# Staining over glue spots



## tek (Jun 20, 2008)

I am remodeling my house and I have purchased some oak veneer bifold doors and after i stained both sides I found three small glue spots. I have sanded them out with 220 grit sandpaper and now the glue appears to be gone, so I restained the area but now it doesn't match the color of the other areas.

I have tried that and it doesn't appear to be absorbing into the wood. Actually I painted it on with a foam brush and I was going to leave it on there for a half an hour, but I started watching things on my DVR and about 3 hours later I remembered that i needed to wipe it down. The results were pretty much the same as before.

What do you suppose caused the lighter area? Did I end up melting/spreading the glue over the sanded area?

What did I do wrong and how can i fix it?


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## kolwdwrkr (Jul 27, 2008)

The glue closed the poors that would soak up the stain like the rest of the door. It basically acted like glue size. You could try to sand it down more with a rougher grit to open some of the grain back up. Just be carefull not to sand through the veneer. If you do that then the stain won't absorb into the substrate. The other thing you can do is glaze over the glue spot only, or even use toner. When you sand stain off of one area and try to restain it it never goes on as dark because the original stain raises the grain and closes the poors. Then when you sand it with a light grit you are polishing it making to where the wood doesn't absorb as much. That is why you should sand the stain off with a rougher grit, maybe 150 or 180. You also want to sand a larger area to "blend" in what you are fixing, not just the little spot of glue.
Hopefully my incoherant thoughts made sense.


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## Daves (Aug 23, 2008)

I agree with Kolwdwkr, the pores in the wood are sealed by the glue, re sand a larger area, but only to a 150 grit, any finer and you reseal the grain. You may want to try opening the pores again by appling a small amount of water to the unsanded area. this wil help reopen the pores. stain and then fine sand the area after the dtain is dry


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## teenagewoodworker (Jan 31, 2008)

what i am hearing it that you are getting this problem in the whole sander area not just where the glue was. the stain soaked in and sealed the surface so when you sanded the top off there is still the oil that has seeped into the surface and sealed it off. thats why in the area you sanded it won't color. because oil needs to soak in and the surface is sealed in you situation.


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## CharlieM1958 (Nov 7, 2006)

I agree with what has been said. I'm afraid it is all going to boil down to how picky you and/or your spouse(if you have one) are.

The techniques suggested here might get you pretty close, but it won't be perfect. Since you are dealing with veneer, you just cant sand deep enoughto get past where the glue and previous stain has penetrated. If you are a perfectionist, you might as well save yourself the effort and buy a new door (maybe you can use this one in a place where the imperfection will be out of sight). Check your new door for glue spots by wiping it down with mineral spirits before staining.


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## teenagewoodworker (Jan 31, 2008)

there is one thing that i can thing of. as i said above it is the oil and not the glue sealing off the surface. if you are content on trying to save this door. then wipe on a *GOOD QUALITY*gel stain. they are made to sit on the surface and not penetrate. use a darker color than before and it should look decent. you will still see the spot if you focus because these stains that sit on the surface accent off of the surface they are on so with the discoloration in the surface you will still be able to see it if you focus but it will be masked.

by *GOOD QUALITY* i mean general finishes, bartley, ect. the professional brands. not the big box store brands


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## jcees (Dec 31, 2007)

kolwdwrkr is right, a rougher grit would have been better and hand sanded ONLY so as not to burn through the veneer. You could have feathered your sanding pattern up into the good areas in order to give you a ramp up to matching your previously and newly stained areas.

OR you could have immediately when upon discovering you've got glue spots, wash the whole thing off with the proper solvent. This the easiest and quickest thing to do and takes the worry out of being close. Flood the piece, wipe it down making sure you don't leave ANY rag or brush marks or finger or hand prints and let it dry completely before you sand out the offending glue spots.

Next time, just as Charlie said, before you stain, wipe down all the show surfaces at least with mineral spirits and that way you can find the glue spots BEFORE you stain.

always,
J.C.


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## captneversail (Dec 22, 2013)

I have had success in some cases, coloring over the spot with a permanent Magic marker, as close to the stain color as I can find. Some cases I added a black line(s) on it as grain, when applicable. You can wipe it to achieve different shades of the color. The ink needs to fully dry before applying polyurethane. Put on 1st coat of finish very lightly. 
Doesn't always work, but it's a time saver.
Regards, Capt.


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## pintodeluxe (Sep 12, 2010)

After sanding, wipe the area down with mineral spirits. This helps to highlight any glue you may have missed. 
Veneer products can be a real pain.


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## WibblyPig (Jun 8, 2009)

Get everything finished the way you want it then use some toner sprays to make the glued areas blend in with the others. If you get it to match before you finish it, the finish may affect the areas differently.

You can buy toner sprays or make your own and use a Preval sprayer to apply.


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## JAAune (Jan 22, 2012)

I typically fix these problems by wet-sanding the stain into the glue spot. Usually one grit finer than that used to do the final sanding does the trick. Sometimes I go a couple grit sizes larger. I'm careful to sand only the part that actually needs more color.

This is touchy work and care and patience are necessary. It's better to do too little than too much because it's near impossible to undo what's been done but easy to do a little more at a time until everything looks right.

If further tweaking of the color is required I'll usually wait until the first coat of finish is done then use a touch up marker before applying the second coat.


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