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Discussion Forum

plywood trim

adam22 | Posted in General Discussion on July 1, 2005 12:54pm

I had a buddy of mine instal trim board on the outside of my sunroom. He painted it and went on his way. Found out he used 3/4 plywood for the trim and painteds over it. Its starting to bleed through. Do I have to rip all these trim boards out or can I just re paint them.  Thanks

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  1. User avater
    IMERC | Jul 01, 2005 01:11am | #1

    rip it out and start all over again...

    the right way this time..

     

  2. calvin | Jul 01, 2005 01:22am | #2

    adam, call the buddy.

    Remodeling Contractor just outside the Glass City.

    Quittin' Time

  3. quicksilver | Jul 01, 2005 02:00am | #3

    I'm not real sure about the context of your question. Is the plywood trim failing in some way? If not, do you expect it to? Does it look bad? Is there excessive moisture?

    Replacing it just because you found out it is plywood is probably a waste of money. If it's delaminating that's one thing. But if it's just some ragged edges you could cap them with a rabbeted moulding. A cap for base and a back band for the outside of the casing. Leaving only the inside of the casing to contend with. You could glue a piece of ripped lattice to hide the inside. This would require a sacrifice of a strong 1/8'' or so of reveal. Or you could buy some epoxy like west system and coat the edge. Even a field routed and ripped cove a hair stronger than the ply will cover and give an interesting look. I think these moulding suggested, could be pre-primed and painted installed and final coated. Less costly than tearing out and starting over.
    With the right plan this could be a short day for a good handyman,

    1. adam22 | Jul 01, 2005 03:41am | #5

      Sorry for the confusion. The plywood trim is on the outside. I live in the northeast so ZI think this would be bad. I am starting to see bleeding through of the plywood trim. Taking this all out will be a last resort .i

      1. quicksilver | Jul 01, 2005 04:08am | #6

        No problem now the I read it again I see you had worded it correctly, It was my assumptions that steered me wrong. I assumed in the sunroom. Now that I see its out, I'd call the buddy and ask him about it. Its probably not good, but maybe he had some rhyme to his reason.

        1. Nails | Jul 01, 2005 07:59am | #7

          Yeah his buddy is cheap.....

          our neighbours bought a new house. we went of to check it out. they couldn't stop talking about the nice kitchen and fancy jetted tub.

          I noticed the fascia was stained 3/8 ply! well least I know were the builder put their money. The plywood looked like crap. and that was just for starters.... they also had a shed with 4' oc floor joists. and deck railing you wouldn't dare lean on. and thats just what I noticed with out even looking!  

          1. User avater
            AaronRosenthal | Jul 01, 2005 08:22am | #8

            Yea, but you are a builder/contractor who knows the difference. You know what it's like around here .... nobody putting any quality into the job because we are so busy that we have another 10 waiting ....Quality repairs for your home.

            AaronR ConstructionVancouver, Canada

             

          2. Nails | Jul 01, 2005 06:31pm | #11

            yeah....but being busy may be a reason to up the rate but never a reason to build crap.

            EDIT: actually it may be a reason.......but not an excuse.

            Edited 7/1/2005 12:03 pm ET by nails2

  4. JohnSprung | Jul 01, 2005 02:12am | #4

    Have a look at http://www.conservationtechnology.com.

    They have a paint-on roofing system that consists of fabric embedded in a very thick waterproof but water based paint.  I'd try applying this special paint to it before it starts to de-laminate.  (Without the fabric.)  Prep the surface very well, get rid of any loose paint, fill any voids with an exterior filler.  Then give it a few coats of the RCT stuff.  If you catch it soon enough and keep it well coated and waterproof, it might last a good while.  But if it starts to de-laminate, it's DOA.

     

    -- J.S.

     

  5. piko | Jul 01, 2005 09:08am | #9

    Maybe try using "Kilz" - or even just shellac - before another top coat if you feel that you'd rather not rip the stuff out for whatever reason (no ragged edges, not delaminating, etc). live with it for a while; but in the mentime, see your buddy and apprise him of the problem. Maybe he'll come clean and help you out.

    cheers

    ***I'm a contractor - but I'm trying to go straight!***

  6. User avater
    hammer1 | Jul 01, 2005 04:57pm | #10

    It's not unusual for a plywood product called MDO (medium density overlay) to be used for exterior trim, they also make signs out of it. It is plywood with an orange paper on the faces. If the builder used this, the paint problem may just be the paint or primer. If the trim is ordinary plywood, you may have problems with durability, not many carpenters, I know, would use ordinary plywood for exterior trim. What do you mean by bleed through? Hopefully, knots aren't showing. I have seen plywood used as a base for wrapping the trim with aluminum. This could be an option if you like the look.

    Beat it to fit Paint it to match

    1. Nails | Jul 01, 2005 06:35pm | #12

      you are right about product you are referring to. Had that been the product that had been used, he probably wouln't be having any problems, long as it is applied correctly.

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