Happy Tuesday to you! So happy you’re here. {big smile}
Have you ever had the dreaded problem of painting a piece of furniture and blotchy ugly stains or bleed through appear after you’ve applied your first coat?
Older cabinets and vintage furniture are notorious for this.
Mahogany gets star status for bleeding red or pink tannin. Knotted pine and cedar can be a challenge exposing yellow or orange bleed through. And ALL types of wood can be tenacious if grease/oil or water stains start surfacing from the existing finish.
No worries.
Your piece is NOT ruined so don’t kick it to the curb just yet. 😉 There’s a simple solution to fix bleed through and stains.
The quick fix is a sealer so the tannin or stain can’t penetrate through.
My favorite remedy for bleed through/stains is shellac or shellac based primer.
Other stain blockers that also work are oil based primer/paints, spray shellac, polyurethane or even wax. By applying any of these products, the stain or bleed through will be sealed and won’t penetrate through your next coat of paint.
If you have any questions or additional ways to stop stains and bleed though, I’d love to hear from you!
Missed last weeks Quick-Tip?… you can find last weeks Q-T-T here.
Happy Painting!
Denise x
Hello again... I'm so happy you dropped by! Let's keep in touch! Follow me on social media or sign up for a dose of furniture painting inspiration and diy tutorials. :) 
I primed all kitchen cabinets using Bin -Advanced Primer White (Synthetic shellac/ Water based). After primer, i do see wood tannins (yellowish/pinkish). I have not started the paint yet (Behr’ kitchen cabinet paint – water based).
What can i do to prevent the tannins coming on top of paint ?
I am using airless spray, for easy clean up, I choose’d water based primer/paint.
I’ve never used or tried Synthetic Shellac Primer so I wouldn’t want to say. Could possibly an additional coat do the trick??? If not, I would contact an associate from where you purchased the primer and ask for their advice.
Im painting an older dresser for a client, navy blue. I’ve sanded and deglossed it and so much brown is coming off, I’m assuming it’s stain that wasn’t sealed. I was going to seal it with the BIN shellac but since she wants it distressed, you’d see the white primer under it. I have no idea what kind of wood it is… what would you prime with to block any potential bleed thru that is going to be distressed?
Hi Laura! For a distressed look with wood peeking through a clear stain blocking primer is ideal. I’ve used this DB Clear BOSS or clear shellac will also work. If using shellac tho, be careful on how thick and how many coats you apply. If put on too thick it will cause the paint to look like it has a crackle effect. Been there done that..lol.
Hi! After using the BIN shellac primer, am I restricted to certain types of paint for my topcoat?
Also, is shellac treated as oil based paint when thinning and cleaning from a paint sprayer?
Thanks!
Hi Kelli! Oil-based or water-based/latex paints can be used over BIN Shellac Based Primer. And yes, for cleanup solvents are required.
Would Hairspray work, it would be a very quick solution.
Hi Ilse! 🙂 No, hairspray wouldn’t work to stop bleedthrough.
I painted a piece white with a paint that was supposed to be an all in one and had worked beautifully on something else that I thought was similar. I got major pink bleed through on this piece thought. So I plan to shellac it as suggested above- do I sand after the shellac before I paint again? Thanks!
Hi Serena! You sure can but be sure it’s a very light scuff sanding. You don’t want to sand down the shellac, but rather scuff it up to give something for the paint to grip onto.
Hi there!!! After applying the shellac primer and then adding the chalk paint am I still able to distress the piece? The primer a white so I wasn’t sure? Also can you get a clear primer?
Thankyou Jodie!!!
The white shellac-based primer is not the best to use if you want to distress down to wood because once you sand, you often will see white underneath. A clear shellac or primer is best suited. A really good one I use is this one here.
I am getting ready to paint family room walls which are tongue and groove wood, beautiful solid wood with some knots. I am using SW Aesthetic white and worried about bleed thru. This is an inside project and I worry about smell, the room is 24 x 14. Any primer that works that won’t be horrendous in odor?
I would contact your local SW retailer and ask about their synthetic shellac primer. I haven’t tried it but I’ve heard good things.
We are refinishing an old desk. We deglossed the whole thing first, then sanded and painted the coats using a light grey latex paint and primer in one. It looked great until we put the polycrylic sealer on it. When the first coat of sealer had dried, you can now see the stain coming up through the paint. I’m not sure what to do next. Do I need to sand the sealer to give it grip before I repaint with the grey? Do I need to put a stain blocker on to of the sealer before I repaint with the grey? Do I need to sand it down all the way to wood, then start all over with a stain blocker? I’m hoping you can help me figure out what to do next!
