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In all of our years of DIYing, I don’t assume we’ve ever used a strong stain earlier than. However we lately had a mission that was *completely* fitted to it and, properly, strong stain rapidly received us over. It was really useful by an expert home painter to us, particularly as a result of he thought it might be nice for our outside bathe. And we discovered it straightforward to use, it gave us nice protection, and we obtained an even-better-than-we-expected consequence (which is at all times the very best form!). So right here’s a publish that covers all the professionals & cons and hows & whys of strong stain.
As you’ll be able to see, the “canvas” for this staining mission was our outside bathe. We gave it a mini-makeover proper after shifting in, however we knew it could want extra consideration and care down the road. Truthfully, we dreaded the duty of stripping and restaining it – so many nooks & crannies! – however utilizing a strong stain ended up being a fairly painless course of – and there was no sanding required. All the mission took two afternoons and we have been utilizing it once more a day later!
Not solely was it straightforward, it’s going to be a lot extra sturdy for us. We must always’ve completed it years in the past!
Stable Stain Earlier than & After
Earlier than we dive into the strong stain FAQs, listed here are some earlier than & afters – as a result of they actually present you what it might probably do. As a reminder, this bathe regarded fairly unhealthy when we first toured the house. We have been slightly nervous it was a misplaced trigger – particularly after our contractor steered ripping it off the home. Fortunately we informed him we wished to revive it.
Cleansing it up with a stress washer helped loads, and we’ve been doing that yearly to maintain it from getting too scummy together with oiling the wooden in an try to guard it. It has at all times been a considerably weathered and timeworn look, which has a lot allure to us, however we lately needed to face the music that it was time for some spongy, rotten, and damaged cedar boards to be utterly changed. And we knew we would have liked a greater long-term answer to maintain that from taking place once more.
You may see the changed boards trying brighter & much less grey within the image on the left beneath, which prompted our strong stain replace (proper picture beneath). It is going to find yourself being a lot much less upkeep and can maintain any extra boards from rotting like those we needed to have changed, so it appears like an enormous win. Extra on all the strong stain perks in a second.
Listed here are those self same pictures, a bit larger so that you can see. Once more, this primary image was taken just a few days earlier than we utilized the strong stain. You may see just a few new boards among the many extra worn sunbleached ones (high and backside on the precise aspect, and a bunch on the left wall within the center and backside). There have been additionally different boards that have been changed on the door wall, which is behind me on this picture.
The repairs turned out nice however they left the bathe trying mismatched. Many seams and holes needed to be full of wooden putty or outside caulking, which led to a good patchier consequence. We additionally knew we needed to do one thing to seal the brand new cedar, however an everyday stain wouldn’t disguise the colour variations.
Fortunately we consulted with an area painter (and buddy!) who came visiting to have a look at it with us in individual and strongly really useful strong stain. We have been nervous at first, having by no means used a strong stain, however he informed us we might simply do that ourselves. And he was proper. Now we’re 1,000% satisfied it was the precise selection, and we’re so glad he really useful it.
Higher than any picture is a video. So here’s a rundown of the way it appears in movement, with some huge pictures and a few close-ups for you too. You actually get a sense for a way our outside bathe flows into our entrance porch at giant on this video, so take a peek in case you can. It offers loads of context for a way this works with our whole exterior:
For a easy earlier than & after picture comparability, right here’s the outside bathe because it regarded once we purchased this home in February of 2020:
And right here’s the outside bathe as we speak. Nothing beats the heat of fresh lovely cedar, however you’ll be able to see how the strong stain has given our siding a extra protected and uniform look. It’s loads much less porous (three cheers for much less grime increase and fewer rot down the road!) and it has by no means felt so clear in right here.
Wider pictures actually don’t seize the pure wooden texture that comes via in individual (the video does a greater job I believe!), however this picture helps to point out the way it appears up shut & private… like whenever you’re really in right here having a shower.
I must also point out that a few winters in the past we changed the bathe’s outdated wooden flooring with Trex, which has been one other massive enchancment. It’s rot-proof & water-friendly since droplets can accumulate on that flat floor for just a few hours after a bathe. Now it matches the flooring on all of our different porches and decks too, which is nice. To not maintain saying “watch the video”, however that additionally exhibits the way it all flows collectively.
Why Select A Stable Stain?
Stable stains are someplace between paint and conventional semi-transparent stains. They are often utilized to any unpainted wooden floor and, like different stains, they add coloration & defend the wooden with out hiding the wooden grain texture. Nonetheless, the ultimate result’s a good and really protecting coat. For this reason it was so properly suited to our outside bathe’s points & particularly why a paint professional really useful it.
Though in photos just like the one above, it’d simply seem like a strong brown paint when it goes on, it permits extra wooden grain to point out via. So as soon as it’s dry you’ll possible discover that it appears extra like stained wooden (versus brown paint).
Stable Stain Vs. Paint
Stable stain could offer you an identical consequence to color, however listed here are some key variations to know when selecting one over the opposite:
- Stable stain can solely be utilized over uncooked or beforehand stained surfaces, usually simply wooden and concrete.
- Paint works on loads of surfaces together with beforehand painted ones, from wooden and concrete to drywall, plastic, metallic, and many others.
- Stable stain doesn’t require a primer coat on uncooked wooden, paint does.
- Paint is available in seemingly limitless coloration choices, stain usually doesn’t.
- Stable stain tends to put on outdoors by fading, and should require recoating (though the stain we used stated it was assured to final for 25 years on siding or fences!).
