Varathane Water-Based Crystal-Clear Ultimate Polyurethane

I’ve been using Varathane Crystal-Clear Ultimate Polyurethane for my projects, and it is easily one of the best finishes I’ve found—though I use it a bit differently than most! I actually use this to gloss my books, and the results are fantastic. It creates a professional-grade, crystal-clear shine that completely elevates the look of the cover. The quality and durability are truly impressive. It forms a real, protective, and shiny layer that doesn't yellow over time, which is essential for keeping books looking sharp. One of the standout features is its thickness and leveling—the formula has the perfect consistency to go on smoothly without creating streaks or globs, and it self-levels beautifully for a glass-like, even finish. I’m also a huge fan of the fast dry time; it’s perfect for projects where you don’t want to wait around all day for a tacky finish to set. It does a great job of preserving the look while significantly enhancing the style with that high-end, glossy aesthetic. If you're looking for a product that is reliable, easy to apply, and offers a tough, beautiful finish, this is an excellent choice.

I have used this varnish for several applications, three of which I'll describe here. I've been varnishing my rat cage with this stuff for 20 years. I made the cage myself out of an unfinished pine bookcase to which I attached pine-framed screen doors. I originally got the varnish on the suggestion of a Home Depot associate who said that it was non-toxic when dry, which is essential for small animals who would be sleeping on the varnish and who like to chew things. This varnish takes some heavy punishment. Although my rats use litterboxes, as soon as the boxes are a bit dirty they start using the corners of the cage instead. That means that there is often urine (and all sorts of foods, from fruit to oatmeal to gravy) drying on and sticking to the varnish. This is not a problem for the varnish: it cleans right up with water and a damp paper towel. But to really clean the cage, I spray isopropyl alcohol on it every five to seven days and scrub with a towel. After about 2 or 3 years of this abuse, the varnish starts to wear thin in places and needs recoating. I never follow the directions, which say that I have to sand the existing varnish before recoating. I just thoroughly clean and dry the shelves and then paint on a couple more coats. I have never had the varnish flake or scratch under these conditions. I live in a very old house whose demise is imminent, so remodeling is always on-demand and slap-dash. Recently I had to get rid of some old carpet. In one room, the floor was literally nothing but bare plywood with lots of paint drips and plaster from earlier room remodeling. In the other room, there was a pretty parquet wood floor, which had been ruined by a VERY thorough application of carpet glue in ridges about 1/6in to 1/8in high. The house is not going to be standing much longer, so to get through the remaining 3 years I decided to use polyurethane--it was good enough for the rats, so why not for me? Last year, for the first room with plywood, I mostly followed the directions, which say to use a brush and make small strokes. This is supposed to avoid bubbling. I applied two coats without sanding in between. The results were outstanding: the splashes of paint and plaster on dark plywood under the high-gloss varnish give the room a sort of shabby industrial chic. I've single-handedly scooted the heavy (high efficiency) washing machine back and forth several times over the varnish and it didn't scratch, even in the places with raised blobs of paint or plaster underneath. It's been a year and even the high traffic spots between doors and the areas that get year-round sun look like they were just painted. This year I had to uncover that parquet floor with the glue on it. This room gets much less traffic (bedroom), so I cared a lot less about the paint bubbling. And I was in a big hurry to get it done. Painting a floor with a brush is not my idea of a fun home project. I decided to do what is absolutely forbidden by the instructions: use a foam roller to apply the varnish, right over the lines of glue, and over the mysterious 7-inch-wide bands of duct tape that ran across middle of the room. (Did not want to find out what was under that tape!) Because the glue lines were so high, I put down 4 coats of this very thin polyurethane varnish instead of just 2, so that I could more easily dust-mop the room. Again, fabulous results. I cannot find a single bubble in the paint, despite having hurriedly used a roller for all 4 coats. The varnish is adhering just fine to the duct tape; I think the tape will peel up before the varnish comes off it. The rough, scratchy ridges of glue are now smooth and comfortable to walk on. I like to think of the glue as a feature: no-slip flooring for when I wear slippery socks. I really liked using the roller to apply the paint. It's easy to see where you've just painted because the roller makes a much cloudier application than a brush, but still dries crystal clear. I care for my flooring much better than the rats care for theirs, so by the time this varnish starts to show wear, this house will have been demolished. The third application for this varnish is as a top coating over primer. On built-in shelving and inside drawers in this house, I have applied Kilz white mold-inhibiting primer, because a roof leak caused a mold problem. After fixing the roof, I spray treated all the drawers with a mixture of isopropyl alcohol and grapeseed extract, then applied Kilz primer. I would have been happy to leave it at that, but primer is a terrible surface to deal with, sort of powdery in texture, impossible to slide anything like clothing on it. I haven't found any normal paints to be good for shelving, probably due to the humidity in this region--everything sticks to the paint and it gets peeled off the shelves. So, given the great results with the rat cage, I decided to try varathane. On top of the single coat of Kilz, I applied a single coat of varathane. All problems solved. The mold has not returned after 6 years, and the surfaces of the drawers and shelves are still shiny and slick. EXCELLENT product.

