Getting that old pine reddish-honey color RIGHT NOW

[Old Guy in Tenn]

We will be starting the interior of our Tennessee retirement home in a couple of months. We are hoping to purchase prefinished tongue & groove pine for some of it. The home where my wife grew up had some old knotty pine which had the rich reddish honey color which pine develops over time (pine plus shellac, varnish?). We don't have that much time.

Have any of you had success with staining pine to achieve that color? We are currently planning to apply a clear coat over any stain to keep it clean.

Thanks

 

[oosik]

I have 2x6 T&G flooring in part of my house. I applied stain and then a polyurethane top coat. It wasn't reddish honey color stain. However - the stain I did use worked well and I redo the top coat every 8 to 10 years. The T&G flooring was installed in 1982 and has held up well along with the stain.

The stain - MinWax semi translucent oil stain. Comes in many colors. I get it at Lowes or Home Depot.

 

[Diggin It]

I don't recall pine ever getting that tone naturally.

There used to be a product called orange shellac that when applied to interior doors and trim would look that way. A quick search says it may be called amber shellac now.

 

[oosik]

I have an all cedar house. Double wall - 4x6 T&G. I've used several types of stain on the outside. Oil stain works the best. Many will "chalk" after a few years and look like sh*t. The oil stain definitely soaks into the cedar and has never chalked.

I've never seen any reddish honey color in my pine either. Different pine - different location. I do get a MUCH SOUGHT AFTER - blue striping in the pine. It's some form of blue mold. I've sold some of my larger ancient Ponderosa pines to custom builders for mega bucks. They cut and limb - leave it sitting out on pallets for a year or so. This blue mold will develop and course its way thru the log. When cut into boards the blue mold striping is very obvious. Used in custom built homes. Used as decorative wall covering - never structural.

 

[GLyford]

If it is the same effect they call it "blue stain" here and seen as the first sign of rot, any roughsawn white pine having it will be either discounted or just tossed. For short term projects or where the strength isn't critical it can be a good way to get lumber cheap. Is white pine softer than ponderosa...? That might factor into it, too.

Maybe it's like spalting in maple, where in some uses it can be stabilized and used to good artistic effect, and in others it just means the wood is untrustworthy and shouldn't be used...

Getting back to the OP, If you think the color is part reaction to sunlight over the years on either the finish or the wood itself (and I seem to recall seeing some where there was a picture or some such that blocked the reaction) maybe try some bare and with various finishes under heavy UV light and see if you can get close?

 

[s219]

Normally blue stain in pines is from one of the pine beetle varieties. It should have minimal effect on the wood. If there are beetle bore holes however, that could lower the grade of the wood for structural use, or make it unsuitable. I come across the blue stain wood in fresh sawn pine on my property every so often.

When pine just begins to rot, it turns more of a yellow-orange color. The rot will be in between grain rings. The wood is usually still OK for non-structural use.

My main experience is with white pine and yellow pine. Both will develop a deep yellow-orange "tan" with exposure to the sun. It is really obvious when you see a piece of sun-exposed pine that might have had a section covered (like with another board, or a sticker). It will show through any transparent/translucent stain or finish too.

 

[mred2]

I think there are several different type of pine trees. I am sure that some finish different and s219 may be right about the sun. A lot of wood will age differently in the sun.

 

[/pine]

In many cases especially in older homes...the patina that develops on natural wood paneling over time actually comes from a few different sources...mostly airborne particles primarily from cooking and fireplace/wood stove gases...and in some cases even tobacco...
other sources can be from aerosol products etc over time...

 

[Diggin It]

I think there are several different type of pine trees. I am sure that some finish different and s219 may be right about the sun. A lot of wood will age differently in the sun.

Must be because the pine I see left out exposed to the Sun just turns grey and dingey.

 

[Steppenwolfe]

Sikkens stain Will do what you want. Then top coat with Zars matte finish or antique finish.

 

[JethroB]

Here is an example of aged T&G southern yellow pine installed in the early 70's that had been given a poor polyurethane coat. Pine just soaked up the clear coat available back then. On the right is an area that was covered until recently. The beautiful pine doors are new but maybe in another 40 years it will all match. No direct sunlight, fireplace, smokers, etc. I'm not a fan of the orange color but love my little cabin.

 

[Old Guy in Tenn]

Great feedback. Thank you. Next trip out and about I will pick up some shellac, stain, sealer, etc and do some testing.

 

[oosik]

Pine is such a near neutral light color - with the right stain you should be able to get just about any final color you want.

A couple pieces of Ponderosa pine trunk from the trees at my place. Both have been left outside, in the weather for 10+ years. I call this - telephone pole grey. View attachment 684511View attachment 684512

 

[quicksandfarmer]

I haven't done it on pine, but I find that boiled linseed oil gives many woods that warm aged look. Especially if you can put it in direct sunlight after applying the oil. An oil-based urethane goes over linseed oil no problem once it's dry.

Take a piece of scrap, coat it with linseed oil and set it out in the sun for a couple days and see what it looks like.

 

[RustyA]

Did some remodeling in the basement of our 20 year old house finished in t&g pine interior. Took a sample of existing wood to hardware store. Minwax honey pine stain matched it perfect in one coat. You can hardly tell the new stuff from the old t&g unless you knew. Minwax has multiple shades on a sample brochure.

 

[civilian]

A little late to the post. We like the ambered look of knotty pine T&G. Our old house had ambered over the years. Don't know when the T&G was put up.

In our new house I am building the cabinets using knotty pine T&G. Look at some of the boards below. These are finished with 3 coats oil based polyeurethane. Some of the unfinished boards were a more red color. The second picture shows a finished door on the right, while the left is a temporary unfinished cabinet space for a future dishwasher.

 

[PILOON]

I'll pass on a trick I used when I did a major renovation some years back.
My client wanted the entire walls to be wood and preferably cedar but due to costs we went with pine, and not exactly first grade either.
Lots of sanding on rough areas was required as well and naturally we needed to seal or varnish the wood.

My 'trick' !
I never vacuumed or dusted those walls.
What I did was to apply a Danish oil* finish with a sponge which in turn wiped away any sawdust as I applied the oil finish.
The Danish oil once dried sealed the pores like a varnish would do.
Also the product was available pre tinted with many choices.
Did a great job and was fast and easy to apply.
I'd every so often wring out the sponge to clear whatever sawdust was accumulated.
The finish was better than brush application as there were no drips streaks or runs that brushing often cause.

A recent visit confirmed the success after some 14 years.
That pine sure blended in with the cedar of the rest of the house.

And did I say fast?
I suggest no brush or roller application could come near the wet sponge technique.

*we used Minwax brand, (label suggests it is a polyurethane based oil)

 

[Egon]

Add a little alcohol to the danish oil to help penetration.

 

[frogracer]

Check out:

Gregory Log & Lumber | Gregory Log & Lumber

This Amish Lumber Company specializes in pine and may be a great resource for you new home.

 

[GGray]

Try steel wool and vinegar. Soak a couple of steel wool pads in a quart of vinegar overnight or longer; use a glass container, mason jar works well. A little experimenting on scrap wood is necessary to determine if you need multiple coats to achieve the desired shade, but it is very easy to apply, and cheap!