One of the most important things to do before painting is to ensure that the wood surface is smooth and well-fixed.
However, even after all the cracks have been fixed with wood fillers, the paint still doesn’t work well. You need to take some time to learn if it happens.
Wood filler showing through the stain
Staining furniture before painting is necessary, but that is why wood filler usually shows through stain directly, even before it is painted.
The most annoying is that although some coats of stain have been added to cover the blotches and lines of the wood fillers, they still show through again and again.
One of the solutions you can do is apply a shellac wash coat as a sealer for the wood grain before staining. If it is stained already, remove them all with sandpaper to apply the shellac first before reapplying the stain later.
Using a wood glaze product also works well in covering the blotches because it will not penetrate to wood-like stains but will stay on top of the wood surface instead.
When applied over stain or paint, it covers the blotches. However, it doesn’t give color like a stain, so you still need to add some finish when using it.
How to Make Wood Filler Look Like Wood
When using a wood filler to repair any scratches from your wooden stuff, making it look like wood is considered the most complicated.
Staining sometimes doesn’t work in making the filler look like wood. Even if you have picked the closest stain color to the natural wood tone, the wood filler mostly shows through, which is annoying.
A trick to make your wood filler look like wood is mixing it with the sawdust of your wood. Sand a scrap wood from your DIY project with fine-grit sandpaper and collect the sawdust from mixing with wood filler.
Use wood putty to make it paste and apply it to the repaired area. Cover it with a mixture of sawdust and wood filler to get a well-repaired section of your DIY project.
Do You Have to Prime Over Wood Filler
Not priming your wood filler before painting is why you find it to show through. It must be left until it dries. Sand it before applying primer. It takes a long process, but it will prevent the wood filler from showing through later.
How to Stop Filler Showing Through Paint
As mentioned above, primer is important in stopping wood filler from showing through. This is because the wood filler is different from the wood surface in absorbing paint.
When the real wood already absorbs it, the filler has not done it, so it causes some lines to show through. Applying primer and a couple of coats of paint will help prevent the wood filler from showing through.
How Long for Wood Filler to Dry Before Painting
How long for the wood filler to dry depends on the type of the wood filler and the depth of the repaired area. If the areas are shallow, it only takes around 30 minutes to 2 hours to dry.
It takes longer to dry for deeper areas, around 2 to 6 hours. So you can’t just let the wood filler dry in every DIY project in the same amount of time. You need to learn how long you should leave the filler to dry.
The type of wood filler also influences how long it will dry. Water-based filler is the quickest to dry since it takes only 30 minutes to 6 hours to dry.
Epoxy or solvent-based wood filler could be the longest. It takes up to 7 days to dry, and you must take the time to ensure your project is completed.
Wood Filler before Painting
Applying wood filler before painting is essential to provide a smooth and perfect surface. Using wood filler to repair any damage or cracks in your wood is quite easy.
You just need to sand the repaired areas, apply wood filler, sand it again once the filler dries, and paint the wood.
You can use either paint or stain for the repaired areas with wood filler because some types of them are only matching to stain or paint.
Do You Need to Seal Wood Filler?
You need to apply a sealer to the wood filler to make it well adhered to the repaired areas. Unlike wood putty, wood filler lacks adhesive properties. So never skip applying a sealer to your wood putty to make it last longer.
What is the Difference Between Wood Putty and Wood Filler?
When filling holes or cracks on the wood surface, you always have two popular options: wood putty and wood filler.
They serve almost the same function, but they are different. Knowing each function and characteristic will help you decide which one is the most suitable for your DIY project.
Wood putty is also called plastic wood because it has a soft-clay texture when added to water. It takes longer to dry, but it comes in various colors to match any stain you use.
It has adhesive properties that make it easier to apply since it doesn’t need a sealer.
If you are working with outdoor furniture, wood putty is the best choice because it is more resistant to rain and sun compared to wood putty.
Wood filler is quicker to dry but more expensive than wood putty. It usually comes in a neutral color, making it easier to match with stain.
It can be mixed with sawdust to blend perfectly with the wood surface you are working on.
You can go with wood filler if you are repairing large cracks or holes. However, unlike wood putty, wood fill is not suitable for outdoor furniture is it is not expandable.
The wood filler will break when the furniture is expanded and contracted due to some natural elements. It is best used for indoor furniture and is easy to match with your paint or stain.
