merbau sealer...finish

[hughie]

Hi,
I am laying about 50sqm of merbau decking outside and I am looking for a sealer/oil? finish.

What I am looking for is one that will not add much if any to the colour....its dark enough now.

The only one I have come up with so far is Floods Penetrol. It does not darken the timber.

Any better suggestions/advice/experiences etc will be most welcome.

thanks guys

[Gumby]

We've covered this topic a lot recently.

Do a search and you'll find lots of info.

Out in the sun, it will darken naturally anyway. Put a good quality deck oil on it but let it leach out the tannins first. Leave it at least 4-6 weeks.

Check out the Home Reno section for decking stuff like this.......

http://www.woodworkforums.com/showthread.php?t=45040

[hughie]

Do a search and you'll find lots of info.

Out in the sun, it will darken naturally anyway. Put a good quality deck oil on it but let it leach out the tannins first. Leave it at least 4-6 weeks.

Check out the Home Reno section for decking stuff like this.......




Thanks for that, mutter.....mutter, :C tried a search but failed musta used the wrong search terms.

[ubeaut]

Do a search using the Google search above :aro-u: put the dot in the empty hole next to www.woodworkforums.com (http://www.woodworkforums.com) There are lots of answers to be found there. Much more thorough than the forum search and you can narrow your search the same way as you can a normal Google search.

I came up with 28 using "decking finish" as the search and 70 odd using merbau decking finish without the " "

[surfdabbler]

We did our deck with Intergrain Dimension4 pretreatment, and then 3 or 4 coats of Intergrain DWD. It's more expensive than decking oils, but lasts longer, and the colour is much lighter, and it's not sticky at all. It still darkens the wood a little, but the finished Merbau is a beautiful rich orange-red colour, and matches the Western Red Cedar doors nicely.

Our deck is 2 years old now, and has no signs of wear or weather, but it's undercover, so it has some protection.

Good luck with your deck!

[what the DECK]

Go for a transparent oil based product which will totally penetrate ( not leaving deposits of alkyd resin or synthetic polymer on the surface ) and which will bring out the natural beauty of the timber. Maintenance or rejuvenation is simple with a lambs wool applicator ( quicker than hoovering a carpet according to the wife ) and a real wood finish is achieved rather than a "pretty look".