- In contrast, paint tends to put on outdoors by peeling, which requires sanding and priming earlier than recoating.
- Stable stain soaks into wooden, higher preserving the wooden grain look.
- Paint sits on high of wooden, which might disguise extra of the wooden grain.
- Stable stain tends to be extra inexpensive. For instance, Behr’s high strong waterproofing stain is $30 cheaper per gallon than their high exterior paint.
For us, the first advantages of utilizing a strong waterproofing stain have been:
- utilizing one thing that enables the wooden grain to point out via extra
- not needing to do a primer coat all over the place first
- not having to cope with peeling paint down the road, which requires sanding and priming once more earlier than repainting
Observe: we didn’t select a transparent or semi-transparent stain as a result of sanding each nook and cranny to attempt to make completely different wooden tones match appeared time-consuming at greatest and unimaginable at worst (outdated cedar that’s freshly sanded doesn’t at all times match new cedar resulting from how the wooden ages over time, and the bench really isn’t cedar, it’s beforehand stained pine).
Instruments & Provides Wanted
Making use of a strong stain requires just about the identical instruments and provides you’d want for normal paint. Here’s a supplies listing:
You may see within the picture above that we used exterior caulk to fill some corners and nail holes earlier than starting. We selected an exterior caulk within the coloration “Cedar Tan,” because it was closest to our stain coloration. We have been slightly nervous about it displaying via the stain ultimately, but it surely didn’t!
How To Apply Stable Stain
Stable stain goes on similar to paint, if not slightly simpler. And it’s MUCH easier than a standard clear or semi-transparent stain. You don’t must wipe off the surplus stain or fear about uneven protection resulting from overlapping coats or the stain soaking in splotchily. Mainly, in case you can paint a room, you should utilize a strong stain.
Relying on the state of your wooden, it’s possible you’ll want to make use of a chemical cleaner or stripper to take away the outdated end. Ours had worn off sufficient that we determined to simply clear the floor with a stiff-bristled brush and shop-vac to take away any mud or particles.
We suggest working in sections (you’ll be able to see that we did the bathe door first within the picture beneath). Begin by “reducing in” the sides/corners of 1 wall or part together with your paintbrush. This was essentially the most tedious a part of our mission as a result of we brushed beneath the sting of every cedar plank to make sure that it was properly lined.
After reducing in that aspect wall with our brush, we used a small foam curler to roll stain onto every plank. The next nap curler (3/8″) is necessary for tough surfaces like wooden. Stable stain has a paint-like consistency, so it was straightforward to unfold with out dripping. Rolling went in a short time and was suuuuuuper satisfying
We tackled every wall of the bathe the identical method, reducing in first with the comb after which rolling. At took possibly 4-5 hours one Saturday afternoon. We let the primary coat dry in a single day after which did a second coat the following day, simply to be secure. A number of the corners, particularly the place that they had been caulked, required a fast third coat to realize full strong protection. Typically whenever you’re utilizing paint, smaller touchups like these can depart brushmarks or could cause flashing (a visual distinction in sheen), however we had NO ISSUES like this with the strong stain.
As soon as all the things was absolutely dried for an additional 24 hours, we loaded our stuff again into the bathe. And by stuff, I imply principally vegetation.
Stable Stain Colour Choices
Paint manufacturers usually supply a smaller palette of stain coloration choices in comparison with common paint. For instance, Behr presents hundreds of paint colours however solely 60 strong stain colours (beneath). You’ll usually discover your choices in a booklet or pamphlet within the stain part of the shop, or on-line.
Stains have a tendency to return in darker, earthier colours that complement a spread of exterior functions like decks, fences, siding, and outside furnishings. So regardless of the restricted palette, most individuals can have no bother discovering an appropriate hue. We selected Behr’s Tugboat as a result of it’s a detailed match to our entrance porch decking which is a Trex coloration known as Havanna Gold (once more, try the video that’s greater up on this publish to see the way it all flows collectively). We’ve chosen a extra colourful stain prior to now too, so don’t really feel boxed into browns and tans.
Some paint manufacturers promote pattern sizes of their strong stains so you’ll be able to take a look at just a few colours earlier than committing. I’d suggest testing them on a scrap piece of matching wooden or siding, or in an not noticeable spot in your siding or deck.
Would We Use Stable Stain Once more?
Sure! We’re actually proud of each the appliance course of AND the ultimate results of our strong stain. It has solely been a few months, so the jury continues to be out on the way it weathers and wears through the years, however our outside bathe is a superb testing floor as a result of it will get a lot of moisture and the highest will get a lot of solar whereas the decrease areas are principally within the shade. We count on some quantity of upkeep it doesn’t matter what, however we’re actually inspired by how clear it has stayed up to now, and it’s proving to be much less porous and extra waterproof.
So there you might have it: our first use of strong stain – and a bunch of causes that it’d work properly for a mission it’s possible you’ll be tackling.
We’ll you’ll want to replace this publish as soon as we’ve seen how our strong stained cedar is holding up. However up to now our verdict is 2 thumbs up! And once more, on the can, the declare is fairly spectacular! See the way it says it holds up on siding and fences for 25 years?!
Different Tasks Utilizing Stain
Listed here are another initiatives with stain that you simply is likely to be involved in trying out:
*This publish incorporates affiliate hyperlinks, so we could earn a small fee whenever you make a purchase order via hyperlinks on our website at no extra price to you.
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