How to paint cypress picket fence with 19mm spacing?

Question

Hi there, I'm putting up a 17m wide, 1.8m high picket front fence with flat top cypress pickets that are spaced 19mm apart, and am looking for tips about the painting process. I'm probably not going to spray it..

* A friend recommended to stack the pickets on their side and roll the sides of the pickets first before installing. I'm not sure how I go about that efficiently so that they don't stick together as they dry, or run over the front. I live in a very rainy part of coastal Victoria, so finding long sunny days is tricky at the moment.
* If I install the pickets first, then paint them, is there a roller that can paint the sides if the spacing is 19mm? 
* Another thing here is I'll only be able to peck away at the job on weekend days that are sunny. Is it ok to install cypress pickets, have them exposed to weather for a couple of weeks before ideal painting conditions happen?

Thanks in advance!

Noyade · Answer

I made a small 'picket' fence - maybe 20 years ago? There was absolutely no way I was gonna bother with gaps and painting edges. Crunched them all together and painted with a hand brush. Gaps did develop as the wet wood dried but when I hand brush paint them again (soon) I'll just work the brush into the gaps.

Good luck with your fence @Tommington.

JacobZ · Answer

Hi @TedBear,

Funnily enough, I have that exact two pack of clamps sitting right next to me as I bought them earlier today for a project that I am working on.

I can confirm that the heads of the

https://www.bunnings.com.au/irwin-150mm-2-piece-quick-grip-mini-clamp-set_p5861495

are indeed reversible. There's just a phillips head screw that needs to be removed to take them off and rotate them.

Jacob

TedBear · Answer

Hi @Tommington, to paint the edges of your pickets with minimal runs down the other edges and maximum speed, lay them on edge as suggested, but clamp them tightly together. You may need to make up a few packs and buy some longer clamps if you don't own any. That way you will be rolling many at once and paint won't be able get between them (or at least won't form thick runs. Alternatively, fit tile spacers between them if your prefer.)

You can shift the clamps a little to paint under them. When dry, turn the pack over and shift the clamps up to ensure that the to-be-painted edges are held tightly together. They shouldn't stick to each other unless you put too thick a coat on. If the joins look like they have run together, run a thin knife edge lightly down the joins to cut through the paint before removing the clamps.

You can then lay them out flat on some scrap timber slats to paint one of the wider surfaces too.

If you'd rather paint the wide surfaces when in place, then mark them lightly where they will touch cross supports (ie where you can't get at the pickets when attached in place) and just paint a few thin coats there, so all of the timber will then be painted when you've finished the job.

Don't want to buy long sliding clamps?

Make some:-

Buy two short clamps (they must have a reversible end).

These may be suitable, but I couldn't determine if they are reversible from the photos or info provided. (Perhaps @JacobZ can tell us?) To reverse them (to push apart) the "fixed" end will screw off and then screw onto the other end. These appear to have a removable end. : IRWIN 150mm 2 Piece Quick-Grip Mini Clamp Set https://www.bunnings.com.au/applinks_p5861495?source=product_share&utm_source=bunnings&utm_medium=retail-app&utm_campaign=product_share&utm_content=pdp_deeplink

Screw a block of wood to the end of a length of scrap timber. (To hook over one side of the picket pack.)

Screw another block further down the length, at a point* just past the width of your pack of pickets. The pack of pickets should be the width of your roller.

* More precisely, this end block will be fixed away from the picket pack to leave a gap between the picket pack, with the thickness of another block, plus the width of the sliding clamp (with the end reversed outward), plus a some play space.

[ The other block is to ensure that the clamp can push on most of the width of the picket pack, not just the very top. Perhaps you won't need it as the pickets won't be very wide.]

You will then use that clamp to push between the two blocks and adjust it to press to the pickets together.