Waterlox Discussion Doug Wilson       Sept 1 2016

CreteDefender Review and Discussion

One  product we must encourage you to explore is CreteDefender.   In addition to exploring the amazing performance benefits of this product, I hope you will also explore the extreme expertise these guys have with respect to properly specifying your concrete mix and long term performance.  I have some links below that can help you become a Concrete Expert. 

CreteDefender™ is a clear, water-borne chemical solution… a penetrating concrete sealer. The proprietary formulation of reactive silicates and surfactants (chemicals that break the surface tension and allow for deep penetration) is designed to react with the calcium and lime in concrete. This reaction forms a gel that fills the pores and micro-cracks inside the concrete. The reaction takes approximately 75 days to complete, though your concrete is protected after 24 hours.

As the gel hardens, it becomes a permanent part of the concrete matrix. The reaction penetrates up to 4 inches (102 mm) into the slab. This reaction is irreversible and permanent.

The results of this reaction provide the following benefits to concrete:

Makes concrete impervious to salt (chloride) intrusion and the damage salt causes

Immediately STOPS the reactions from salt and other chemicals that cause damage

Eliminates dusting and flaking of properly finished concrete

Eliminates freeze/thaw damage

Corrects and stabilizes the pH of concrete

Hardens and adds density to concrete

Increases surface hardness by 45%

Provides substantial chemical resistance

Prevents efflorescence

Increases slip resistance on both smooth, machine troweled concrete and broom finished concrete

Makes concrete harder to scratch

Waterproofs

Makes concrete bond better to paint, epoxy, urethane, and other coatings

Reduces Moisture Vapor Transmission (MVT) in concrete (a major cause of epoxy and urethane floor failure)

CreteDefender works inside or outside, horizontally or vertically.

Discussions  (Become a Concrete Specialist by clicking all links below)

The Importance of pH

What makes Concrete go bad

How to Order Concrete   PLEASE READ THIS!

Residential Concrete

How Salt Damages Concrete

Call us for a quick Chat. 

Mold Prevention and Cleaning

Most homes suffer crawl space and attic mold that can be easily prevented. We explore options for mold cleaning and mold prevention. Mold Zap and Mold B Gone from Citrifresh are reviewed.

CitriFresh Mold Zap 

CitriFresh MOLD ZAP is a blend of EPA & FDA registered ingredients that are environmentally friendly and safely cleans and restores the natural beauty of wood, plastic, composites, drywall, concrete and carpet. This product removes mold, mildew and algae along with the silver gray color that can develop over time on wood. It will restore wood to its original appearance on contact. Can be sprayed or brushed.


CitriFresh-Mold B Gone 

Mold-B-Gone is an eco-friendly product designed for cleaning and removing mold anywhere inside your home. Mold-B-Gone is an all natural product that is safe to use around kids, pets and plants. Mold-B-Gone can be used on cloth curtains and furniture. Mold-B-Gone will remove musty odor from closets and storage areas. 

Paint and Wood Finish Solutions-New Construction Home

Many common preventable paint and caulking problems continue to cost builders and frustrate new homeowners. These problems can be minimized or eliminated by using proven solutions and procedures outlined in The PaintSource Guide to Painting and Finishing New Homes.

We present here the causes and simple solutions to common paint and finish problems facing many builders and new homeowners.

