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Thread: Water-based Poly

  1. #1
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    Water-based Poly

    Wondering about using water-based poly for drawer boxes in a bathroom vanity. Have already applied one coat of dewaxed shellac. Instructions are hard to find but I do note that Old Masters says not to use their water-base poly over shellac. I'd like to use water-base poly simply as a time saver, so that I don't have to wait 24 hours between coats of GF Arm-R-Seal, which I would normally use. Would most probably use Minwax (more convenient to buy) or GF. Any thoughts?

  2. #2
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    If the shellac was de-waxed, you shouldn't have an issue with a water borne finish over it. And in drawers, shellac and/or water borne is the only thing to use to avoid long term off-gassing smells.
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

  3. #3
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    Herb, dewaxed shellac is the universal sealer; you can put anything over it. Almost every drawer I make has a coat of Sealcoat (dewaxed) shellac) and then WB poly over that. The instructions you read from Old Masters probably relates to "shellac", which is code for shellac containing wax and you don't want to put any form of poly over that, WB, OB, whatever.

    So your plan is good. Dewaxed shellac then WB poly. This is a much better finish for drawers than Arm-R-Seal. ARS is a great product, but I never use it on the inside of a cabinet because it will stink for months and impart that smell to anything inside. Between Minwax and GF's products, I would pick GF's. Specifically, I use EnduroVar or Enduro Clear Poly and both would be an excellent choice for finishing drawers, and a whole lot more. Of those two, Clear Poly has much less odor and is dead clear. EnduroVar has a pretty good odor for a week or so, is slightly more chemically durable, and has a slight amber tint. Both are much harder and more durable than MinWax Polycrylic.

    John

  4. #4
    I'm in the Varathane Diamond Floor Finish camp. It will stand up to the abuse at the local Y's. I skip the shellac completely. Before breaking down sheet goods for drawer boxes, I triple coat them using paint pad made for cutting in corners. Quicker than spraying.

  5. #5
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    Ok, here's the bad news (for me). The shellac I used was Zinsser Bullseye (yellow can) which is, I think, a waxed shellac. I got out a magnifying glass to read the label more completely and it says that the product should not be used under poly. At this point, I guess my options are to apply additional coats of the Bullseye product, or to use something like Arm-R-Seal. These drawer boxes are already assembled so there is no viable way that I can see to sand them to remove the shellac already applied.

  6. #6
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    You can also coat them with SealCoat (Zinsser wax-free shellac) and then use whatever you prefer. But honestly, shellac is a nice finish for the insides of a drawer already...perhaps you can just leave it at that.
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Herb Smith View Post
    Ok, here's the bad news (for me). The shellac I used was Zinsser Bullseye (yellow can) which is, I think, a waxed shellac. I got out a magnifying glass to read the label more completely and it says that the product should not be used under poly. At this point, I guess my options are to apply additional coats of the Bullseye product, or to use something like Arm-R-Seal. These drawer boxes are already assembled so there is no viable way that I can see to sand them to remove the shellac already applied.
    Yellow can and orange can have wax, but not a whole lot. As a finish inside a drawer, it is just fine.

    Or you can lay down some SealCoat which is the dewaxed stuff. Or you can get the aerosol Zinsser which is also dewaxed.

    But easiest would be to just leave it alone this time.

    Finally, as a single data point, I have applied (cheap Minwax) waterborne polyurethene over the stuff from the orange can and it has been just fine for a couple of years now. YMMV.
    Don't sweat the petty things and don't pet the sweaty things.

  8. #8
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    I've sprayed WB poly over amber shellac (orange can) with no problems, though I don't recommend others do it. As Jim said, if you spray a coat of Sealcoat over what you have you can then spray WB poly over that w/o worry. I do it all the time. If you don't like that approach, you can strip off what you have on the drawers now and start over. Shellac comes off about as fast as you can spread on chemical stripper.

    I would not use Arm-R-Seal for finishing drawers.

    John

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