Can You Sand Wet Wood

Can You Sand Wet Wood? What to Know! (& Tips!)

No matter what project you’re working on, sanding will come into play at some point. But what should you do if the wood is wet?

In this guide, I’ll help you uncover if you can sand wet wood and some tips and tricks I’ve used.

KEY TAKEAWAYS:
  • While you technically can sand wet wood, I don’t recommend it. It will often leave a rough, uneven surface that won’t look great and it’ll cause you to go through sandpaper extremely fast.
  • I strongly recommend waiting for your wood to dry before sanding for the best results.

Can You Sand Damp Wood?

DeWalt Sander

Ultimately, sanding wet or damp wood is not a good idea. While it can be done, you likely won’t get the look you want.

If you’ve heard of wet sanding you might be a little confused, but the wet part of wet sanding isn’t actually the wood surface. Instead, wet sanding uses wet sandpaper. More on this later!

Sanding wet wood is a problem for a couple of reasons. For one thing, when the wood is wet the wood fibers lift and can stand on end, which makes the wood rougher than dry wood.

Dry sanding wet wood tears through these fibers. You’ll remove some material, sure, but the damp wood doesn’t act the same as dry wood. Instead of getting sawdust off the wood you’ll probably get a kind of grainy mush.

Not only does that mush mean that you’re probably scratching and damaging the smooth surface of the wood, you’re also going to quickly saturate and ruin your sandpaper.

It might only take a couple of passes before wood pulp fully saturates the grit in your sandpaper, making it basically useless. You’ll get a lot less life from your sandpaper if you ever use dry sanding techniques on wet wood.

Instead, it’s better to wait a few days or weeks for wet wood to dry before you start sanding it again.

Can You Sand a Wet Deck?

I’ve done several deck restoration projects, and one question I get asked is “can I sand a wet deck?”

Sanding deck

Unfortunately, no, you shouldn’t sand a wet deck.

The weather can be a pain to deal with, but it’s critical to have a few days of dry weather before (and after) sanding and staining your deck.

By sanding a wet deck, you won’t get a smooth surface and you’ll chew through sandpaper extremely fast. And if you’re using a power deck sander, it’ll cause additional stress to your sander making it break quicker.

Can You Wet Sand Wet Wood?

If you’re working with wet wood, you ay wonder if it’s possible to wet sand instead of dry sanding.

Unfortunately, no. Wet sanding is no more effective on wet wood than dry sanding.

No matter what sanding process you’re using, if you want a smooth finish you need to make sure the wood you’re sanding is mostly or entirely dry.

What Is Wet Sanding?

Wet sanding is a little different than just sanding wet wood. With wet sanding, the sandpaper you use is actually wet, not the wood.

A good wet sanding technique can give you smoother finished surfaces than when you dry sand wood and is best for when you need a super smooth surface.

This technique is also almost exclusively done with fine-grit sandpaper.

Unlike dry sanding, which can be done with any grit of sandpaper and can even be used as part of shaping the wood, wet sanding is exclusively for getting the right finish on your work. Whether you’re going for a smooth finish or a finish that feels (and reflects light) like glass, wet sanding can help you get there.

You can check out the differences between wet sanding and dry sanding for more info!

Do You Use The Same Sanding Technique For Wet Sanding?

While some techniques from traditional dry sanding can be used for wet sanding, like sanding with the wood grain or in small gentle circles, not all of the techniques will cross over to wet sanding.

For instance, with wet sanding, you sand the wood with the grain, and only after applying at least one layer of finishing material to the project.

Another core difference is that you can dry sand green wood (wood that has been recently cut), but you can’t effectively wet sand green wood. That’s because the extra moisture in green wood prevents wet sanding from being as effective, and the current texture isn’t finished when you sand the wood. It can still shift and change over time.

When you wet sand you want to make sure you’re following the grain or sanding in small circles to create a very smooth and even surface. That’s a good idea anytime you sand wood, but dry sanding is a little more forgiving if you need to dry sand against the grain or to finalize the shape of a project.

How Dry Does Wood Need To Be Before Sanding?

I’ve found that wood can look dry long before it’s actually ready to work, so you need to be careful.

All wood has some amount of moisture in it. Even seasoned and professionally dried wood will contain a little bit of moisture. The trick is controlling how much moisture is left, and helping to prevent the wood from warping or twisting as it dries.

Ideally wood should be down to about 7-9% moisture by the time you want to work with it. That way you’re sure you aren’t going to sand wet wood and everything is completely dry before you start.

Of course, you might not have the tools to check the exact moisture content of your wood, so it can be hard to know when it’s hit the right point. I recommend checking out these moisture meters for wood.

On average wood needs to dry for 1 year per inch of thickness to hit the right dryness.

You can also learn how to kiln-dry wood if you want to speed up the process, but that can lead to warping and other problems.

When Should You Wet Sand Your Wood Surface?

The primary goal of wet sanding is to get the smoothest possible surface.

The moisture is there to help smooth the friction between the wood and the sandpaper to reduce scratching while still removing that last little bit of texture from the wood.

Wet sanding is best for the highest grit sandpaper. Sandpaper that would otherwise be difficult to use because it would hold on to the wood and be hard to move.

Ideally, wet sanding is used only after you’ve already started finishing work on the project. A layer of oil or varnish is already down and that way you can wet sand to create a much smoother surface.

The finishing material also helps protect the wood underneath from the moisture in the sandpaper.

Final Thoughts

So, can you sand wet wood?

While it is possible, it’s not recommended. Sanding wet wood will yield poor results and can potentially damage the wood itself.

It’s best to let your wood dry before sanding it for the best results.