How To Make Wood Filler Look Like Wood

DIY Wood Filler – 3 Ways!

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We've been on a mission to find the all-time forest filler out there. We tried vii popular store brands and now we're testing out some DIY wood filler options.

At that place are two main benefits of DIY wood filler: it's cheap to make because you lot're using sawdust that you already have and since you're using sawdust from the projection, you might exist able to get a meliorate colour friction match.

And then let's put these three DIY wood fillers to the test! Overall, we liked the results of the sawdust and polycrylic mixture in terms of stainability and consistency, just the shellac won in terms of overall coverage. Keep reading to hear more about the results and details of each of the wood filler options.

Regardless of which DIY wood filler you try to make, the procedure is the aforementioned.

How to Make DIY Forest Filler

You will need:

• Sawdust
• A white paper plate, a loving cup, or another clean surface to mix your wood filler on
• A plastic spoon, craft stick, or something else to mix your wood filler
• A binding amanuensis like glue, shellac, or polycrylic

STEP 1: Gather YOUR SAWDUST

Unless you always use the same type of wood, I'd recommend first dumping out the purse of sawdust that's attached to your sander. Once information technology's cleaned out, sand the forest that you're going to employ the woods filler to.

Pay attention to where on the lath y'all are spending the most fourth dimension sanding. If at that place are a lot of knots, just your wood filler will be used on an area without knots, attempt to avoid sanding the knots since they are much darker than the rest of the wood.

In one case you lot've gathered some sawdust, dump it out on your newspaper plate or the surface that y'all'll be mixing your forest filler on.

Step 2: Add together YOUR Bounden AGENT

Whether you apply glue, polycrylic, or shellac is up to you. You tin keep reading below to make up one's mind which mixer is best for you.

Add a modest amount of the bounden agent to the sawdust. You'll demand to work apace on the next steps so that your bootleg wood filler doesn't dry out.

Step three: MIX UNTIL THE CONSISTENCY IS Correct

Mix your sawdust and binding agent together until the texture resembles that of cookie dough. The absurd thing nearly making your own wood filler is that you lot tin test out some options and make up one's mind which consistency is your favorite.

When the consistency seems to exist getting shut, I like to squeeze the forest filler together with my fingers to see if information technology's resembling a putty-like texture. Once it is, you tin move onto step four.

If your mixture gets too wet, add some more sawdust. If it's nevertheless likewise dry, add together more of your bounden agent.

Pace 4: Use YOUR WOOD FILLER

Press your wood filler into the area that yous are trying to fill as yous normally would.

Yous desire to overfill the holes slightly.

Stride five: LET DRY

Wait for your wood filler to dry. How long you take to wait will depend on how big and deep the hole is that you lot were trying to fill.

You can't let it dry for too long though, so I would err on the side of waiting longer before moving onto the next step. I by and large wait about 2 hours.

STEP 6: SAND OFF THE Excess

Once your wood filler is fully dry out, sand off whatsoever excess wood filler. As with the store-bought forest filler, you lot'll want to sand off whatever backlog that's non directly filling the hole or imperfection you were trying to fill. If your wood filler left whatever stains around the wood, try to sand that discoloration off every bit best as you can.

At present that you know how to make your own forest filler, let's talk more than in-depth well-nigh the experiment and three types of DIY wood filler nosotros tested out.

The DIY Wood Filler Experiment

To test these wood filler options, nosotros used the same process we used on our stainable forest filler exam.

First, we added ii nails and two screws to a spare lath for each wood filler we were going to test out. Then we sanded it down with 120 grit sandpaper. We made and applied each woods filler and so waited 4 hours for the wood filler to dry. When nosotros checked the progress at 1.5 hours, the glue and shellac wood fillers were both dry. Even at four hours, the polycrylic one wasn't fully dry out, but we decided to proceed anyway.

Once dry, we sanded off the excess using 180 grit sandpaper and and so finished it off with lite mitt sand using 220-grit. This is to prep the forest surface for stain every bit we would a normal project.

We and then applied a nighttime stain (Minwax Night Walnut) and a light stain (Minwax Gold Oak) to each of the DIY wood fillers and compared them.

Now that y'all know how we tested information technology out, let'southward talk more than in-depth about the results. Allow'south talk consistency and stainability of each of DIY wood fillers we tried.