	Hardwood Floors Polyurethane finishes look "plastic", are prone to scratching, and need to be recoated frequently. Choosing a Finish for Hardwood Floors. Coordination and sequencing of Floor finishes and Wall finishes many times leads to damage to walls by floor finishers, or damage to floors by painters. More on sequencing finishing of wood floors.
	Decks Failure of inferior Deck Coatings, and improper drying and preparation of new wood leading to subsequent cupping, splitting, and warping of treated decking material. DeckCare Blog Deck Care Radio
	Driveways/ Concrete Patios Improper mixing of ingredients, and incorrect water ratio leads to widespread irreparable weakness in a majority of residential applications, including stamped concrete installations. Solutions
	Drywall Preparation & Finishing Drywall finish problems lead to unacceptable paint finishes, and Nail-Pops lead to inconvenient and generally unacceptable repairs for the builder and new homeowner. Drywall Dust is a controllable nuisance. Homeowners should encourage their contractors to utilize dust-free solutions for all drywall and prepaint sanding. Studs must be dry before drywall is installed in order to prevent most common Drywall Finish Problems
	Paint Failures Exterior Wood Trim Exterior Paint Failures resulting from the use of finger-jointed or Pre-Primed exterior wood siding, windows, and trim. See video
	Oil Based or Acrylic? Use of Oil-based Paint on exterior wood leading to a brittle and non-breathable paint film that will crack and trap moisture; resulting in costly repaint, and wood deterioration or rot. See video
	Interior Paint Problems Cold Weather Failure to maintain a constant temperature or using temporary heat during paint application, or painting in low temperature leading to inability to match color when Touch-up Paint is applied at higher or normal temperature leading to problems for the painter, builder, and new homeowner. More...
	Exterior Wood Clear Finishes The use of Marine Spar Varnish and other Exterior Polyurethanes on wooden entryways and doors leading to moisture entrapment, brittle film cracking, and guaranteed coating failure on exterior wood surfaces. See Video
	Caulking Moisture damage to a variety of surfaces and substrates resulting from the common use of inferior or incorrect Caulking Products, or the "one caulk does it all" approach.
	Fiberglass Doors Unsatisfactory results and coating failure when staining and protecting Fiberglass Doors. more..
	Mildew Resistant Paint for Kitchen / Bath Improper preparation, and incorrect coating and caulking selection for Bathroom Walls. We see excellent performance from Perma-White Mildew Resistant Paint.

Protecting and Beautifying Exterior Entry Doors and Garage Doors

NatureColor® from Structures Wood Care or Structures Wood Care NatureOne® wood finishes are excellent products for exterior entry doors and garage doors. These coatings resemble a varnish stained look but provides a micro porous film that is resistant to sun deterioration because of the layered effect of the pigmentation. The translucent qualities of NatureColor® or NatureOne® allow the beauty of the wood to make a statement on exterior doors.

The application process is the usual three-coat system for vertical surfaces. For the surface preparation, we recommend sanding with 80 to 100 grit sandpaper to remove
“mill glaze” and/or dirt from the surface of the wood. Excessive use of water is not recommended for cleaning wood doors and sashes.

Raised paneled doors have sharp edges that one can feel when you run your fingers along the edges of the panels. Sand these edges lightly to relieve the sharp edges so the coating does not fall away but rather clings evenly to the edges of the panels. An even generously applied coating will prevent premature and uneven weathering on the door.

Blocking or sticking together of two coated surfaces can occur if coatings are not thoroughly dry prior to installation and use. This occurs in acrylic finishes more frequently than oils as they are UV cured; allow doors to dry in the sun prior to installation.

Routinely check the lower portions of the door, as these are higher moisture areas due to water back splash and snow build up. A timely single coat application of NatureColor® Recoater or NatureOne® 100% Acrylic Exterior or NatureOne® Renew will prevent intrusion of unwanted moisture.


More about Structures NatureOne®

Painting Technique for Paneled Doors

Painting Exterior Wood Doors

All Project Guides

Wood protection for Decks, Fences, Docks and Marinas

One TIME Wood Protector is unique protection that is a proven, long-lasting, low maintenance alternative to conventional wood stains for Decks, Fences, Docks and Marinas. This unique wood protector eliminates the frequent, expensive, and difficult maintenance characteristics of most commonly advertised acrylic stains and oil finishes.

There are some decent quality oil stains available, but they are still oil stains. Oils dry out in the sun, wash and wear off, and have a pretty short life. Harsh chemicals or bleaches are usually required for maintenance. Frequent maintenance causes many stains to accumulate after several years, and can lead to darkening and buildup in many cases. That can lead to the need to strip. That creates a bad situation when we are on docks or boardwalks over water, or even the decks and fences in any neighborhood. Deck stripping uses harsh chemicals, and is preventable. We must choose a product that never requires chemical stripping, if we truly do want to be “green” about deck and wood care. Anything you put on the ground eventually ends up in some water.

