Does anybody have any experience using Alcohol Dye Stains on hardwood floors? I understand that you get a very deep penetration into the wood but it can be a nightmare for lap lines, drips, rings etc.

Any feedback or tips on application would be greatly appreciated.

edited by admin: read the rules

Compared to something like Minwax, dying the wood wont go any deeper . Bonakemi stains are formulated to only penetrate to a certain amount so in that case, dying can penetrate deeper.

The only reason to mix your own dye with alcohol is to get a color that is not available otherwise. And as mentioned , alcohol dries super quickly so you have much less work time than a typical solvent based stain

One realistic scenario is when you have something like maple or pine which always stains very unevenly .You could partially seal the grain (after sanding and screening) with a 50/50 mix of de waxed shellac and denatured alcohol. After that sets up, you can mix your alcohol and dye and apply that over the shellac.With some practice , you can get some awesome results.

But over a workable wood like oak, you could just go to a paint store, have them take natural minwax,Zar or whatever base and then add pigment to it to get the color you want. You can take natural Minwax and tint it bright blue if you want to although you'd normally opt for a water based for that color.

Regarding the shellac / dye trick, I saw that done on an old pine plank floor and it came out fantastic. There has never been a more evenly stained pine floor in history .It's a completely different result from just using a solvent stain directly on wood.