the tone.
Definitely do not do that. It will really change the color of the wood and just make a huge mess. That stuff is no joke. I had some black oil base paint splatter on some white painted metal. I took a little denatured alcohol to it and it took the white paint (all 3 coats) down to bare metal. I'm the only one that notices the places I put to much on. Best bet is to leave it be
Whoa $13.50. It's over $25 at my Lowes 8 years later.
Thanks Friend
Great to see that WoodPrix has new instructions to save my money and energy to build it.
First coat always looks the best. Try putting a second on with that carp. U will ruin that whole room. That stuff is garbage and it's impossible to use.
Operation Arch Angels the amber is a 3 pound cut. If you thin it down to a 2 pound or a one pound cut it’s easier to work with.