We prefer One TIME Wood Protector for docks, decks, logs, and siding when the structure is near water. No harsh chemicals are needed for future maintenance, and One TIME never leads to stripping.

Most well advertised Oil based deck stains generally last about a year or two in heavy sun. Most widely sold oil stains contain linseed oil, which contributes to mildew growth in many climates. Oils get dry, and then begin to release pigment and hold moisture and dirt. Repeated maintenance coats with oils lead to darkening and eventual stripping. Most oils sell in the $25-$30/ gal range and cover about 100-150 square feet per gallon. Repeated use of oils, most times, will lead to eventual costly chemical stripping at some point.

Acrylic and water based stains sound great for the environment. Unfortunately most of the acrylics tend to build a film with repeated maintenance coats as required every couple of years. . Color buildup and eventual spot-peeling lead to the need to strip. Unfortunately, most available deck strippers are not 100%effective at removing failed acrylic stains. Sometimes, sanding is required for full removal of a failed acrylic. Most acrylics sell between $30 and $50 per gal, and coverage ranges from 100-200 square feet per gallon. If you have to strip an acrylic, as many do, it is quite difficult and costly.

These common problems with most stains can be avoided by using One TIME Wood Protector. There is no solvent in One TIME. There is no water in One TIME. Nothing evaporates. All the product applied soaks into, and becomes part of, the wood. The manufacturer uses expensive raw materials. The sun cures the resin into the wood and locks in the pigment for UV protection. One TIME never builds a film, and cannot peel. One TIME sells in the $75-$85/ gal range and covers around 300 square feet per gallon, depending on the surface. One Time requires only a mild detergent wash before recoating every few years, when color refreshing is desired. . No bleaches or harsh chemicals EVER. The biggest difference between OneTIME and most conventional wood sealers is the longevity between maintenance coats. One TIME yields the lowest cost per year (labor, material) compared to all other products we have tested.

I know we sound biased, but we get hundreds of questions from clients across the country that are getting disappointing results from practically every deck care product you have seen advertised, or sold at the big boxes and national chains.

We have never had a client switch from One TIME. We have helped thousands switch to it.

Doug Wilson
PaintSource.net

PaintSource Videos

The PaintSource Network features various types of paint and wood coatings projects on houses, decks, commercial buildings, and other structures. We discuss common problems, and demonstrate the better solutions we have researched and tested for a variety of projects over the last 20 years. We are a network of industry professionals who share a passion for educating our clients. We hope the following videos are helpful for your projects.
Interior Painting			Hardwood Floors
Preparing and Painting Walls			Choosing a Finish for Hardwood Floors
Painting Paneled Doors- Project Guide			Guide to Finishing Hardwood Floors
Caulking Trim
Caulking Baseboard			Decks
Preparing Walls to Paint			Applying Deck Stains
Discussion - Wall Prep and Patching
Dust-Free Drywall Sanding
Masking Trim and Ceiling
Taping Baseboard
Painting Baseboard
14 Inch Roller for Walls
Exterior Painting			Exterior Wood Care
Paint Failure New Wood Window			Deck Care Discussions at YouTube
Exterior Oil Paint Failure			Sanding Wood Decking
Sanding Wood Windows
Paint Failure Porch Rail and Spindle			Testing Moisture in Wood
Painting Porch Rail			Applying Coating to Deck Spindles
Caulking Window			Airless Spray and BackBrush
Paint Failure Wood Window			Roll and BackBrush Siding

---

Featured Articles:

The PaintSource Guide to Painting and Finishing New Homes.

PaintSource Guide to Exterior Painting

Deck Care Blog

PaintSource Network Channel at YouTube

Dust Free Drywall Sanding

by Will Selby

Here is a brief description of some simple-to-use equipment to prevent exposure to hazardous drywall dust.

Drywall dust is a known health hazard and a huge nuisance in remodeling and new construction.

Discussion: Dust-Free Drywall Sanding Equipment

Sanding Walls before Painting

Smoothing Walls

Porter Cable model 7800 Dust-Free Drywall Sander.

