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How to avoid pink/orange tones when staining external door?

Hi!

I have just purchased a Hume external door to install in my home. The door that we received has a pink undertone to it. I was more hoping to have a lighter/oakier tone. But I’d be happy just to have the pink balanced out if that makes sense. Is there a way to do this?

Im also wanting to avoid an orange tone which I’ve heard comes with polyurethane products.

thanks in advance!

it shows different colours in different lights hence the multiple photos

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Comments

MitchellMc

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @jorjmorris. It's a pleasure to have you join us, and many thanks for your question about staining a door.

Looking at your images, it does look like the timber on the door has some red/pink tones. Using an oak-coloured stain will introduce some brown tones, which should help neutralise the pink to a certain extent. Keep in mind that the darker the stain you choose, the more it will mask the underlying colour of the timber.

Regarding your concern about polyurethane and an orange tone, that mainly comes from older oil-based products which tended to amber heavily over time, particularly with UV exposure. Modern formulations, even oil-based ones, are much less prone to this, and water-based polyurethanes typically show very little or no oranging.

It might be worth picking up an oak-pigmented stain and trying it on a small test section first, so you can see how it interacts with the timber’s natural undertones and whether it achieves the look you want.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell

jorjmorris

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/57769#Comment_57769

Hi Mitchell,

thankyou for the reply!

I was more hoping for something along the lines of these inspi photos. Is this possible at all?

MitchellMc

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/91444#Comment_91444

Hi @jorjmorris,

You could potentially move your door’s colour closer to that look using a stain, but what you’re really seeing in your inspiration photos is a difference in the underlying timber species. The doors in those examples appear to be made from oak or another naturally light-coloured timber, whereas yours is likely meranti or maple, which naturally has red or pink undertones. While an oak-toned stain can help push the colour more toward a neutral or light brown shade, completely achieving that soft, natural oak appearance isn’t very realistic without starting with a lighter timber. To fully mask the pink tones, you’d likely need to apply enough pigment that the overall colour ends up darker than what you’re aiming for. So you can definitely move in that direction, but expect a deeper, richer brown rather than the pale oak tones shown in your reference images.

Mitchell

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