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Finish for Exterior Doug Fir

joewood | Posted in General Discussion on December 1, 2006 07:58am

I hardly ever use fir for outdoor use, and am not sure what to suggest to the owner for a Stain/Sealer. I usually use Penofin on my ipe, redwood and w.r cedar, but don’t think this is best for resawn fir, which will still be fairly wet. I’ll let it acclimate (covered, on stickers with a fan going 24/7) for 7 days here in San Diego before pre-cutting all the pieces, and then let the owner seal everything before we install.

Wouldn’t you want to use a water based product? I want to stay away from a heavy bodied stain if I can. Appreciate any suggestions ..

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  1. Lansdown | Dec 01, 2006 08:03pm | #1

    I too have used Penofin for most exterior woods, but I've had good success with McCloskey's Marine Grade Spar Finish, and my doors get alot of North Atlantic weather.

    1. joewood | Dec 01, 2006 08:12pm | #2

      Thanks man, but I'd never use any type of film forming product like a spar. Another reason I'm leaning towards a water base is that I'd like to handle it within a couple of days.

      1. Lansdown | Dec 01, 2006 08:22pm | #3

        I share your concern about the film forming products. I have leaned away from them in recent years, did all my floors in Waterlox and prefer it immensely over polyurethane. The reason I still choose Spar is it has held up wellon doors that I have done years ago. Also I'm more concerned about a door's protection against such things as warping, etc. given that they are dynamic, as opposed to a deck or siding. Good luck with what ever you go with though.

        1. johnharkins | Dec 01, 2006 10:22pm | #4

          what are you using this resawn fir for?do you have any reason to think this fir is "wetter" than redwood, cedar 7 ipe you buy?tight grain fir is pretty unbeatable but we both know the other three you mentioned are generally better for decking materialsand your Penofin will work just as well for fir as those other woods

  2. jesse | Dec 01, 2006 10:49pm | #5

    I would stick with Penofin or Sikkens or let it go gray. Be sure to seal the endgrain (you already know that).

  3. Rockford | Dec 01, 2006 11:09pm | #6

    I have a similar application on the new house we're building.  I have about 80 corbels cut from 4X6 doug fir and 3 knee braces.  I coated all of them with Cabot semi-solid stain, oil-based.  It's been up for about 8 months now and I'm really pleased with the product.

    The guys at the paint store said one coat only, so I put the one coat on pretty heavy.  It did take time to fully saturate and dry to the point that it didn't leave your hands dirty when you touch it. 

    I'm going to go against their recommendations and put a second coat on now.  A couple of reasons:  Many of the corbels are very hard to get to and the scaffolding is coming down in a couple weeks, so I want to hit them one last time and forget about them for a long time.  Also, many of the corbels got a little banged up and scraped during the first two stucco coats.

    Good luck!

    1. joewood | Dec 02, 2006 12:27am | #7

      Sorry, I should have given more info. This is all for a patio cover. I'm using the doug fir to match other structures at the site, and because it's strong wood and I'm pushing my span limits as it is.It'll have rolls of bamboo over the rafters, then some solar grey corrugated panels over that. The only part that would need any UV protection would be the posts.We'd be sealing all the notches and end cuts as we install, except for all the blocking end cuts. Fir checks enough as it is!he's wanting a very dark color too. Maybe I shouldn't dismiss solid body, since this will all be rough sawn, with good texture. I've heard solid body holds up better than paint ..If I'm going to suggest an oil based to him, it would be Penofin. I was just hoping to hear some good results using a latex/water base product. I've heard water based actually hold up better outdoors, but maybe that's only for paint and heavy body stains?Edited 12/1/2006 4:28 pm by JoeWoodEdited 12/1/2006 4:29 pm by JoeWood

      Edited 12/1/2006 4:29 pm by JoeWood

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