Hi Theresa! Unfortunately, this happens a lot when working with old furniture. I got tired of ‘guessing’ whether a primer was going to block bleedthrough so my go-to primer is B-I-N Shellac Based Primermy go-to primer is B-I-N Shellac Based Primer because you can actually SEE when all the bleedthrough is covered – and be 100% sure it won’t show through after top coating. If this were my desk, I would sand to remove the sealer. Not all the way down to the wood, but a good enough sanding to remove the topcoat and give the grey paint some tooth. Then prime with a stain-blocking primerwith a stain-blocking primer. Then repaint. Then topcoat. I know this isn’t ideal after you put in ALL that work, believe me i know because I’ve been there! I hope this helps and good luck. 🙂
Hi there! I bought a can of shellac after there was major stain bleed through the white chalk paint I used on a chair. For the remaining chairs, Would you recommend more than one coat of shellac to be safe or is one enough?
I wish there was a straight answer to this question Tessie. 🙁 A lot depends on the type of wood and how it reacts. If they were my chairs, I would try one chair with one coat and see how it reacts once painted. I try to use less shellac if possible because there have been a few occasions I added more shellac coats and ended up with a crackle finish… so I learned it’s best to use the shellac sparingly. Now I use BIN Shellac PrimerBIN Shellac Primer so I could actually see when the bleedthrough is 100% covered which I find helpful.
How long after did the crackle appear? I’m doing custom job and wanted to make sure if it happens before I add fusion mineral paint.
HI Denise
So I sanded a mohagony dresser and painted it white and it is bleeding through after two coats.. can I put the primer after the white paint or do I have to re sand it again and start over? Thanks Julie
Hi Julie! If it were my piece I would sand the white paint (you don’t have to sand it off but just enough to scruff it up so the primer sticks) and then prime again.
Hey Denise, I’ve stained a set of cornhole boards with mahogany stain for the designs. The look great, but when I go to put on the poly coat, the stain starts to bleed into parts it shouldn’t. Is there a specific polyurethane I should use to solve this issue? Thanks
Hi Wyatt, I’m going to guess that the stain is not yet 100% dry OR all the excess stain was not wiped back. Also, if you’re using an oil-based stain and top coating with a polyurethane (oil-based) the same-same solvents mix together and bleed out if the stain has not totally dried. Hope this helps. 🙂
I have a coffee table that I already have finished with chalk paint and a wax finish. How do I now change the color? Do I have to get the wax off first?
Hi Linda! If the wax is cured, you can give it a light sanding and then repaint with chalk paint. 🙂
Hi Denise
I was painting an old desk with chalk paint, and got some yellowing as well as stain bleed through. I’ve since found out that you do need to use a stain blocker, when using chalk paint on an old piece. I’ve sanded a lot off, but not to the point of being pristine. Are you able to put the stain blocker on top of the paint, or do you need to sand it fully?
H Stephen! I don’t sand fully before priming or repainting. No need. If you’ve sanded the paint smooth and given it some ‘tooth’ you can then go ahead and apply your primer. This primer is my #1 choice.
Hi Denise, I painted a candlestick and the paint started peeling off. Now this is no small candlestick,.it is about 2″ tall with a lot of crevices and detail. So, I didn’t want to remove the paint but I thought if I painted shellac over it, that would solve my problem. OH BUT NOT AT ALL!! It is still peeling. I researched and found something called Peel Stop by Zinsser and wanted to ask you if you have ever used this product. It’s a bit pricey so I didn’t want to invest in a can if it doesn’t really stop paint from peeling. I appreciate your feedback.
Hi Cecilia! Ohhh no. I know how frustrating this is once you’ve put in the time and effort to spiff it up… uggggh. Unfortunately, I can’t chime in on the Peel Stop because I’ve never tried it. What I will say is Zinsser products on a whole are excellent!!! I’m working on a video right now with Zinnser B-I-N primer. If you give this Peel Stop a try, can you leave me a note on how it works? I’d love to hear your results.
What if the paint i have used as primer/paint and still bleed through happens. I have put two coats on .
Hi Susan. If I’m understanding this correctly, if it’s a paint and primer in one and the bleedthrough is still showing through, it may be beneficial to give it a light sanding/scruff and apply a heavy duty primer or shellac to seal before painting. BIN Shellac Primer works SUPER well!
If I use the primer and then paint with chalk paint, can I still distress with sandpaper?
You can but if you use what primer, the white will be visible underneath. Dixie Belle has a clear stain blocker so the natural wood can show through once sanding back. It goes on milky but dries clear.