Questions about Ash flooring

I had the opportunity to mill some beautiful old ash into 5 inch boards. Some are 16 feet long. The floor installed very well.

We started testing some stains, and some of the boards are becoming much darker than the majority. Of course the darker the stain we tested the worse the problem.

Would applying a sanding sealer before the stain help to minimize this issue?

We were using oil based stains.

Its a very big room about 1400 feet, so I don't want to make a mess.

Thanks
Dave

Hi Dave, of course all planks won't take stain the same but ash takes stain really good. I refinished my ash cabinets but first I sand blasted the old finish off which gave it an old weathered look taking out the softer grain. Here are some techniques for staining ash. If you have left overs try using them for sample boards before trying it on the entire floor.

Show us some photos when you are done ..

Oh forgot to ask if you have sanded the floor first? lol