How to Finish Unstained Oak Cabinets

Remove all the hardware your oak cabinet came with. A screwdriver usually takes care of this. Place these things in a container so the pieces will all stay together in one place.

Sand with a finishing sander or sandpaper by hand. Sanding by hand gives you more control over the amount of wood you remove. Use 150-grit sandpaper and sand with the wood grain. The piece should not need very much sanding. To find which areas need more sanding, put on a pair of gardening gloves and run you hand gently over the surface. If your gloves drag over a section, that is an area that needs extra sanding. Sand over the rough areas first and then give the rest of the cabinet a light sanding.

Clean the dust off the surface by using a shop vac first. After you finish vacuuming, use a tack cloth to pick up the dust left behind.

Sand the surface one more time using 220-grit sandpaper. Remove the dust with the shop vac and then tack cloth. Run your gloved hand over the surface, making sure it is smooth.

Stain your oak wood using a brush or a clean rag. Only stain one section at a time for an even finish. Leave the stain on to penetrate the wood from 30 seconds to 15 minutes. You can check the color by experimenting on a scrap piece of oak wood; this will be an indication on how long to leave the stain on the wood.

Wipe the excess stain off with clean cotton rags. Allow the cabinet to dry for 24 hours.

Gently stir the polyurethane, being careful to not make any bubbles in it. If you happen to drop it or shake it, let the can sit for several hours so there won’t be any bubbles. With a brush, apply a layer of polyurethane. Just dip the tip of the brush into the can so you don’t get too much polyurethane on your brush. Allow to dry for eight hours or overnight.

Sand the surface with 250-grit sandpaper. This will give the next layer of polyurethane something to adhere to. Vacuum the dust away and use a tack cloth to finish.

Apply another layer of polyurethane and leave it to dry thoroughly. At this point you can either put the hardware back on the cabinet and use, or sand the surface down again and apply a third coat of polyurethane.