Dust free sanding is the only way to go when finishing drywall. We see excessive drywall dust remaining in most new homes in the ventilation systems, outlets and switches, can lights, etc. Drywall dust is extremely light weight, and should be prevented from becoming airborne, and traveling throughout the job site. This is an easily controllable nuisance when utilizing readily available tools and techniques.

See Equipment Description

For remodeling jobs, or an occupied job site, dust-free sanding is an absolute must. Drywall dust is a nuisance to both workers and homeowners. Drywall dust harms computer and audio equipment. Drywall dust can contaminate every finish in the home including wall and trim paint, wood finishes, hardwood floors, and all surfaces.

• There are a variety of Health Issues related to drywall dust exposure.
• Long-term exposure to dust by workers is outlined here

Drywall dust can also cause various adhesion problems, and contaminates paint finishes. We have had clients spend hundreds of dollars trying to remove drywall dust from ventilation systems. We had one client who spent several thousand dollars replacing duct work, after dealing with continual dust the first two years in their newly constructed house. (The furnace was operated during drywall sanding, without covering the return air ducts). We continually talk to homeowners who have had major cleanup issues in the rest of their house after a remodeling project. This nuisance can easily be avoided with some widely available tools and equipment.
We see great results with a system consisting of:

• Dust-free hand sander
• Drywall Dust Vacuum (or shop-type vac)
• Drywall Dust Collection Bag
• Dust-Free Automatic Drywall Sander

The Porter Cable Automatic Sander is light weight, easy to use, and fast. It can be especially useful to do-it-yourselfers who are inexperienced at drywall mudding and finishing. You can easily sand and apply additional mud as needed to achieve the desired finish. The sander is also great for sanding between paint coats or sanding after priming new drywall. This system is available for rent in some areas, or can be purchased through our online store.

NEW CONSTRUCTION

We see a tremendous amount of dust remaining in recently constructed homes. Dust-free drywall refinishing during new construction can greatly reduce or eliminate the amount of drywall dust remaining in a new home. The added cost of dust free sanding versus traditional sanding is minimal, and we encourage homeowners to seek contractors willing to utilize readily available methods to control drywall dust when sanding and finishing new drywall.

Before installing drywall, be sure wall studding is sufficiently dry. Later shrinking of damp studs is a prominent cause of nail pops- a common drywall problem. Be sure to check moisture content of studs before drywall installation using a Moisture Meter to help prevent excessive stud movement leading to cracks and nail pops.

More about Wood Shrinkage

Drywall Imperfections and Nail Pops

Drywall Dust Causes Paint Problems

Full resurfacing (skim-coating) of drywall during new construction can greatly enhance the finished appearance of walls, giving a uniform appearance, and eliminating the surface variations of face paper, joints, and fasteners. This can be especially beneficial for areas that will be highly illuminated by natural or artificial lighting, not always available during the construction phase. A full skim coat is also called for when finishing with a velvet, eggshell, or gloss finish paint. The automatic sander can be utilized for quickly sanding fully skimmed walls, providing a much more uniform and smooth finished wall.

Use 500w halogen lights to illuminate at a right angle down walls and across ceilings before priming or painting new drywall. It is easy to make drywall repairs and re mud before you paint or prime. If you plan to make repairs after priming, the result is generally visible slick patches, and paint appearance problems. Many drywall flaws are not discovered until painting is done and the lights come on. So light it up! Use your judgment which walls will be highly illuminated once finished, or walls that will get a lot of natural light, and consider a full skim coat of mud on those critical areas.

These tools and systems are available for rent in some PaintSource Paint Centers.

( See all Topics )

The PaintSource Guide to Painting and Finishing New Homes.

Many common preventable paint and caulking problems continue to cost builders and frustrate new homeowners. These problems can be minimized or eliminated by using proven solutions and procedures outlined in The PaintSource Guide to Painting and Finishing New Homes.


Discusion of New Home Painting and Deck Care featured on HomeSmart Radio.

