How to stain or paint external timber?

[hastarin]

Hi all,

First time poster and definitely new to the DIY game. This looks like a great community, and I thought I'd ask for some advice.

Most of my house is brick but one corner has some wood that definitely needs some attention.

I have a few Bosch 18V tools, the home and garden green ones, that I am hoping will be handy for this, including a detail sander and a spray gun. The spray gun is limited in what it can do. It's rated as for Lacquers and Varnishes, Feed Volume: 0-100 ml/min. 

Any advice on how to tackle this would be appreciated.

• I am assuming I should sand back the wood somewhat and then stain/paint it.
• The detail sander came with 120 papers. Would that be sufficient?
• Any advice on what I should stain/seal/paint this with that can be used in a relatively low powered spray gun? I'm presuming something water based.

Below is a photo of the wood in question.

Many thanks in advance for any advice offered.

[KatieC]

Hi @hastarin,

First, let me welcome you to the Bunnings Workshop community! It is awesome you have decided to join and have found Workshop to be great already. Thank you for your question about your timber weatherboard, our resident DIY expert @MitchellMc will be back online on Friday so in the meantime, let me tag members @TedBear and @Dinny to see if they have any suggestions. You can also check out this great video on how to paint weatherboards for some helpful information. 

We would love to see your weatherboard transformation so please update us with photos along the way.

Katie 

[TedBear]

Hi @hastarin, firstly, I assume that you've watched the video that @KatieC recommended.

Your situation is a bit different though, as you know.   That timber will need to be sanded back to remove all traces of the old coating and the staining.

The Detail Sander won't be up to it, except for helping out in the tight corners and edges.

I suggest that you get hold of a Random Orbital Sander such as https://www.bunnings.com.au/ryobi-300w-random-orbital-sander_p6210549

There is a Bosch 18v one available if you are prepared to fork out the money for it....  $85.00  Vs $285 for the Bosch (https://www.bunnings.com.au/bosch-18v-brushless-random-orbital-sander-skin-only_p0303309).

I'd recommend a heavier grade of paper than 120, which is best suited for fine work. Try 80 Grit, or lower if that doesn't do it. You'll need some for the Detail sander too, to get into the inside edges.

I'll leave it to one of the Bunnings people to recommend the best stain to use.

[MitchellMc]

Hi @hastarin,

It's great to see @TedBear has offered a helpful reply, and they've put you on the right track. I'd agree with their comments as the detail sander might struggle with this project; great for the corners and hard-to-reach spaces, though.

Whether you stain and varnish or paint is up to you. Once you've prepped the area by sanding back the degraded coating, you'll be able to go straight over the timber with an exterior paint. If you want a natural timber look, you can stain the timber and then coat it with an exterior varnish. Alternatively, there are combos available.

Please let us know if you need further assistance or have questions.

Mitchell

[hastarin]

Hi @MitchellMc,

Thanks for the additional advice. It sounds like the easiest option that would keep the previous look would be a combo stain and varnish.

I do have a few more questions though.

The plans for the house say it's Cedar Wood Panel. Is there a product that perhaps works better with Cedar?

The only one I've found so far that seems to fit is Bondall 500ml Cedar Monocel Gold Marine Grade Stain And Varnish - Bunnings Australia

I assume that I 'd need to check the guides/documents to make sure my choice is sprayable? It seems like most of them are if they are diluted with mineral turps?

Final question (hopefully) is how can I estimate how much I'll need so I don't go buying way more than I need for the job?

Thanks,

Jon

[MitchellMc]

Hi @hastarin, 

The product you have found indicates that it has a Cedar colour tint, not that it's the only one suitable for Cedar. All the exterior stains/varnishes will be suitable. However, since your Cedar has greyed off, it would likely be a good idea to use the cedar-tinted product.

I'd suggest you'd need at least one litre to cover that area, and most of the stain/varnishes will be suitable for spraying if thinned.

Mitchell