Paul Mc Cann wrote in message
.. .
In article , says...
We have recently made an oak staircase, which was glued together at
the joints. Excess glue was wiped off with a damp cloth at the time,
and bits which escaped this were scraped off with a chisel when
dry. I am currently staining and varnishing and the stain doesn't
take where the glue was wiped.

Scraper is your best bet (Cabinet scraper that is)

I can't seem to get anywhere with these at all. I think you need a fair
amount of skill and co-ordination to be able to use one properly and
alas I seem to have neither! I'm using one on some kitchen cupboard
doors atm, where I can remove the doors and alter the angle I am working
at, but in the corners on the staircase it is hopeless. The glue
residue is not on the surface, it is just where the PVA has soaked into
the wood, and the oak is just too hard to scrape away. Sharp chisel is a
bit better but overall I have found that sanding, which I have now
resorted to, seems easier and alot less risky for the staircase!

I don't know why people recommend wiping off excess pva glue with a
wet cloth as this is the inevitable result.

Careful use then removal of any excess when it has just gone off, with
a sharp chisel works best for me.

I have found that it is only on one side of one of four short flights,
where the stringer meets the treads and risers, that I have a real
problem with this after all, it just so happens that the problem area
was where I started. So it seems that very careful wiping with the wet
cloth did in fact work pretty well, we must just have been less careful
in this area. On some areas underneath, which originally we intended to
box in but are now leaving exposed, we used the chisel method. Certainly
it is easier to do it this way, but it still leaves the problem where
the glue has soaked in. The advantage is that the area affected is much
smaller and less noticeable, but would still have been a visible problem
where treads meet risers for example. So overall I don't think there is
much to choose between the two methods. If I were doing it again I would
wipe the glue, but very carefully indeed, and as quickly as possible
after it was applied.

On small delicate projects your idea of masking tape would be good, but
wouldn't have been practical on a staircase.

Holly