Topic	Discussion of common Problems / Better Solutions
Drywall Preparation / Finishing	Drywall finish problems lead to unacceptable paint finishes, and Nail-Pops lead to inconvenient and generally unacceptable repairs for the builder and new homeowner. Drywall Dust is a controllable nuisance. Homeowners should encourage their contractors to utilize dust-free solutions for all drywall and prepaint sanding. Studs must be dry before drywall is installed in order to prevent most common Drywall Finish Problems
Hardwood Floors	Choosing a Finish for Hardwood Floors Coordination and sequencing of Floor finishes and Wall finishes many times leads to damage to walls by floor finishers, or damage to floors by painters. More on sequencing finishing of wood floors.
Exterior Wood Trim	Exterior Paint Failures resulting from the use of finger-jointed or Pre-Primed exterior wood siding, windows, and trim. See video
Decks	Failure of inferior Deck Coatings, and improper drying and preparation of new wood leading to subsequent cupping, splitting, and warping of treated decking material. Listen to discussion DeckCare Blog
Oil Based or Acrylic?	Use of Oil-based Paint on exterior wood leading to a brittle and non-breathable paint film that will crack and trap moisture; resulting in costly repaint, and wood deterioration or rot. See video
Paint Problems	Failure to maintain a constant temperature or using temporary heat during paint application, or painting in low temperature leading to inability to match color when Touch-up Paint is applied at higher or normal temperature leading to problems for the painter, builder, and new homeowner. More...
Exterior Wood Stains / Finishes	The use of Marine Spar Varnish and other Polyurethanes on wooden entryways and doors leading to moisture entrapment, brittle film cracking, and guaranteed coating failure on exterior wood surfaces.
Caulking	Moisture damage to a variety of surfaces and substrates resulting from the common use of inferior or incorrect Caulking Products, or the "one caulk does it all" approach.
Fiberglass Doors	Unsatisfactory results and coating failure when staining and protecting Fiberglass Doors. more..
Mildew Resistant Paint for Kitchen / Bath	Improper preparation, and incorrect coating and caulking selection for Bathroom Walls. We see excellent performance from Perma-White Mildew Resistant Paint.

Other Topics:

Why We Like Waterlox

Waterlox Images

One Time Wood Protector Review

One Time Wood Protector Discussions


Wood Deck Care

Painting Walls

We have been getting a lot of requests for an organized list of our interior painting videos. If you are preparing for an interior painting project, we hope you will go through the following short clips.

Painting Interior Walls.

We hope these videos are helpful for your projects.

Waterlox Images - Choosing hardwood floor finish

PaintSource continues to get (and give) fantastic reviews for Waterlox Tung Oil Finishes. Everybody loves to live with Waterlox. We hope you will explore this option for beautifying and maintaining hardwood floors. Waterlox is a superior option to polyurethane.

A Tung oil and resin blend like Waterlox can offer the ease of maintenance, and lack of peeling of a natural oil finish, but with the hardness of varnish. Waterlox soaks in and cures with oxygen, hardening the surface, but with no heavy surface film buildup. It does not give a "plastic" look to wood like polyurethane finish, but gives a hand polished, natural looking elegant finish.

On Waterlox, scratches that might occur are much less visible than on a polyurethane, which is prone to show "whitish" scratching. Polyurethane scratches on dark hardwoods are even more pronounced. The other big advantage of Waterlox is that no sanding is ever required for recoating. Just clean, and refresh every few years.

Waterlox Reviews

Below are images of various Waterlox projects recently completed by our clients.
Click images to enlarge.

Here is a great example of Waterlox "popping" the natural color of this "branded" pine floor.

Below we see the difference in color enhancement of wood floors with Waterlox Tung Oil Finish, compared to the appearance of a water-borne finish applied to walls and vertical surfaces.

Many water-based finishes leave wood quite bland, as you see here on the walls. Waterlox naturally enhances the true beauty of this pine floor.

Color enhancement with Waterlox Tung Oil is even more pronounced on this this heart pine floor by Authentic Pine Floors. The cabinets have a water-based finish.

Here is Craig's workbench, finished with 4 coats of Waterlox Sealer/Finish on various wood species. Again, notice how the true wood colors are uniquely enhanced.

















