# OK to Paint or Stain in cold weather?



## meanwhile (Dec 13, 2007)

I bought some pieces of solid wood UN-finished furniture. The temps next week will be High of 46 Monday / High 45 Tuesday / partly sunny. Is that too cold to paint or stain and then water base poly the furniture? I was going to do it on a porch that will keep them dry (even if it later rains) but it would be cold at night out there. I am going to hang plastic over the sides of porch to be sure it stays dry but will the cold mess up the stain or the paint? Thank you.

PS The night time temps are predicted to be 26 one night and 25 the next night. That is as far as it predicts so far. I think it would be a bit warmer on the porch since it is up against the house and I would have plastic over the porch sides. Is that too cold anyway?


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## plowjockey (Aug 18, 2008)

It's always best to follow the instructions, for whatever finish you are using. 

They should tell what tempratures are acceptable.


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## wyld thang (Nov 16, 2005)

my neighbor painted his house when it was cold and foggy(not raining, and not under freezing temps). The paint all slid off the house. It was pretty funny. I think maybe the problem is it takes longer to dry(acheiveing a firm surface tension and adhesion) the paint sags and remains viscous and gravity pulls it down.


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## meanwhile (Dec 13, 2007)

Hello -- thank you but no, I am not painting the house! I was going to paint or stain and then clear finish some Un-finished furniture. I know there are paints and stains for "cold applications" and I just thought maybe someone here would have a brand or suggestions for me. 

Thanks if anyone has ideas. If it is best to just wait till it warms up, then thats what I need to know too. Thank you.


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## stanb999 (Jan 30, 2005)

meanwhile said:


> Hello -- thank you but no, I am not painting the house! I was going to paint or stain and then clear finish some Un-finished furniture. I know there are paints and stains for "cold applications" and I just thought maybe someone here would have a brand or suggestions for me.
> 
> Thanks if anyone has ideas. If it is best to just wait till it warms up, then thats what I need to know too. Thank you.


It's really best to wait. There are special low/high temp coatings but they are generally very difficult to use and expensive. Also they are very limited in application.


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## BackfourtyMI. (Sep 3, 2007)

I think most paint/stain needs to be above 55 degree's or something like that to dry. Otherwise I think it will take forever & still be wet. Probly depends alot on what type you use. All paint can's tell you temp. ranges on the them though.


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## NamasteMama (Jul 24, 2009)

Yup used to paint murals, I did one when it was about 30 out and it took a month to dry!


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## Joshie (Dec 8, 2008)

You can look on the can of your finish. The paint I've used that will allow colder weather application needs temperatures of at least 50-55 degrees F. I've used that paint when temps are at least that high during the day, even if it got colder at night. If I do it early enough in the day it has time to dry enough before the temp goes down at night.

You could stain inside. Do you have a basement? As an aside, have you ever used varnish? I certainly like it MUCH better than poly. You can get a much smoother finish because you can sand after your last coat. Poly looks scratched if you sand after your last coat. If this is outdoor furniture, even if kept on a porch, I'd look for a marine grade varnish or poly.


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## meanwhile (Dec 13, 2007)

Hello -- yes, we have decided we better wait till it warms up. It is not going to get over about 46 here next week and since that ice / snow mess is on the way too....we better just wait. Thank you!


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## Harry Chickpea (Dec 19, 2008)

In addition to waiting for it to warm up, avoid humid days when finishing furniture. I made that mistake on a project and ended up with wood that was covered with a tacky soft finish that took literally months to properly cure.


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## MN Gardener (Jan 23, 2008)

I read or saw something about adding ammonia to the paint when you are painting in cold weather. I believe I saw it on DIY Network, make try google that or going to thier website. Not sure if it will apply for you.


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## DW (May 10, 2002)

We do lots of this type of thing outside but then, bring it in at night.


