Suitable finish for a sand pit?

[Lyssastrasza]

I'm making a sand pit for my sister's kid out of merbau decking but am unsure of what a suitable finish would be for it. My main concern is the finish seeping into the sand as I've heard that many finishes can take weeks or months to fully cure, however I don't know if this is exactly true or only applies to certain finishes or something, should I consider just leaving it bare?

Anyone have some recommendations?

[Skew ChiDAMN!!]

I'd recommend a penetrating finish, probably an oil, and let it cure for a week or two before use... either that or no finish at all. Sand quickly erodes surface coatings.

If termites, etc. aren't a concern I'd go for either plain old Boiled Linseed Oil or a relatively cheap decking oil if I wanted to add some colour. While they generally take a long time to fully cure, in general they should be stable enough after a week or so.

If you really want termite protection or a way to water- or rot-proof the timber then you're looking at more specialtised products.

[tonzeyd]

i'd opt for no finish.

Unless you're making it for your grandies (and you're expecting lots) i'd skip the finish. kids will outgrow the sandpit well and truely before wood rot becomes an issue.

I thought about making a sandpit for my kids, ended up getting two of those blue clam shells from Bunnings and called it done. Been in service for about 5 years now and still serving its purpose. Kids love it but am glad i didnt spend any time on it.

The great thing about the clam shells is they double as a splash pool when you empty the sand out.

[havabeer69]

if you want it to stay the nice red merbau colour...

oil finish, but you'll be re coating it every 6 months to year
water based (decking finish) you'll be recoating it every year to 2 years



as above, learn to embrace the grey wood it'll eventually turn into. you may actually want to hit it with treatment of the "deck prep" stuff which pretty much tries to get all the tannins out, tannins are red leaching you're probably trying to avoid in the sand. but unless your sister wants to keep an occasional maintenance program up to it it'll just end up grey. If you really want zero maintenance and splinters, get some gal corner posts and look up composite sleepers (even bunnings has them now)

[orraloon]

Cats just love sand pits so think about a cover for it.
Regards
John