What are the differences between oil (solvent) based stains and water (latex / acrylic) based stains ?
Not many years ago oil based stains were the majority of what was used on log homes. Things have changedand drastically. While the oil stains have changed (and improved) a bit over the years, the technological advances they have made pale in comparison to the improvements that water based stains have demonstrated. We can apply either one. Regarding the differences, there are many. Latex easily cleans up with soap and water while oils require a solvent based cleaner. There are no lingering odors (that some are very sensitive to) with latex stains which can be very apparent with oils. Water based stains dry much, much faster (often drying to the touch in 2 hours). While some oils dry relatively quickly (in a day or so), some will remain tacky for weeks, and in some cases, years, at which time they are prone to attract pollens, dust and dirt until they dry. One needs to wait a longer period of time before chinking over oils than they do over latex. You wouldnt want to chink over a sticky,
