SAND OR Strip?

Should you strip or sand the old finish before staining your staircase rails?

Here’s the bottom line: It’s always best to completely remove the old finish by stripping, then sanding. This will allow the new stain to saturate the wood evenly. However, you can get away with just sanding, then staining over the old stain, under the following conditions:

1. Your new finish will bond with the old finish. Typically, oil-based stains and water-based stains are incompatible.

2. Gel stains boast that they can go over a current stain under specific conditions. Follow the directions on the label.

3. An all-in-one stain + poly can go over other finishes in much the same way you cover other finishes with a regular polyurethane. Just consider it a tinted polyurethane.