Waterlox Staircase



















More Images

Waterlox Blog
PaintSource Guide to New Home Construction.

Visit PaintSource.net

Spare Time

Please click "Play" below for information about "Night of the Stars" held June 19, 2010 in Lexington Kentucky.

We hope all will help support a fantastic program, and increase awareness of the benefits of therapeutic riding. More Info



Go to CKRH website


My wife and I have been involved with Central Kentucky Riding for Hope for several years. CKRH is a therapeutic riding program based at the Kentucky Horse Park. This program has provided diverse therapy to thousands of children and adults using the unique bond between man and horse.

Central Kentucky Riding for Hope is dedicated to enriching the community by improving the quality of life and the health of children and adults with special physical, cognitive, emotional and social needs through therapeutic activities using the horse.

We hope you will visit the CKRH site for information about this special program. The new covered arena for the program that was a dream 5 years ago has become a reality, as we moved into our new facility and held our first sessions there in June and July 09, with added classes all day long, allowing to the program to assist many many more students. More details here. Therapy can now continue year around, even in rain, heat, and snow.

CKRH still needs additional support to carry on the efforts of many.

Please Read More Here about helping this effort.

Hoof Notes - Summer 2008
Hoof Notes - Summer 2009
Hoof Notes- Winter 2010


CKRH TV

Therapeutic Riding is offered by similar programs in many communities across the country.

About Therapeutic Riding

Find a Center

Wikipedia Article on Therapeutic Horseback Riding

Contact me to discuss therapeutic riding

Doug Wilson
Founder, PaintSource.net
Lexington, KY

Varnish or Stain for Ipe, Mahogany, and other Hardwood

Tropical hardwood like Ipe, Mahogany, Tigerwood, Cumaru, and others are fast becoming a popular building material for a variety of wood products including doors, wood trim, lawn furniture, flooring, and various wooden structures.

Coating and Maintenance is quite different with these hardwoods. Due to their high natural oil content, and extremely dense wood fiber, tropical hardwoods are difficult to protect with coatings and stains because very little volume of most products are absorbed into the wood. Only a small layer of surface wood deteriorates and needs rejuvenated (re oiled) seasonally. Therefore any oil type wood sealer or stain will require more frequent maintenance. Unfortunately, many oil and acrylic products are not suitable for exotic hardwood. Most dry out very quickly leading to frequent maintenance. Most Spar Varnishes and exterior polyurethanes lead to disappointing results and repeated costly failures.

Exterior
Hardwood Decks 


The deck in this photo is constructed of Garapa hardwood decking finished with One TIME Golden Honey. One TIME Wood Protector offers longer protection than traditional oil stains, and cures by sunlight. It gives the look of an oiled finish, but not a shine. There is no water or solvent to evaporate. Maintenance is simple detergent wash and recoat every couple of years depending on exposure. One TIME is not shiny, has very translucent pigments, and accentuates the natural beauty of exotic hardwood.

More on Hardwood Decks





Doors and Trim

For exterior hardwood doors and trim , Waterlox Marine is a great system to consider.

Film forming products like Sikkens Door & Window products can offer good protection, and are widely available.

There is no single best product, but there is a best product for each specific exterior project.

Interior
Tropical Hardwood Floors

Wood floors, countertops, walls, trim, doors, and other hardwood surfaces can be naturally beautified and protected, eliminating the difficult application, maintenance issues, and other disadvantages of polyurethane finishes.

Oily hardwood requires a compatible sealer for positive adhesion. Thick polyurethanes lay on the top, where they are prone to lose adhesion. A Tung oil and resin blend like Waterlox can offer the ease of maintenance, and lack of peeling of an oil finish, but with the hardness of varnish. Waterlox soaks in and cures with oxygen, hardening the surface, with no film buildup. It does not give a "plastic" look to wood, but gives a hand polished, natural looking finish. On Waterlox, scratches are much less visible than on a polyurethane, which is prone to show "whitish" scratching. Polyurethane scratches on dark hardwoods are even more pronounced. The other big advantage of Waterlox is that no sanding is ever required for recoating. Just clean, and refresh every few years. This is an elegant finish for tropical hardwood flooring.