I’ve been using this fine product for years - works great! I love the toughness of the polyurethane finish while not causing yellowing over time. I prefer the satin finish - it seems to enhance natural wood grain without masking it. But what I really appreciate is getting it in 4 little cans with only a very small upcharge. I was in the habit of buying quart cans and pouring it into small bottles for each project, primarily to avoid frequent opening of the quart can but also to avoid contamination. This was a messy process and usually resulted in some spillage and loss of varnish. So now with the small cans (well-sealed with steel clips) I seldom need to make my small bottles, but if I do it is a much simpler and cleaner operation. So it ends up saving me money as well as hassle.

I saw a lot of reviews about this item looking milky white in the can...not clear. It does but it dries clear so dont worry about the milky look. I needed a sealer for an outdoor table that I had tiled with glossy store bought tiles and unfinished tiles I had painted. I wasnt sure this would work on the glossy tiles....but it did. I applied a thick coat with a soft brush to make sure that it settled into the grout grooves. I saw brush marks but because the coat was thick, the brush marks flattened out as it dried. I let it dry for an hour and applied another thick coat. If you see cloudiness-- don't worry, it goes away as it dries. Make sure you use a very soft wide brush and apply thicker coats that help eliminate the brush marks as it settles and dries. I'm very happy with the results. Brushes clean up easy with soap and water. If you're looking for a glazed look for a project, it's perfect. My only complaint is that it arrived wrapped in bubble wrap and tape over the lid. It had leaked a little

I thought this was a quart not a pint until I received it. That was my mistake for not paying attention. I personally think it is just as good as Minwax water based polyurethane. I like both water based and oil based poly. I like the yellowing of oil based and I like the clear shiny look of water based. It depends on what I am doing and sometimes I'll use oil first and water second. I think water based is easier to work with and clean up almost impossible to mess up as long as you follow directions and using a foam brush over a paint brush definitely gives a much better finish in my opinion. I also prefer to wet sand with 1000 grit in between coats. All this being said it leaves a very shiny protective coat that looks like a layer of glass.

Worked very well, matte finish was excellent, made my artwork seem more alive. Easy to apply, dried very quickly.

This is a great polyurethane. The only minor issue is the depth of wood grain change. All water based urethanes and coatings seem to have the problem, wiping solvent on shows deep, rich grain, wiping oil on shows even deeper 9hence the "French Polish"). The water based don't bring out the depth of color as much. After discovering the weaker grain visibility (which may be a bonus for some people and applications), I put down a coat of shellac sealer with a disposable cotton pad, which is alcohol based which brings out the grain very nicely and also dries quickly. Once the sealer is down, i put polyurethane over it and there are no incompatibility issues so I get the depth of an oiled finish with the ease of water cleanup, and the water cleanup is the most important aspect. Excellent product and I use the triple thick version of this with even faster great results using same sealer preparation.

Amazing product, amazing results! I recently refinished a coffee table with a matte finish paint and did not want a semi-gloss, eggshell or satin finish. It took some time to find this, but I am ecstatic with it! It was super easy to apply, dried quickly and looks great.

Is geen 1/2 liter zoals in de beschrijving!

Troppo cara

Does the job!

Easy to apply. I applied 3 coats as recommended waiting few minutes/ hours between each layer , semi gloss, semi shine, and most importantly is water proof. Never regret. However , it’s little expensive in Amazon comparing to local market.

Used for furniture woodwork. Cost in India is just the same as in US (if rounded), so, it's on the expensive side. But it gave SO GOOD look! Easy to apply, doesn't smell bad or hurt. Five stars!