# GF Polyacrylic Water Base Top Coat on Walnut



## chey (Jul 20, 2010)

Hi there, I am building a house and am taking a stab at building my own kitchen cabinets. I built the boxes out of UV finished birch ply and am going to have natural walnut face frames, doors and drawers. With this new house I will eventually build myself my dream workshop and start experimenting with sprayers and other finishing methods but in the meantime I am needing something that can be brushed or wiped on. I have used GF wipe on urethane on a walnut bookcase top before and it worked well but I'm concerned about buildup in all the nooks and crannies that doors have. In addition to these concerns, we are moving into the house in 2 weeks (cabinets will not be complete, but the boxes are in place and can be used) and I will have to finish the cabinets while living there with a 1 year old. I need something as odorless as possible and quick drying as possible. From my research I'm thinking using GF Polyacrylic Water Base Top Coat. What do you guys and gals think? Also, what sheen do most folks typically put on kitchen cabinets? Thanks for your help!


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## Milo (Apr 24, 2009)

Water based poly will work just fine, the key is you have to be patient with it. It takes at least 30 days after you apply to fully "cure" to the wood, since WB finishes physically bond to the wood (which is why you lightly sand before shooting or wiping), rather than "burning" into the wood as more caustic finishs do. The plus is you can put down multiple coats more quickly than traditional finish, within an hour or so per coat, depending on your work enviournment.

How will you be applying the finish? Wiping on? Can you wipe it on flat? Do not dilute the finish too much (certainly not 50/50) and make sure you don't use tap water around it. Chlorine will mess up your finish.

Give me a little more info on your plans and I will try to help.

Milo


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## chey (Jul 20, 2010)

Thanks for the reply Milo. I don't really have any plans at this point. I just received the GF Polyacrylic topcoat today. I am building the cabinets in place so I have currently got the face frames on and will have to finish those in the vertical. From the directions on the can I was planning on using a good quality foam brush to brush on. I'm afraid wiping on will cause too much build up in the corners of the doors. I will be able to apply the finish to the doors and drawer fronts flat. We will be living in the house as I finish the face frames so from what I gather with this finish it's fairly low odor and quick drying which is what led me to it.

Would you recommend diluting at all? I will be finishing in a conditioned space. Should I consider any type of extender since it's so quick drying?

I am a big time finishing amateur so I will take any advice you have.


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