Exterior Wood Clear Finish

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Author Message Russ Hinkle, AIA, CDT, LEED AP Senior Member Username: rhinkle Post Number: 85 Registered: 02-2006 Posted on Monday, March 07, 2011 - 11:20 am:    Need some help specifying an exterior wood finish. The wood is quarter sawn oak with a transparent finish - no stain. The facade is to have an historical look to it. The owner understands that to keep it looking good with require regular maintenance of the finish, but obviously they want a good durable finish. There are several doors and windows. There is also a canopy which should help keep some of the direct rain off. Any specific product or system recommendations? Russ Hinkle Jeffrey Wilson CSI CCS Senior Member Username: wilsonconsulting Post Number: 45 Registered: 03-2006 Posted on Monday, March 07, 2011 - 01:46 pm:    I have clients who report satisfactory results with Sikkens "Cetol 1." There are also several other products from this company that are formulated for transparent finished exterior wood. http://www.nam.sikkens.com/product.cfm?product_id=3&product_category=exterior Wayne Yancey Senior Member Username: wayne_yancey Post Number: 434 Registered: 01-2008 Posted on Monday, March 07, 2011 - 03:01 pm:    Russ, I also recommend the Sikkens Cetol product for exterior wood. My experience with Cetol was on mahogany and old growth D-fir at a lake side home in Marine climate zone. George A. Everding, AIA, CSI, CCS, CCCA Senior Member Username: geverding Post Number: 583 Registered: 11-2004 Posted on Monday, March 07, 2011 - 03:17 pm:    Old-fashioned spar varnish. Not the newest kid on the block but it's very durable. It's on my front and back doors, and we have only touched up twice in 20 years - of course it is under porch roof, and protected by storm doors in winter. Still, it performs extremely well. George A. Everding AIA CSI CCS CCCA Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies St. Louis, MO Lynn Javoroski CSI CCS LEEDŽ AP SCIP Affiliate Senior Member Username: lynn_javoroski Post Number: 1213 Registered: 07-2002 Posted on Monday, March 07, 2011 - 03:33 pm:    Any marine varnish should work. After all, the intent of the product is to protect wood from water. It always worked on my boat trim, and many of the old wood boats on the east coast (where I had my boat) looked great. Boston Whalers, and the like, seemed to go from year to year with the expected maintenance. And that was in salt water. Anne Whitacre, FCSI CCS Senior Member Username: awhitacre Post Number: 1125 Registered: 07-2002 Posted on Monday, March 07, 2011 - 05:23 pm:    I would second both suggestions -- I've used the Sikkens quite a bit, and it can have a less glossy finish than that spar varnish. since you didn't mention what you wanted the finish to actually look like -- you might try a sample of each . ken hercenberg Senior Member Username: khercenberg Post Number: 82 Registered: 12-2006 Posted on Tuesday, March 08, 2011 - 05:46 pm:    I still like Cabot's. Is the intent to allow the wood to bleach or does the Owner expect that the wood will continue to look like it does now? Russ Hinkle, AIA, CDT, LEED AP Senior Member Username: rhinkle Post Number: 86 Registered: 02-2006 Posted on Wednesday, March 09, 2011 - 08:45 am:    The "facade" is intended to look historical. It is the first floor infill of an old retail space with the rest being stone masonry. Brand new wood with detailing similar to historically similar buildings in the area. The new use will be as an entry to apartments and emergency exit from retail. Thanks for the feedback. It was very helpful. The owner does understand that regular (yearly) maintenance will be required to maintain the finish. Russ Hinkle (Unregistered Guest) Unregistered guest Posted on Thursday, March 10, 2011 - 12:12 pm:    Russ, for exterior transparent finished wood, I have had luck in specifying ZAR made by United Gilsonite Laboratories (UGL). The Sikkens system is also excellent (nothing else comes close for durability) but NOT a transparent finish system. Jim Sliff Senior Member Username: jim_sliff Post Number: 31 Registered: 08-2010 Posted on Monday, March 14, 2011 - 12:18 am:    I have sometimes specified a system adapted from my "other life" repairing and playing vintage musical instruments. Historical structure finishing, faux-finish techniques and "relic" instrument finishes (in varying degrees - there are even fairly well-established categories such as "Barroom Queen" (really beaten up), "Roadworn" (scratches and worn-through areas, but finish mostly intact), "Aged" (discolored mostly my UV exposure or other for other reasons), and "under the bed", a term for an instrument bought long ago, kept in the case and rarely, if ever played. Working with certain unnamed theme park personnel I've adapted a few of those methods and figured some others that provide surface complete protection while maintaining (or creating) and "aged" look. One of the simplest is use of a dye-based aging toner that a specialty instrument finish company manufacturers (or distributes) - when used between coats of most oil-based, lacquer and urethane clears it provides anything from a slightly-yellowed overall look to very aged - and with judicious masking areas of higher UV exposure can be duplicated. It's actually produced in an aerosol, using a special fine-finish tip (same company produces lacquers with the same aerosol tip). For some specialty applications it can be an inexpensive way to instantly age surfaces in a realistic manner (I've even used it over pigmented finishes and followed with clear topcoat(s). As far as exterior clear finishes, I still use marine spar varnish - but never in high gloss if I want a slightly-aged finish. high-gloss clears always look "antiseptic" to me, so I'll usually specify satin. I do, however, like to have a precon with all involved - most applicators (not "painting subcontractors", but the actual workers) with any experience have developed their own "quirks" to make clears work, and their methods may or may not meet with project goals. Sorry to say the "front line" applicators rarely pay much attention to the specifications unless an inspector is on the job, so in a critical application a precon (and preferably an inspector) are not a bad idea. David Axt, AIA, CCS, CSI Senior Member Username: david_axt Post Number: 1166 Registered: 03-2002 Posted on Monday, March 14, 2011 - 02:02 pm:    Would the same systems work for maple? I have an architect that wants to put a maple bench on the outside of the building. Jim Sliff Senior Member Username: jim_sliff Post Number: 33 Registered: 08-2010 Posted on Wednesday, March 16, 2011 - 02:26 am:    Well, it depends on which ones, as several have been mentioned. Maple is pretty forgiving when properly prepared, dry, and stains (if any) are not blends of red and green pigments (outside the red will fade far more quickly, leaving you with greenish-tinged maple - not a pretty sight.). OTOH most commercial-grade maple has a pretty dull grain pattern; curly maple and highly flamed maple are great woods (both in appearance and in how they take clear or stained/clear systems) but it DOES take some sort of stain to bring the grain out - clear alone usually doesn't cut it. Those types are also quite expensive and wouldn't be my choice for an exterior bench. If an architect asked me for a finish system for an exterior maple bench my first thought would be "not enough information". Configuration (sharp corners = a bad idea), assembly methods, intended use, specific exposure and "design intent" (which I usually word something like "what do you want the stuff to look like now - and in 5 years? 10 years with clear finishes is a crapshoot) are all questions I'd ask before specifying anything - and I wouldn't call a manufacturer's rep for a recommendation without that same information. When it comes to stained and/or clear wood finishes (in lieu of painted wood) too much information is very welcome; the alternative, too *little* information always seems to result in one or more change orders. VERY often the "design intent" combined with the requested substrates results in a "ya' can't there from here" situation.