Iron Acetate Tutorial

Lenny Hall, NWFA regional instructor and owner of Endurance Floor talks though the steps of creating and using iron acetate - an age-old technique of using the reactive formula of iron acetate to alter the color of a wood floor.

[@kabemccallister6859]

Good informative video. Here’s an additional tip: if you are looking to make the wood you are treating as dark as possible from the reaction, brew some really strong black tea and apply it to the wood, let it dry a little, and then apply the iron acetate. The additional tannins from the tea cause a stronger reaction and a darker color.

[@surianolinares501]

Can apply waterbase finish on top and also can ibise a roller or t-bar to apply

[@endurancefloorcompany7031]

Yes, this "cooked" the wood as opposed to placing pigment on it, like a dye or stain. Usually though, a stain is applied over this treatment for the deper color tone desired.

[@dennisfyfe920]

I have red oak and want a lighter gray using iron acetate. Do i use the one pad per slightly less than one gallon and can I apply three coats of poly over it?

[@sdantonio]

Hi Lenny, great tutorial. What I'm looking to do is to deep stain 0.25 inch maple or other hard wood completely through. Any ideas on how to drive the stain into the wood? Staining under pressure? Heat? any other ideas?

[@endurancefloorcompany7031]

Steven, other than commercial vacuum chamber set ups where wood was infused with colored Acrylic, I know of no other "at home" way to get a variety of colors through and through. Stains and dyes will be absorbed into wood fiber only as far as the wood will accept it. The same goes for this Iron Acetate reaction. It is only as deep as the wood fiber will absorb the solution and only where there is tannin. Sap wood will not react as it has near zero to no tannin at all. That is the same with other surface reactive chemicals: wood bleach, Oxalic Acid, etc. Ammonia fuming is the only reactive process that I know of that will alter wood materials (only with the tannin parts) at room temperature and normal pressures. The depth and tone of the reaction is a function of concentration and length of time in the fume atmosphere.

[@kabemccallister6859]

I realize that this comment is 5 years old, but if you are looking to make the wood you are treating darker, brew some really strong black tea and apply it to the wood, let it dry a little, and then apply the iron acetate. The additional tannins from the tea cause a stronger reaction and a darker color.

[@SeanMohundro]

This was the most informative and helpful video on this mixture I have found yet. Thank you. Do you know what the chemical reaction is with the wood?

[@faultcrew5760]

I believe the iron acetate reacts with tannin in the wood, I think the oak is darker because it has more tannin in it than the cherry

[@chadhoffman955]

You can also up the tannin amount by making an exreamly strong cup of black tea (10-12 bags in 10 of hot water) and treat the wood with this first, let sit for 10 minutes and wipe off before iron acetate. This speeds up the chemical reaction and creates a blacker wood

[@Godwinx]

Hello, many thanks for the tutorial,
Would you be able to apply varnish or lacquer after you applied the iron acetate?
Same as regular stain?

[@endurancefloorcompany7031]

GEX, yes, you can apply finish directly to the reaction. There must be sufficient time allowed for the vinegar to evaporate before applying a coating. Depending on your environment and the saturation applied to the wood fiber, this could be as short as 18hrs to as long as 72 hrs. I suggest duplicating the job including its conditions on a large 2x4 sample panel and test your timeline along the panel by coating it in sections at predetermined times: 18hrs, 24hrs, 36hrs, 48hrs, etc. Make notes on what you may see as a reaction of finish against the treated wood. Then make your determination based on your notes.