Wood Stain/Sealant Recommendation

sikwan

06 Tin Can
Wood Sealant Recommendation

I just bought a couple 4x8 0.7 thick plywood sheets with an Agathis facing. It had a decent look and price, but what do I know. :idunno: I'm using it for a platform and probably the structure for the sink inside the van.

My requirements:

1. It dries fast. I have like maybe a week for it to sit and dry, but I want to be able to handle it within a day within a weekend.
2. Goes on easy with a brush, and one coat is all that is needed.
3. Waterproof. With kids, we'll probably be spilling, hopefully just, water on it.
4. Can be found in my local Home Depot, Lowes, or OSH (Orchard Supply Hardware).
5. Cheap! For the things that I ask for, I'm sure it won't be cheap, but I figure I'd list it. :smirk:

There will be a half inch thick puzzle foam over the top of this that will give the kids a place to play around in and maybe provide a soft surface for them to fall. I could probably leave it bare plywood, but the center section of the platform will be pulled out to provide an eating table. I guess we could eat over bare plywood, but it would be nice to have some type of finish.

I'm a super-duper noob when it comes to this, and as you can probably tell, I'm in a bit of a rush to finish this for a road trip in two weeks. The only brand that I know of is Thompson's, so be nice to me.

Thanks for any tips!
 

Altered Sprinter

Happy Little Vegemite
Water based Urethane clear three coats in an hour, no smell, no toxins and best of all brushes wash up in water.
Be a devil, Go for it I dare you.
Richard
 

Altered Sprinter

Happy Little Vegemite
Yep :clapping: if you have the time brush or roll the first two coats on, no need to cut back between the two primary coatings, I'd suggest you sand back No 2 as the iris of the grain ply will rise, it will fell like a piece of rough sand paper but non slip... wipe of excess dust after sanding 120 grit is needed white sand paper, no mask is need and apply final coat. You need a temp of 25 C and a relative humidity of 50% to do this in one hour other wise the time drying time will be extended, as the product is moisture cured, do it in direct sunlight to accelerate the drying time.
Best of Luck.
Richard
 

pugwash

diy campervan conversion
Ive used Rustins danish oil on my worktops with great success you can apply it with a sponge or cloth all I did was sanded the bare wood first then wire wool between each coat but make sure it is absolutly dust free before you apply further coats then finally treat with beeswax if required.

http://www.rustins.co.uk

Ps only pour a small amount out into a small jar if there is any left over dont pour back in the original container as it has started its drying process.
 

cedarsanctum

re: Member
If you have an Ace Hardware close by, their brand of Clear Water Based Polyurethane is an easy product to use and meets most of your requirements. It's what Richard suggests, but i found the Ace Brand to be a good product at a good price.
Thompson's will not hold up to what you describe. It goes on very thin and does not protect very well.

Jef
 

Altered Sprinter

Happy Little Vegemite
If you have an Ace Hardware close by, their brand of Clear Water Based Polyurethane is an easy product to use and meets most of your requirements. It's what Richard suggests, but i found the Ace Brand to be a good product at a good price.
Thompson's will not hold up to what you describe. It goes on very thin and does not protect very well.

Jef
cedersanctum is correct in what he has stated, as to Thompson being a lesser product..'However" Seek has a product that will suffice..Quote as its a 'Sealer' this means in basic language. "The product has been thinned down". meaning simply, less solids as it is specifically a penetrating sealer.
Three coats for what Seek is requiring of the product for his needs, two at a pinch will be OK, as opposed to per say floor use, as the main primary use this product was designed for, the sealer would wear off very quickly,if used for stand alone high density floor usage, the principle of application,is one coat of sealer.Followed one coat of High solids water-based-non toxic Polyurethane in either of three gloss, ratios from flat to High Gloss.Then cut back vacuumed and wiped clean before the final coating of High solids Urethane is applied, it's 100% water proof if all sides are sealed.
As Jef has suggested it would not hold up that well as it's a sealer, for van use if not already done then the latter ..straight high solids polyurethane would give the best permanent solution.
The finish if followed by a professional operator give you this result. from six foot back looking against the direct sun-light. One could mistake this waterborne product for a pre-finished laminated floor.
Note: its water-based Polyurethane.... not Acrylic water based. old 40 year technology which have a milk like appearance.
Richard
DSC00065 (Medium).JPG
 

