By Terratoonie
England 
Advice please on which products to use to paint/preserve these two wooden items which will be outdoors permanently. Thanks for your time in answering my question. :o)
The photos are of two items for my back garden.
The first is a wooden beam which I think was from an old fireplace... It has been outdoors for a while. I need to rub it down and repaint it with something ! It rests on bricks at each end and I use it a lot as a place to sit down and as a low table for garden tools etc.
The second is a table/bench made for me by a friend. I must rub down the filler and then paint it all with something. I'll probably use it as an outside workbench for garden tasks and for storing potted plants.
It is made of planed, untreated wood on the legs and plywood on the top. An odd-looking pic because the bench is currently stored on its end in a shed !
Thanks for your help. :o)
23 Mar, 2010
Answers
The teak oil should work on the beam, and the legs of the bench, Tt. However, plywood is different - I think you might need polyurethane varnish to protect it. It tends to come apart in its layers in wet weather.
I hope that helps. Other members might have a better idea to prolong its life outside.
23 Mar, 2010
we tend to use cuprinol on outdoor wood--you can get colours-- they also do a good furniture protector and furniture restorer also in colours-- I find that it really soaks in and doesn't flake off like ronseal, the straight cuprinol does smell until its gone off as to the plywood I think he used yacht varnish and made a point of doing the sides, gave it the reccomended coats and it goes away for the winter, having another coat before coming out again, I've not got on well with teak oil outdoors but maybe thats just me :0)
23 Mar, 2010
I'd go for the teak oil for the wood and definately yatch varnish for the ply wood. make sure you do the edges of the ply wood so the layers dont separate.
I love the big beam. It is nicely weathered.
23 Mar, 2010
I think cuprinol teak oil would be a good choice TT. It really soaks in and would be a good preservative.. I think some sort of varnish would be beneficial aswell. The beam is very nice. It should look good after it's been treated.
23 Mar, 2010
Definitely yacht varnish for plywood, Tt, and 3-4 coats of it. I usually need to go for wood stains in colours, which still lets the grain show. You could take "a leaf" from us, and use "Conker" and/or "Hazelnut Truffle"?? By Weathershield or Ronseal (can't remember which right now. They are out in the shed and it's 11.30pm, lol). :-))
24 Mar, 2010
Thanks for all your suggestions...
I've used yacht varnish on plywood in the past, so that seems the best way to go with that... several coats...
When I go around the DIY stores now, I'll be able to make informed choices on the products I select... Thank you. :o)
25 Mar, 2010
maybe a nice oil painting of sling backs with loadsa manure pmsl
19 Apr, 2010
We use teak oil on all our wooden garden furniture. Paint it on with a pain tbrush on all the surfaces. It runs in to all the cracks and shrugs off rain.
23 Mar, 2010