Sealing/staining stairs

[Randle]

A few years ago I had to cut down a huge red fir . A friend has a mill so we milled it in to 2 x 12 s for stairs and landing in our new family room addition.
I am now ready to build the stairs/landing.
My question is about stain versus waxing the wood . Foot traffic will wear it no doubt since it's a soft wood .
Any wood working guys have input?
Thanks

 

[Warmsy]

Use a floor finish like bona or similar. I use it on hardwood and hemlock stairs and custom transition strips. You can wax after for more protection and more lustre. If you want to actually stain the wood, do that before bona. If you do stain the wood, refinishing in time will be more of a pain.

 

[Warmsy]

You could also put a few thin layers of epoxy. More expensive and less room for error, but would be super durable.

 

[Randle]

Thanks for the info. What epoxy product would you recommend?

 

[def90]

In the homes I work on they just use the same finish for the stairs that they use on the floors.

 

[Randle]

I have engineered hardwood in the house and stamped concrete in the addition.
I have figured out the stain we want I am trying to seal and coat the wood for foot traffic. I was told by one flooring guy that he would avoid urethane, but it seems all the sealers have that here locally.

 

[DenverCountryBoy]

A film finish on softer wood in a high use area is more likely to fail. I would look at a drying finish for that application. A drying finish will be easier to touch up, too.

 

[DenverCountryBoy]

Honestly, that is not a good application for that wood unless you are going for the real rustic, scratched and gouged look. The wear is going to impart a lot of character.

 

[DenverCountryBoy]

Make sure to use a pre-treatment prior to stain to prevent blotchiness.

 

[Bighorse]

I salvage wood too. I just finished these Western Red exterior treads. The other board is a Hemlock tread, rough and still moist. I appreciate the question because I haven’t decided how to finish the interior Hemlock either. Thanks!

 

[Warmsy]

I don't have enough experience with epoxy to confidently steer you in the right direction.

Denver is right about film finishes. , But if you do use urethane/polyurethane, you can hit it with a brush sander and apply another layer when the first one flakes off.

 

[Randle]

I kind of figured it is going to be to soft but we really want to use the wood and it looks so good.. What drying finish shouId I look for?

 

[Warmsy]

I think he's talking about linseed oil or similar?

I thought they were interior stairs. You can just use superdeck, and it comes in lots of different shades. To reapply you can power wash and just apply another coat without having to sand.

 

[Randle]

yes mine are interior

 

[dieNqvrs]

I used Doug fir for some stairs. 4x12’s and 2x2 Angle iron on the sides to support . I experimented with lots of stains and didn’t like any of the normal box ones- too much orange with dark stain. So I found a recipe on the net with vinegar and steel wool to oxidize the tannins. Quick Sanded then everywhere to get rid of years of use and uv, stained and then put a floor oil based poly on them. They have been durable and no issues with the poly flaking. We don’t use shoes on them though.

 

[DenverCountryBoy]

I used Doug fir for some stairs. 4x12’s and 2x2 Angle iron on the sides to support . I experimented with lots of stains and didn’t like any of the normal box ones- too much orange with dark stain. So I found a recipe on the net with vinegar and steel wool to oxidize the tannins. Quick Sanded then everywhere to get rid of years of use and uv, stained and then put a floor oil based poly on them. They have been durable and no issues with the poly flaking. We don’t use shoes on them though.

Ebonized wood is cool.

Dougy fir is 24% harder than red fir. 620lbf vs 500lbf.

I think he's talking about linseed oil or similar?

I thought they were interior stairs. You can just use superdeck, and it comes in lots of different shades. To reapply you can power wash and just apply another coat without having to sand.

BLO, tung, or one of the other penetrating oil finishes.

Danish oil is penetrating oils with varnish mixed in.

 

[Randle]

We ended up going with Danish oil and will reapply as needed.
Thanks for all the advise