Can I Stain Butcher Block Countertops. Hardwood Reflections Gel Stains are designed specifically for butcher block or other interior wood products that require a very high-end finish for an area of heavy use. If you want to actually use the butcher block as a work surface ie if you want to cut on it then I would not stain it and treat it with Osmo counter top oil.
You can stain butcher block countertops using wood stain with suspension agents like water and alcohol or with wood stain with finishing agents like lacquer or polyurethane. Policy is such because butcher block is not fully protected until its finished with natural oil or Varnique semi-gloss varnish. ALWAYS SAND DOWN THE SURFACE OF YOUR WOOD IN THE DIRECTION THE GRAIN RUNS.
Heres a list of products I highly recommend for staining and sealing butcher block.
We dont recommend using a stain on a butcher block counter top because the stain is most likely not food safe. So the first thing we did was that we one coat of stain would make the surface waterproof itself and it gave our counter a beautiful finish but. Our Cutting Board Oil and Butcher Block Conditioner are better alternatives and are food safe. I also knew that to make butcher block counters as highly-functioning as possible you need to seal them up so they dont soak up every water oil and food stain that touches their surface.