Altered Sprinter

Happy Little Vegemite
shellacs reactivate in high heated areas so your mattress will become permanently stuck to the finish, its not water proof as the shellacs are meant for French polishing.
If you spend any more time in the corridors of a hardware shop you'll never get it done by the weekend.:cry:
Richard
 

cedarsanctum

re: Member
The minwax stuff is all pretty expensive, your buying the name. For your purpose, you don't need to spend a lot.
Shellac is not a good fit for your situation, as Richard said. If you took the time, you could mix it with other stuff (i don't remember the ratios, or the other stuff, it's too late at night) but it's very time consuming and expensive. It will give a good finish, but not as durable as the polyurethane.

Jef
 

cedarsanctum

re: Member
Check the coverage recommendations for these products. A quart should be enough to cover a 4x8 3 times on one side, at least, or about 100 sq.ft. It really goes pretty far. Also, i usually use a foam brush or roller to apply, gives a nice smooth finish.
Jef
 

Altered Sprinter

Happy Little Vegemite
Sounding like a parrot sorry one litre or quart will cover 10 sq yards depending on the surface porousness.ply will absorb more, on the first coat only
Richard
 

jdcaples

Not Suitable w/220v Gen
I use mineral oil on the few home made cutting boards I've managed to create.

I've also used it as a drum shell finish.


Nothing grows (feeds on) mineral oil. Water doesn't penetrate it. I'm not sure if it's good for this application, but it is cheap, readily available and immediately usable.


-Jon
 

georgetg

2005 140" low roof
Seek,

If you're not set on a "wood" look, Home Depot carries a one component waterborne epoxy floor paint.


Behr 1-Part Epoxy Acrylic Concrete & Garage Floor Paint

link to spec sheet


The grey color matches the Sprinter interior to a T.
I used it to paint my birch-plywood bed that I had in my Sprinter.

It dries quickly, about 30 minutes was my experience
Water cleanup
Very durable.
There is an anti slip additive available....

Cheers
George
 

sikwan

06 Tin Can
Thanks Jon.

George, the specs say...

DO NOT use on vertical surfaces or areas subject to hydrostatic pressure. NOT for industrial use. DO NOT use on areas subject to fork-lifts.
I'm curious on the vertical surface comment. How true is it?

I bought some acrylic/polyurethane from ACE already, but with the clear stuff I will see the edges especially on the sink. I'm hoping the gray stuff will make it look like a single block rather than wood pieces pieced together (with my bad wood working skills). But if it doesn't do vertical then I will have to stick with the poly stuff.
 

Altered Sprinter

Happy Little Vegemite
Seek are you in a position to flat paint before installation? to avoid bleed back.
Vertical application basically means it will run = sag.
edges: Prime to avoid excessive absorbency, for even gloss ratios of finish.
Many finishes have a tendency to what is called edge bonding, or stepping, that is on the leading edge it runs off, Gravity pulls the finish down, as it can not support itself on a vertical substrate, but the excessive applied finish that runs-off the leading edge,tends builds up on the underside of the lower edge, which can cause problems with extra work to rectify. The visual look is not good at this point of application, with run-off paint.
Thin applications on the edges supports itself as opposed to a heavily applied layer.
Richard
 

sikwan

06 Tin Can
You're right Richard. I don't know where my mind was, but yes, I can apply it with the surface at a horizontal.
 

sikwan

06 Tin Can
IMGP0018.JPG
Metal base bolted only to the seat receptacles. I know it's not enough, but right now it should keep the frame from moving

This is just one coat. I may give it another coat or two depending on my time.
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The acrylic/polyurethane stuff from ACE works well. :thumbup: Dries amazingly fast. Being that it was amazingly hot today helped too.

IMGP0035.JPG
Perko latch lifts hatch that converts into a table.

Sink from IKEA.
IMGP0036.JPG
Kind of big for our needs, but I like the sloped counter left of the sink.

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Too many things left to do. :cry:

Thanks again for all the suggestions!!! :rad:
 

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