How Long Does Wood Filler Take to Dry
The amount of time a wood filler would take to dry will depend upon several things. So if you are looking for the answer to the question of how long does wood filler take to dry, then you need to consider some factors. Generally, it should take two or eight hours for the wood filler to dry. So you have to wait for a considerable amount of time for the filler to dry. There are some ways to increase the drying speed. But even after that, you will have to wait for some more hours.
How Long Does Wood Filler Take to Dry
How long it will take will also depend on the type of wood filler that you use. So there are some factors that affect the drying process, they are given below.
Types of Filler
The filler types will largely decide how many time it will take for the filler to dry. Some wood filler has excess moist, while others are less moist. So if your wood filler is too much moisture, then your filling will take more time to dry up. For dryer filler, the drying time will be less. But there is an issue of quality here. The moist filler is better for a good quality filling. Because after getting dried, the filler tends to shrink a little bit. So if you don’t fill the gap properly your filler might get cracked when it gets dry. The moist filler is appropriate for filling the gap properly.
Amount of Filler
The time that will be taken for the filler to dry will depend upon the deposition of your filler. If the layer of your filler is thin, that means it will warm up quickly. But for filler of deep layer needs more time to get dry. Such as filler used for filling cavity where a generally large amount of filler is needed. The reason is that the lower part of the filler dries slower than the upper part of the filler. Filler that has too much filler on itself gets less sunlight and warmth, thus they take time dry.
Way to Fasten the Drying Process
Remove Stain and Dirt Before Applying
Prevention is better than cure. The excess mixture of dirt and debris will hamper the normal drying process. Even after getting dry, they will diminish the quality of the wood filler. So before applying any kind of wood filler inside any scratch or cavity make sure that the intended area is well cleaned. That will definitely increase the drying process. So after filling the different area of your wood, you should try to keep them in a warm place for faster drying.
Adding Hardener
You can add epoxy resin then add some hardeners for increasing the speed of the drying process. While applying hardener, you should bear in mind that you should add hardener in such an extent that your filler gets cracked or loses its main property. Their many hardeners in the market you can use them. But use them in a proper quantity so that your wood filler remains totally intact.
Applying the Wood Filler
As I mention before a thick layer of wood filler, tend to take a lot of time. So while applying the filler on the woodwork, you have to make the layer as thin as possible. But remember not to make your filler unnecessarily thin. That will not serve the real purpose of the wood filler. So if you can make sure that you have not put any type of unnecessary filler than your filler should dry moderately faster.
There is another way which might suit you. You can apply the filler in a layer by layer. You first put a thin layer of filler. The thin layer has less moist, that means they will be hardened quickly. After the lower layer is harden apply another layer upon the exciting layer. In this way, the thin layers will harden one by one lot faster than usual. For large woodwork, it might be quite troublesome to do that.
The main factor is that to use the filler more efficiently and don’t waste extra filler, it will slow down the hardening process.
Provide Heat
If you keep them in a warmer place, the heat generated from there will make your filler lot harder. You can use stuff like a hairdryer to remove the moist form the soft filler. Or you can just put them under the sun to dry them.
Using Sandpaper
Just tore a piece of sandpaper and started rubbing the area. They will serve you two purpose, they will give you the finishing work, and they will also help the filler to dry quicker. Rub properly all the part of your woodwork then put them under the sun at outside. If that is not possible due to the bad weather, then use a hairdryer to dry them.
Conclusion
These are some ways to increase the hardening process of the filler. I hope now you know how long does wood filler take to dry and you also know how to fasten the drying process.
