Preserving old timber sheds
 

I moved houses recently and the new place has 3 wooden sheds. They could do with a bit of tlc to stop the rot as they say. My default plan would be to get some green or natural colour Cuprinol and either a 5 inch brush or a 5 litre manual spray pump to make life easier.


But my shed painting days are 10 years out of date so any suggestions i.e any alternatives to Cuprinol? Should I paint the insides as well? Cost is a factor. I'll probably pay a painting Pole to do the work so time taken also comes into play.


Thanks, David

I think I'll be the first one to say that pretty much all modern fence/shed paint basically has the properties of coloured water and protected the timber as such.

What I ended up doing was planing and sanding the rough-cut timber smooth and using exterior woodstain (3 coats of Ronseal 5yr for the most ). Lasted about 6 years before needing a re-coat, bar the gate which the cat had scratched when climbing up/down so needed re-doing sooner. Obviously this is more labour intensive, although mitigated with a electric plane and a good power sander. Its also more costly (a modest quality woodstain is about four times more expensive), so it depends on how much you cherish your sheds, if the wood is already greyed/rotting it maybe too late anyway. :)

Don't bother with that water based cuprinol stuff, the stuff is made where i work and its just coloured water and washes off after a while, oil or solvent based stuff is way better for protecting the wood against the elements

Similar question.

I want to paint/stain my fencing but what do I do about the neighbours side of the fence? Ask them if it's ok to come in and do it? I have a number of rows of fencing where it's not possible to access the other side - up against concrete wall or neighbours own fence/sheds.

I used old engine oil, got the compressor out, old spray gun and suited up, lasts for ages.

Age and condition of the shed?
Cuprinol do a 5 star treatment that stabilises wood that is starting to rot, stops woodworm etc. Decant into an old spray bottle and blast the shed with it to protect it, then paint.

Well I posted a thread with my thanks included but this seems not to have reached Scoobynet???


I would guess sheds are 10 plus years old and had been used as workshops with power and light. No major rot and felt roofing seems OK. But they do need a coat of something or other to keep them going for a few years.


Is wood stain similar to varnish and can it be sprayed on? Is there a matt or gloss choice?


David

You can't buy proper creosote as Joe Public anymore. So if you can't find a friendly business to get you some, make your own.

Old engine oil, thinned with a little diesel. Add in some ash if you have access to some. Mix up. Apply with a big brush.

I remember as a small kid my grandad building a shed out of hardboard around a timber frame. I can remember a couple of my uncles saying it would not last long. Well my grandad lathered it in old engine oil from his truck, it lasted for years although you did not want to get too close to it:lol1:

That reminds me, my grandad also was the first person in our village to own a truck with inflatable tyres:eek:

But did he ever find a garage that knew how to mend a puncture ;) ;)


(or had an airline :wonder: )


David

It's a shame that modern wood seems to go to **** in a few years. The eves on an extension to my old school - built maybe 10 years ago - are all starting to crack and split, same on a 15 years old 'Victorian style' property near me.

I notice around the back of the Old Wellington/Sinclair's Oyster Bar in Manchester, some of the new wood structures are starting to look like crap also, but the ancient wood is fine. It's said the original wooden frame was salvaged from old ships so would be very old and dense wood. Weird that 500 year old wood lasts longer than 10 year old wood.

It's all about age. The best wood takes years to grow. What you have mentioned here seems like a fast growing wood deemed for news/toilet paper put to the wrong use.

Probably not:lol1:

The together wood would have slower growth and full of resin , could be pitch pine

newer wood is grown faster and dispensed with faster .

Modern world . houses are built to last 15 years till the land is more valuable and then start again. Flats in marina down here are clad in compressed cardboard coated with some wonder material

( anyway they all have had to be redone , not 5 years old - due to the weather)

Is the new wood going to crack whatever paint or varnish you apply?

It's a shame to watch buildings go down the crapper like this.

I guess wood isn't ideal for the UK anyway.

New grown wood is good for what it is, you can't beat old seasoned timber. Yes, I don't know how you would prevent it, sealer/ whatever:wonder:

I think a lot of people get a new build or extension and don't think it will need maintaining for 50 years, hence my old school built the extensions and I'm pretty sure the eves have never seen a lick of new paint on 'em.

It's amazing how scruffy new(ish) houses look after a few years. I can see period houses near me which look more dignified.

People tent to use the cheapest timber they can find, which is usually regularised softwood untreated so won't last very long at all outside, pay the bit extra though and get pressure treated/tanalised and it lasts.

I think tanalised timber is branded with a 25year lifespan so not too bad for treated softwood.

Depends what wood it is, if it's oak then green oak will warp and crack. Oak needs to be seasoned to stop this.
A lot of oak nowadays is farm grown in France, and the growth process is sped up, so what would normally take 50 years to grow can take only 15 years.
The downside is the oak is not as strong as normal oak.
Over time oak gets harder and stronger.
I'm in the middle of renovating a 400 year old oak framed farm cottage, the stairs and upstairs floorboards I've prepped and put down are circa 300 years old, and have even been in the cottage and suffered fire damage some 50 years ago (Chared timber is in fact very well preserved) but have been through a planer thicknesser so you would never know.

Boiled linseed oil is very good for preserving bare timber, and if you add a bottle of lemon juice it will stop woodworm.

Really? :eek: I knew it was ****e but I didn't realise it was that ****e. Surely there must be some preservatives in there or it would be tantamount to fraudulent selling.

That is a new one on me, you learn something new everyday as they say:thumb:

What he said ^^^ :thumb:

And for soffits or any other bits of wood on the house... an old roofer told me to use hammerite smooth... but the one that's for metal... so I did... and 8yrs on it looks like I did it last week. ;) At the time he told me he said he did his the same way 20yrs prior after being given the tip and it was still good... so that's good enough for me.

I **LOVE** the smell of Creosote - takes me right back to long hot summer school holidays in the '70's playing out all day long..... god we went miles endways without a care..... its one of those evocative smells.....

Old Engine oil is your friend here though ;)

Smoke some kippers in there , that'll preserve it a while....

I was thinking of a still??


:Whatever_ d