25 Gallons of the wrong color!

colorblind

Help! I just returned from Lowes with 25 gallons of solid deck stain and the color is way too bright. I had chosen a lovely burgundy color and at the last minute changed my mind to a color called cranberry sauce. Well, I sampled the color on one of the 4x4's and it is hideous (way too much pink even after it dries). O.K., so can I have them add more colorant to the stain to make it a darker shade? Can I find out what the formula for it was and then ask what other colors might be created from the color I originally selected? I realize I've bought it and it's mine, but it was a huge mistake especially with how huge our decks are. Suggestions please!

slickshift

Ask them
They may be able to add some tint and make it darker

Also please keep in mind that store tinted reds will fade quickly out side in the sun

dochorn

They can show you the formula however, they will more than likely not be able to tell you what else can be made of it and show you a colour they can turn it into. There are so many vaiables to making a colour that is almost impossible. It would be sheer luck if there was something else exactly the same but only needing one or two more tints added.

However they SHOULD without any issues or costs even, add more tint to it. PROVIDING that they have not already put the maximum amount of tint into the can that they can. You can only add so much tint before the product starts to alter its properties and cause issues with drying/adhesion etc. (obviously only have ONE can tinted first and write down EXACTLY what they added to the can and test it out, bring a cut of wood in and see how it looks, most paint dept.'s have a hairdryer and can speed up the process for the purpose of checking the colour. When you're happy with the result, have them add it to all the cans. Oh, and remember to check it outside, this is one of the times looking at something in natural light is EXACTLY what you want to do as everything looks BRIGHTER when outside! ( I used to always laugh when people wanted to take a paint chip outside to look at for their living room to see what it really looks like, when in reality that's NOT the lighting they're going to have IN their living room, so what's it matter? *lol* However, yours is a case where it IS going outside and so you should see it in the right conditions.)

If it is too red, have them add some green to it, it will cancel out the red. If it's too bright have them add some brown to it to dull it down, but start with the green first as it will add an element of dulling as well (they can also add black to dull it down, but the brown will keep it more earthy based, whereas black has an element of blue in it and will bring it more plum direction).

There are normally about 12-16 tints used in a store and there can be anywhere from one to seven (on average) used to make a paint colour. There will be a true green (like forest green) and a more blue/green and you want them to use the forest green shade. Anyone that works in paint and has been working there for a little while should know this. But just want to let you know that it is possible to change it.

Did you buy 25 single gallon pails or did they sell it in larger units? Remember also that every can will be slightly different. Hand weight when pulling down on the tints actually vary the amount of tint going in a can, not alot, but it varies, so if you're working from single gallon cans I would recommend getting a larger pail and adding between 5-10 of them together to get a more blended mix. Last thing you want is to brush out 25 gallons worth of stain only to find each board looks a slightly different shade!

Remember not to stain in direct sun as it will not allow a proper temperature for curing, and will effect adhesion. If the deck gets wet, allow 2-3 full dry days before staining, again with the adhesion issue.

colorblind

I purchased 5- 5 gallon pails of paint. The color is too pink...almost like a fuschia. If it really looked like cranberry sauce it would be o.k. I would like to make it darker...my siding is gray and my entrance doors are dark burgandy.

sirwired

I will re-iterate that while they shouldn't charge you to add more tint to the stain, make sure they don't add too much. It WILL screw up the finish if they add too much pigment, and the monkeys working the paint desk may not even know how much tint it is supposed to take. Make sure they look it up; it may even be on the label. I was at HD once, and it looks like somebody was trying to do the same thing you were... the paint counter monkey added so much tint the can overflowed when she tried to seal the can to shake it. All she did was clean up the mess and toss it in the shaker. (Bases meant for deeper tints have less product in them to accommodate room for the additional pigment.)


SirWired

dochorn

Then have them add some green (forrest green shade) some yellow and some brown. Again, in SMALL AMOUNTS and mark down EVERYTHING they're putting in there down to the drop! (eg. for a one gallon size I would put in about 4 drops green, 1 yellow, and 2 brown, so times 5 since it's a large pail. Now, not having seen the colour, don't quote me on that one!) Wherever you're at for colour, look at a colour wheel, and the OPPOSITE side of it is what's going to cancel out what you don't want.

And remember that piece of wood to have them sample it on as they go along, and never feel like you're a burdon, that's their job, and you're a customer, one who made a colour mistake yes, but one that also just spent alot of money there on stain and deserves to be treated with respect even if it takes them three or four tries to get it right.

Every item is different, but when I worked in paint our darker tint bases would take about 3Y of tint. (it's a unit of measure for tint here not sure if it's the same there, and if I recall right (it honestly has been years) there were 30 units (what most would call a "drop" as it doesn't look like much to one Y) After exceeding that 3Y it would ruin the paint.

Now for stain, I'm sorry I can't recall if it's the same I do think it was less than the paint. But every mfg will be slightly different as noted in other posts. Even calling the mfg before taking it in to find out would be a good idea so you have the knowledge going in even if they don't know!

It's sad these days that you as the consumer has to go in knowing more than the employee, but most of these places just don't pay enough nor train enough to get proper knowledgable staff running them.

Good Luck!!

spookercat

if you need to add more tint than the stain can 'hold' as is; since you will be mixing your 5 gallon pails together to get a consistent color between pails, could you not add an additional gallon or whatever is needed of untinted stain to carry the additional tint needed? Yes, you'd end up with more stain than you bargained on, but if the numbers work for the formula, you might be further ahead than just scrapping it and starting over?

Just a thought.

Allison1888

Definitely have them add to the mixture, but try it in one gallon first and keep the number handy. You may have to experiment a little and potentially lose a gallon or two.