Refinishing Western Red Ceder

[derekcohen]

Hi gang

I have a whole house of Western Red Cedar french doors and windows to redo. Isn't that fun!

They were sealed in Sikkens Cetol HLS and Supernatural about 7 or 8 years ago. The WA sun is fierce. Some of the timber is looking a little blackened (probably a mixture of weathered and dirty).

I want to return it to a natural timber finish. What do I use to remove the existing old finish (preferably a non-toxic chemical). And what do I use to refinish the timber (better than Sikkens?).

Thanks.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Theva]

Hi Derek,

Stripping- Citrastrip and desolve the last bit with metho & turp 50/50 mix. Woked perfectly.

Refinishing - If you find anything better than three coats of Cetol HLS (without supernatural etc) please let us know.


Regards,

Theva

[derekcohen]

Thanks Theva, I was thinking of using Citrastrip, just not sure if it is strong enough.

Regards

Derek

[Robert WA]

Derek.

I picked up this topic late.

We have an all wrc house and give it a coat of preservative/sealant every 3 or 4 years with a Feast Watson product. It is formulated for wrc and has worked fine for us.

Can't help you with the cleaning off. If you do find a good restoration product, pass it on please. We have bore water for our gardens and lawns and it stains the timber quite badly.

Robert.

[hatemondays]

regarding the stained, dirty timber, I believe you can get it looking brand new again by using oxalic acid. I think you can buy it in powder form and mix it up as you need it. Can't remember who put me onto it, might have been a french polishing course I once took. Hope this helps