General Finishes Water Based Wood Stain, 1 Quart, Walnut

I'm generally not a fan of water-based wood stains, but I got excellent results with this one. I sprayed it onto the wood surface and immediately wiped off the excess with a towel. I got a consistent, even result with minimal effort.

This stain is pricey but worth it-- such a pleasure to work with. As a carpenter I've used a lot of oil based stuff through the years. This water based stain is much quicker for cleaning brushes. It also stirs quickly. The color is as rich as a traditional stain. Also easy on your nose as the smell is neutral and fume-free. Just remember it is stain only. It will need a couple finish coats to achieve a protective layer as well as sheen. The black cherry color achieves the feel of an aging ship or a colonial home with aged pine.

Perfect what I needed. The color was exactly what I was looking for and very easy to apply.

The best.stain I have ever used, dries well and looks beautiful.

This review is for anyone researching how this stain will look on solid wood floors. I bought unfinished 5” #2 common red oak because I wanted to finish it myself. I put in the floors, spending countless hours sanding (with a floor buffer, the drywall sander didn’t work very fast), to finally be able to stain with water-based stain and finish with a half & half tung oil from milk paint. I wanted to add a review for someone who is researching this and make some suggestions. I had to have a water-based stain for the tung oil. Tung oil is a natural finish that nourishes it instead of covering it with a plastic layer (ahem polyurethane). I have nothing against polyurethane but if I wanted to walk barefoot on plastic I would have gone with the much easier, much cheaper option of luxury vinyl plank just saying. Actual Walnut was not an option. I did not have enough in my budget for that. I went with the cheap option that being red oak, however I am not overly fond of orange, yellow and red being in my floor. I wanted it to be like a medium to dark-ish brown. Thus the walnut stain. I tested out the stain on a few pieces of my wood floor and decided I liked it. I must say that I didn’t really care if it looked a lot like walnut. I was just wanting a deeper color. When I finally got to where I stained the whole floor, I initially wasn’t sure I liked it. It looked blotchy to me. I was almost to the point where I was going to sand it all off. However, I invited some family members who are known to give me their honest opinions. They told me I was being too particular and that they thought it looked good. I did use 240 grit and sanded lightly on the parts where I thought it was too dark. I am glad they did because it turned out great. Some things I suggest to future diy’ers. 1. Thin out the stain with water. This will give you more time between sections of the floor. 2. Stain with the grain of the wood from one wall to the other. I did this and it was the right choice. 3. DO NOT try to stain the edges first. I did this in the living room and I could see where it overlapped. I tried to both buff it out with more stain and then I sanded it with 240 grit. It did disguise it, but I will forever know. Major regret. 4. I suggest using a rag or a paintbrush. I tried using the paint roller for the stain. It did not work well getting into all the holes and cracks. It also did not apply an even coat. I and the person who helped me used a rag after that. 5. Remember it looks better with finish. I am using tung oil but the same can be said for polyurethane. All in all I am happy with the result. And it DOES look like walnut after it is has been finished.

This is the only brand of stain I will use. I struggle to apply stains evenly to wood. I was ready to throw in the towel when I happened upon General Finishes. I have used this brand of stain for several large projects. After first applying a wood conditioner, the application of General Finishes wood stain is so easy it makes me look like I know what I am doing. The colors are beautiful and, when finished with a couple coats of polyurethane, have lasted years. It’s on the pricey side, but a little goes a long way and it is worth every penny.

This was delivered faster than the actual store. Color was amazing

I bought the "Walnut" water based variant. Not a stranger to staining but I've always used oil based. Couldn't find oil based walnut from G.F. either here or on the manufacturer website. All in all I hate this stuff, completely unforgiving and a nightmare to work with. You really have to saturate the piece because this stuff dries incredibly fast and any minor imperfection will stay there, even if it was only there for a couple seconds. As soon as you get this on wipe it off, even then it will probably be drying somewhere. The color is more akin to an ebony than walnut, looks identical to some ebony stain I already have.... even diluted with pre stain conditioner like suggested by the manufacturer is not even remotely a walnut shade. Don't know if the manufacturer is mixing labels with the wrong cans or they're just colorblind. The picture I included shows their walnut, thinned, on a piece of rubberwood, a very light wood, next to an actual piece of black walnut, and also the can where you can see the swatch, which is completely different from the finished product at any intensity. In the end I just trashed it and went and got some oil based minwax from a local hardware store with stellar results. Also, I have no clue why this is so expensive. F*** me I guess....

It is not a gel stain. It is a water base stain

I bout this item a few months ago for a project, and i kept it inside the house so it would be in a stable temperature, but when i opened it it was a solid block in a liquid. Completely useless. My first time buying this brand, i have other brands that are still good after years of opening them.

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Love this product goes on so easy, absorbs well into the wood. Nice colour. Easy clean up.

This is neither oil-based nor a gel stain. It's a water-based stain. So at least the photo is accurate, but I was hoping for a water-based gel stain.