Waterlox Reviews

Paint and Caulking Choices

Paint and Caulking Choices carry tremendous consequence for Homeowners

Despite tremendous advances in paint and coatings technology, many builders, contractors and property owners still use products that have costly long-term consequences when wood rots, metal rusts, bricks crumble, walls crack, or paint peels.
Most painting and wood care products sold by the mass merchandisers and national chain stores demonstrate repeated failure and costly maintenance issues. Many widely sold products cost consumers and the environment. We encourage clients to shop in local independent paint and decorating centers for their projects.

The bidding process for most projects forces minuscule cost cutting with costly results in the long run. Material and caulking supplies should be specified by the owner, and separated from labor costs for most projects. Many times, a project will require 2-3 specialty caulks for various specific purposes.

We frequently see property owners bearing the cost of preventable paint failures and wood replacement on homes only a few years old. Many times, product choices are made based on short term savings on material, or simply a lack of awareness of newer, superior performing products availability. Many times, clients force the contractor to use inferior products by seeking continually lower bids their projects. Material costs should always be separated from a project bid, evaluating option costs based on long term expectations.

Miniscule savings on materials results in cheaper products being used in all phases of many projects. We can help you evaluate cost-effective choices and long -term value for every aspect of your project.

New Home Painting Guide

By helping our clients choose and acquire all the products and supplies needed to complete a project, there is no pressure on the contractor to even consider cost minimizing of materials for your job at the expense of quality.

We strongly encourage the use of water-based paint technology for your painting projects. There are superior performing, environmentally friendly alternatives to solvent based paints and primers.

Many readily available paint and caulking products boast from 10-45 year durability, yet we see widespread problems and failure, inside and out, within 3-5 years on many new homes and other types of buildings. Many paint failures result from the "one product does it all" approach. We seek manufacturers committed to the highest levels of performance and quality.

We are obligated to the manufacturers of none of the products that we discuss. We will present our products of choice for various painting, caulking, and specialty coatings projects. These choices are based on continual evaluation of past projects, and various products' durability and performance. Our history has enabled us to evaluate the long-term performance of numerous brands and types of paint products. We continually research and evaluate new products, tools, and procedures available for a variety of painting and specialty coatings projects. Our team consists of experienced paint sales representatives, certified coatings consultants, and specialty contractors.

By considering existing conditions, as well as product requirements and expectations, we seek to provide you the best wood coating systems and paint products available. We continually consult with other professionals to further expand the information made available here.

Using professionally proven superior-performing products and systems can prevent many common paint and wood coating problems. We help you implement these solutions through local independent paint stores who are part of the PaintSource Network.

Deck Stain Problems

We are in the middle of deck season again and we continue to receive calls from clients across the country continually dissatisfied with the deck products they have used to protect their deck or other exterior wood. We continue to fight the fight for homeowners confused by the array of products advertised and sold and the various confusing choices available.

I believe deck care is probably one of the most frustrating and disappointing aspects of home care and maintenance for many homeowners. There are many false claims with regard to frequency of maintenance and long-term performance. Most of the products heavily advertised and sold in the big warehouses and depot type stores continue to fail, yet are difficult to strip and maintain. Many of the products are chosen based on consumer publications and various so-called “test results”. We seek to share here and on our website the input we received from clients as well as a results of our continued testing of the various products available.

One of the best-known water sealers available is mostly paraffin wax and mineral spirits. The wax does a great job of beading water for a few months, then weathers away, and the wood is left unprotected the rest of the year. Once wax is applied to the wood it makes future wood care difficult and generally will compromise future results of anything applied later. Many of the new acrylics and water-based stains are proving problematic after the second or third maintenance coat leads to buildup of product, trapping of moisture, and peeling. The acrylic products however are very difficult to strip if you have a failure. Most readily available deck strippers will not break the bond of an acrylic resin product. We are highly frustrated at the amount of stripper needed to undo the disappointing results of many of the water-based deck and log care products being sold. Even the good old fashioned oil base stains are short lived, and many times lead to darkening and mildew issues in some climates.

