How to use Wood Oil Sealant
I know a lot of you love the beautiful swirling grain in Redwood, Cedar and the like, particularly for your fence or Deck. I do too!
However, the reality…there is no clear water based or oil-based stain sealer on the market that is good enough to last longer than about two years. The high UV we have here in Southern California is the culprit. Every 2 years, you’ll be sealing it again. Particularly in open sunlight, nearly all wood go’s Grey in color, clear stained or bare! The process required to do it right (re-application) is to power-wash and sand the Gray off, re-exposing the grain, then clear re-stain.
The very best products for clear sealing your surface, in order of strength is: EXO Shield Apitong Oil, Cabot, Penofin and Messmers UV Plus. These brand products are all oil-based. Freshly applied, they are strong in scent. The scent reduces as the application saturates in, over a few weeks. Upon completion of your fence/deck seal, your tools (sponge, brushes and/or Rollers) should be dropped in a bucket of water overnight. With some elbow grease and a long weekend, you can have a brand new beautiful protective finish on your San Francisco deck or fence.
There is a solution to avoid watching your wood go Gray in about two short years, however, you will need to abandon the idea of fully exposing the grain and, abandon the idea of using a clear stain. There are stains available in semi-transparent and opaque. With semi-transparent, you will see a ‘hint’ of the grain. With opaque, you’ll see none of the grain. Use of semi-transparent will greatly delay the graying process. Use of opaque sealer prevents the graying process. Ideally, in the event you are more concerned about long term prevention in the aging process and, you don’t have a need to expose the grain, opaque paint your deck or fence. If you do this, use Sherwin-Williams, Emeral Rain Refresh. It’s the best! As a final thought, there are also really good semi-transparent paints (Sherwin-Williams) that will do well, particularly if you want to expose some of the natural grain.
Tip from Ralph "Butch" Capo
Please call my office at (424) 222-5110 to get a free consultation for your deck and fence home improvements.
Let your colors shine
Scott Weller
Ace Handyman Services South Bay, Venice Beach, Santa Monica