Mineral spirits on my cedar walls caused white haze
I moved into a house that has beautiful cedar planks throughout, and they’re horizontal so they actually look kind of modern but still rustic. The only thing I don’t love about them is the color. They are stained a reddish-orangey-brownish color. My painter didn’t think there was any sort of top coat on the stained wood, so she suggested we apply another coat of oil-based stain on top to try to tone down the redness. So she applied one coat of Minwax Driftwood, which has a bit of a green tint to it. Worked pretty well, except after a while I started noticing some white spots popping up here and there. I assumed it was because she didn’t wipe off the excess stain thoroughly. So I read about using mineral spirits to dissolve excess stain. I applied some mineral spirits with very fine steel wool to one of my walls. It looked great while it was still wet, but as the mineral spirits dried there is now a white haze all over my wall. Much worse than what was there before. When I rub it really hard it seems to help, but I can only get a little bit off. It looks absolutely terrible. I wonder if there was wax on the walls that the mineral spirits are making visible? Help! I don’t know if I’ve completely ruined my wall. Any ideas on why this happened and how to fix it?
Replies
It sounds like blushing. The topcoats added temporarily melted the finish, and moisture got trapped underneath. Blushing is most common with lacquer and shellac, but can happen with other finishes.
Mohawk makes a spray blush remover. You can find it on Amazon. I would try that first. If it doesn't work, my next step would be more mineral spirits and elbow grease, removing any finish you can.
Thanks, John_C2. Before I saw your response I start lightly sanding and whatever it is does come off. If it's blushing, would it come off with just a light (120 grit) hand sanding? I was also able to flake some of it off with my fingernail, around the edges where the boards meet.
The problem with spot sanding is the possibility it will jump out at you further on. Try the blush spray.
Oh, and the blush spray fixes those white rings on coffee tables, too.
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