A majority of the products currently sold lead to future stripping at some point in the maintenance process. By choosing the proper application techniques and the proper products for any particular project, we can eliminate millions of gallons of strippers and harsh chemistry being rinsed into backyard soils and streams.

The horizontal nature of a deck exposes the wood the maximum sunlight and whether exposure. Rain, snow, and ice lays on the surface for extended periods of time, the sun heats and degrades the surface , moisture is drawn into end grain and uncoated backside, grit and sand are ground into the surface, and the deck faces abrasion from furniture, dogs, and humans.

In the past, the majority of decks were built with pressure treated wood. Old-growth forests, which were a great source of quality stable wood are virtually nonexistent now. Second growth forests are younger fast-growing trees that are high in sapwood and knots. Milling procedures for smaller trees result in mostly face grain lumber which leads to various problems with staining or coating.

In some cases treated lumber is “pre-coated” and some new wood must be stripped before the proper stain can be applied. Look at the tags on wood for finishing schedule instruction.

Once a poor performing product is applied, homeowners are faced with a vicious cycle of repair and maintenance that usually ends up leading to stripping the failed product. During the first few years, the wood becomes deteriorated, and future results with any product are somewhat compromised. Clients will then try another product that may lead to equally disappointing results and the cycle continues.

Common problems with deck care and deck stains:

Historically, there are several other factors that led to the common dissatisfaction with deck care in general.

1. Decks constructed with wet wood

2. Incorrect product choice for staining or finishing.

3. Lack of a sealer or coating on the bottom side and end grain saw cuts.

4.Many confusing choices available that are heavily advertised and sold by suppliers with little experience or real-world testing. Most employees in the warehouse and national paint stores are seasonal and temporary help with little wood care experience.

The ultimate key to proper wood care and satisfactory deck maintenance should start before the deck is even constructed. We should assure that the wood is properly dried, coated on the backside, and sealed on the end grain where saw cuts are made. Once the deck is constructed, it is difficult to seal the end grain (a big source of moisture intrusion), and it is difficult to seal the underside (a cause of cupping). With these two sources of moisture intrusion, you have a deck that is prone to the boards expanding and contracting as moisture levels in the wood increase and decrease due to existing conditions. The expansion and contraction of the wood, combined with moisture exiting the wood will cause compromised results with most stains and wood coatings, and will usually lead to eventual warping, splitting, and cupping of the wood.

Seal all saw cuts when the deck is built and saw cuts are made. Open end-grain is another tremendous source of moisture intrusion. Saw cuts cannot be sealed once the deck is built. The solution to this common problem is to get your wood a few weeks before the deck is going to be built, and stack it with spacers allowing air movement through the stack . This allows the wood to dry slowly before the deck is built. Once the wood is dry, a sealer or waterproof or can be applied to the backside and all saw cuts as the deck is being built. Once construction is completed, the topside of the deck can be stained, sealed, or finished with the appropriate product.

So what do you do if your deck is already constructed? We recommend a waterproofing sealer to be applied to the bottom side of the deck either by mini roller on an extension, or a pump sprayer. Try to flood material into cracks between the boards and end grain saw cuts when coating the top of the floor. By eliminating all sources of moisture intrusion, we reduce the expansion and contraction of the wood that leads to cupping, warping, and splitting.

Selecting your stain or wood protection

There is no single best product for every deck or log home, rather there is a specific best product for each individual project based on existing conditions, client expectations, and maintenance capabilities.

Before making a choice of the wood stain or finish, a few questions need to be asked of the client:

1. Is this new or existing wood? Is it pressure treated?

2 Is the wood IPE, or Other Exotic Wood? Cedar, or Redwood?

3 Is the deck covered or in full sun?

4 Is the client willing to completely remove any existing coating? Many times when a previous sealer or stain has been applied, we must completely remove any existing failed stain to get good performance out of a new product.

New wood also presents a variety of issues to consider as to when to stain or coat, the preparation required, and the best longest lasting protection.

Ipe, Mahogany, Tiger Wood, and other exotic hardwoods always present a unique challenges to successful staining and beautifying.



One TIME on Ipe (Brazillian Walnut)