Been seeing a lot of talk about using a hair dryer to speed up stain drying

I was super skeptical until I tried it on a maple table leg last week, holding the dryer about a foot away on low heat. It actually worked and cut the wait time in half without raising the grain. Has anyone else tested this on oil-based stains versus water-based?

3 comments

3 Comments

david8211mo ago

One thing I haven't seen mentioned is how the room's humidity plays into this. If the air is already damp, the dryer might just be fighting a losing battle and you could end up with a spotty finish. It probably works best in a dry shop. Also, moving the dryer around constantly seems way better than just pointing it at one spot, which I could see causing problems.

sage_perry1mo ago

Man, you are SO right about the humidity. Tried drying a coat in my basement once and it was a total mess, just would not cure right. Moving the dryer around is the only way to go, otherwise you get those weird dry spots next to gummy patches. It makes a huge difference to keep the air moving over the whole piece. Your point about the dry shop is spot on, some environments just work against you from the start.

piper1751mo ago

Yeah, cutting the wait time in half is a huge win. I read a woodworking blog that said low heat is key for oil-based stuff, but to be way more careful with water-based because the extra heat can sometimes make it set up weird or get tacky. They recommended a cool setting for those.