Types of DIY Wood FIller

Option one: Sawdust and Glue

Consistency

Personally, I find this one to exist the most difficult to brand and get a practiced consistency, simply it'due south the most popular DIY wood filler option out there.

In terms of consistency, I find this one to exist near similar to a forest filler you might observe on the market. It'due south not super smooth and looks like it has wood fibers in it when yous use it (even though it's really but sawdust).

Annotation: I've heard that you can also use Elmer'due south glue for this. I didn't accept any available to examination out, but it's definitely something to consider testing out in the future!

Stainability

After applying and earlier letting it dry, I felt like this was going to exist the best pick because it was the lightest in color.

After letting it dry and sanding off the excess, I got a little less optimistic. Information technology was now much darker in color. The saving grace was that some of the sawdust from sanding seemed to get stuck in the areas that I had filled, making it slightly lighter in some areas.

For the lighter stain color, it was basically tied for first place of the options, withal it however stained quite a flake darker than the bodily woods did.

For darker stain, it besides stained a little bit darker, simply didn't stick out as much it did on the lighter stain sample.

Overall information technology stained most every bit well as a store-bought wood filler, merely it was a scrap more inconsistent in terms of both color and texture when stained.

Option 2: Sawdust and Shellac

Consistency

The shellac option fell right in the middle of the glue and polyacrylic mixtures. It wasn't quite as smooth and easy to mix as the polycrylic, just information technology wasn't nigh every bit difficult to become a consequent texture as the mucilage.

The i thing I didn't love about the shellac was how rapidly it dried on my fingers. Afterwards mixing and applying the woods filler, my fingers were covered with shellac which can take some time to become off.

In one case sanded, this was definitely the near solid coverage. The hole looked polish and solid. I couldn't say the aforementioned for the other ii. Both of those lost some wood filler in the holes when sanding.

Stainability

This was the clear winner if you were choosing to continue your wood natural. Out of the three options tested, this i definitely blended in the most with the raw woods in one case it was dry. I was pretty surprised since it was so dark when I originally mixed it.

Though it was actually light before stain, it absorbed the most stain out of the options. Information technology was definitely the darkest of the three in one case stained.

But again, it was the nigh consequent. The colour was consistent across the entire sample and when you await closely, information technology had the most smooth and solid coverage.

If yous value solid coverage and consistent coloring, this might be the best DIY forest filler for you.

Option 3: Sawdust and Polycrylic

Consistency

This was my favorite consistency of the options nosotros made. I probably could have gotten the other options to experience more similar to the polycrylic mix by adding a trivial more glue or shellac, only overall I but felt like the sawdust and polycrylic mixed together the easiest.

The interesting matter nearly this combination is that it takes a LONG fourth dimension to dry out. Afterwards 4 hours, it all the same wasn't fully dry. Information technology was starting to harden slightly, just it definitely wasn't dry out. That said, I was still able to successfully sand it even though it wasn't hard.

Since it takes a lot longer to dry out, it'due south nice if you sand an area and then realize you desire to fill up it a little bit more. Chances are that you lot'll however exist able to use the original mixture instead of making another one.

Overall I would say this texture is much more similar to a wood putty than a wood filler.

Stainability

In terms of stainability, this was the winner in my book. Sawdust and mucilage was a shut second, only the polycrylic won in my volume because the color was just a niggling more consistent throughout the larger holes.

With the darker stain, information technology was the closest to matching the actual forest.

I matter to watch out for is that y'all tin can't spread this on, wipe off the excess, and then stain without sanding showtime. You actually need to sand off the excess that'south around the hole (even if you felt like you wiped all the backlog off). Otherwise… you lot'll end up with a spot that just doesn't take stain.

The good news is that if this happens to you, y'all can quickly sand information technology downwardly and try once more.

Overall, the wood filler and polycrylic combo was my favorite of the DIY wood filler options.

That being said, I'1000 nonetheless probably going to stick with a premade woods filler for ease. However, any of these three options would exist a great substitute if you're willing to put in the fourth dimension or don't want to run to the store mid-project to grab more than wood filler.

So which do y'all choose? DIY wood filler or store-bought woods filler?

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Source: https://craftedbythehunts.com/diy-wood-filler/

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