How to finish a pine barn door

Question

I made a barn door out of DAR pine planks from Bunnings, and am now looking for tips on how to finish it.

It’s all tongue and groove, slotted together pretty well. I’m planning to sand it down, but unsure of what varnish or staining products people would recommend?

Personally, I don’t want to mess with the colour of it. Would like to find a low gloss finish of some kind, just to protect it and enhance the natural colour a bit.

I also reckon it’d go better with the laminated timber look floor if it’s not coloured.

Recommendations?

JacobZ · Answer

Hi @ishkan,

Good luck with the rest of the project.

I very much look forward to seeing the end result.

Jacob

ishkan · Answer

Thanks very much! Will share some pictures when they’re up.

JacobZ · Answer

Hi @ishkan,

There is not much difference in the difficulty of applying these products, but they are different in terms of what they do.

Cabot's Matt Water Based Cabothane Clear Polyurethane Varnish is a varnish, as opposed to an oil. This means it will create a coating on the top of the timber, meaning it will have less of a natural feel, whereas the Danish oil is a penetrating oil, which will seep into the grain of the timber, maintaining a more natural feel.

If you are looking for a low gloss, penetrating oil will usually be less glossy than a varnish.

I'd say don't bother with 40 grit and start with 80 grit. Work in small sections, or on individual boards to ensure you get everything before moving on to the next section. Once you've given everything a once over with the 80 grit, move up through the grits, 120, followed by 180 then 240.

You can always go much higher in terms of grits for sandpaper, but 240 grit is going to give you a very nice finish that I'm sure you'll be happy with.

You can use How To Restore Wooden Furniture as a bit of a guide on how to sand your workpiece.

Once everything is done, make sure to brush it or vacuum it to remove any sawdust left on the piece before coating.

Let me know if you have any further questions.

Jacob