A common question asked is:
I have the ORIGINAL Satin Finish and the instructions say to start with the ORIGINAL Sealer & Semi-Gloss Finish, TRUETONE Stain or UTOS. Is that necessary?
Because the ORIGINAL Satin Finish is a finish to be used on wood surfaces for a satin sheen, a Waterlox Sealer should be used for the first 1-2 coats.
The ORIGINAL Sealer & Semi-Gloss Finish – Semi-Gloss has no additional additives, fillers or ‘extras’. Which means it penetrates into the wood better, maintains excellent clarity and leaves a thinner film build. This product is wet applied.
The TRUETONE stain is a low VOC, low odor, high-solids sealer and stain that will colorize and seal the wood prior to your first coat of ORIGINAL Satin Finish. This product is buffer applied.
The UTOS is a low VOC, low odor, high-solids sealer that will seal the wood prior to your first coat of ORIGINAL Satin Finish. This product is buffer applied.
If you desire to, or if you already have, finish your project with only the ORIGINAL Satin Finish, it will provide excellent protection; however, the film will be thicker, will have less clarity, will be slightly higher in gloss and may even scratch easier over time.
The extra additives in the ORIGINAL Satin Finish to lower the gloss are called flatteners or flattening agents. These additives can inhibit the ability of the product to penetrate into the wood and will reduce the clarity. This will build your film away from the wood surface and less into the wood surface (very slight reduction in hardness) and each layer will “fill in” the coat underneath which tends to slightly raise the gloss with each coat.
The difference between starting with a Waterlox sealer: ORIGINAL Sealer & Semi-Gloss Finish, TRUETONE stain or UTOS versus using the ORIGINAL Satin Finish for all coats will be relatively minor, but our goal is to enhance the natural look and feel of the wood which is why we recommend using a Waterlox sealer prior to the ORIGINAL Satin Finish for a satin sheen.