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## Windy in Kansas (Jun 16, 2002)

Joshie said:


> As an aside, have you ever used varnish? I certainly like it MUCH better than poly. You can get a much smoother finish because you can sand after your last coat. Poly looks scratched if you sand after your last coat.


It was a long time ago that I used some poly and didn't care much for it. Not a real fan of varnish either for that matter but have used my fair share of it.

This fall I helped the contractor with the building of my kids new house. I got a belly full of woodwork finishing. Stain, poly, fill and sand, and a top coat of poly. 

The product was wonderful. Leveled out brush strokes as it dried and hardened. Dried fast too and recoat could often be done in 30 minutes to 1 hour. Applied very dry to stair spindles and it would be almost dry to the touch in 5 minutes or less. Almost difficult to keep track of what you had already covered.

I'm certainly a fan of the newer poly and may never use varnish again. I should write down the brand information that we used as it was a winner in my book.


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## Joshie (Dec 8, 2008)

Windy in Kansas said:


> I'm certainly a fan of the newer poly and may never use varnish again. I should write down the brand information that we used as it was a winner in my book.


Was the new stuff as brittle as the old stuff? I HATE poly on floors because it's so hard. If you drop anything on a poly floor it tends to shatter the finish in that spot and looks much worse than a ding on a varnished floor. Varnish is certainly not perfect but I like to sand that last coat. If I'm refinishing any furniture I want a very smooth top coat. Never, ever seen that with poly. I like four to six coats of varnish. I think that gives a great finish to a nice piece of furniture.


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## Windy in Kansas (Jun 16, 2002)

I don't know that anything was dropped onto any of our work but the contractor did tell how hard it is. 

It goes on so nicely that it is hard to tell that the stained wood even has a finish on it. Sort of like maple after sanding, very smooth. Only when dust settled in it was there a problem. In that event a light sanding and another coat smoothed it right back out. 

It didn't leave rags, brushes, or anything extremely stiff so I would guess it does have some flexibility. Sorry, can't remember the brand. I do know there was some left and will be in storage at the kids house for future use.


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## stanb999 (Jan 30, 2005)

Windy in Kansas said:


> I don't know that anything was dropped onto any of our work but the contractor did tell how hard it is.
> 
> It goes on so nicely that it is hard to tell that the stained wood even has a finish on it. Sort of like maple after sanding, very smooth. Only when dust settled in it was there a problem. In that event a light sanding and another coat smoothed it right back out.
> 
> It didn't leave rags, brushes, or anything extremely stiff so I would guess it does have some flexibility. Sorry, can't remember the brand. I do know there was some left and will be in storage at the kids house for future use.



Was it water based Poly acrylic? It goes on like your saying.




Joshie said:


> Was the new stuff as brittle as the old stuff? I HATE poly on floors because it's so hard. If you drop anything on a poly floor it tends to shatter the finish in that spot and looks much worse than a ding on a varnished floor. Varnish is certainly not perfect but I like to sand that last coat. If I'm refinishing any furniture I want a very smooth top coat. Never, ever seen that with poly. I like four to six coats of varnish. I think that gives a great finish to a nice piece of furniture.



An oil finish is the best for fine furniture... If you have time for 8-10 coats.


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## carasel (Dec 31, 2009)

it's too cold to finish and/or leave your parts outside. the pieces you are finishing need to be at the manufactures stated air temp also. if not you may have a problem with the finish bonding to your furniture. 
cooler temps mean longer dry times. 
if you are using water base products. keep your finished pieces from freezing temps. until after they are fully dry. finish can freeze. then crack or come off. 
when your looking for warm weather to finish in. remember to think about the re-coat time limit on some products.


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## Guest (Jan 28, 2010)

Backfourty said:


> I think most paint/stain needs to be above 55 degree's or something like that to dry. Otherwise I think it will take forever & still be wet. Probly depends alot on what type you use. All paint can's tell you temp. ranges on the them though.



I agree. We were going to paint our last house before we put it on the market but the painter wouldn't do it as the temp was going below 55 degrees.


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