Fence Stain

[adders21]

Hi All,

I am planning to treat my new fence.
I want a natural looking colour, perhaps a light oak'ish colour.

I had looked at Cuprinol Ducks Back Autumn Gold but I'm not sure if I will get the colour I'm hoping for.

Any suggestions or experiences would be appreciated.

 

[HERTS P&D]

Any shade of brown will look good, don't go for any fancy colour like blue. Cuprinol is the best make to go for, (in my opinion) treat both sides, this will please your neighbour as your treating his new fence. Only do it when the fence is dry.

The best way to apply is via a garden sprayer.

Hope this helps.

Andy

 

[curium]

I too was thinking of treating my fence but I have climbing plants against a lot of my fence.

Do I just omit those sections of fence or move the plants around to gain access (will the stain damage the plants)?

 

[JohnD]

I don't agree about the sprayer. It will blow over nearby paths, houses, cars, washing, dogs and stain them. I find a brush is easy enough and lays it on well.

My preference is for a dark brown, it is unobtrusive behind plants or shrubs and to me, it looks traditional. I don't like golds or colours.

I generally push through the vegetation. There is a posh trick of putting trellis on big hooks on the posts, so you can lift it off and lay it down, with the plants, when you need to treat the fence. Modern water-based waxy stains are not harmful to plants (like creosote used to be) so probably not worth the bother now. The stain will disfigure evergreens though, until they shed their leaves or needles. I find it is good on branches and trunks as it discourages woolly aphid and other insects (I use it on damaged bark).

The most important parts of a fence to treat are those facing upward, as rain is liable to lie there and cause rot.

p.s. if you have concrete fence posts or gravel boards, you can put dark brown masonry paint on them to blend in with the woodwork, and look extra-beautiful. I can show you a pic if you want.

 

[macadonald]

I've just gone through this after installing new overlap panel fence all around my garden this summer and wanting to treat it before wet winter kicks in. Similar to you, I didn't want the cuprinol fence treatment that looks like paint, I wanted a natural look. I got in touch with a number of professionals and cuprinol themselves. I ended up going with something called shed and fence protector. It comes in a tin and is a wax based stainy stuff. Once applied it repels water very well (tested with the hose pipe). The down side is that it's expensive and takes time to apply with a fence brush. I then bought the more common cuprinol sprayer treatment on the backside of the fence in the alley way etc. I was actually surprised at how good it looked, but there is no doubt that the sprayer makes application a pleasure. All done in 2 hrs. I reckon the sprayer would work for the wax based stuff as well, although cuprinol say not. It sprays water, so no reason it won't spray this.

 

[adders21]

Well, I bought Ronseal Fencelife Brush or spray (9 tubs!). I intend to brush as spraying is to risky.

BUT I've bought Harvest Gold and boy it is Gold! Tested on an oddment of boarding.

The wife isn't chuffed.

What I want is a treatment that will preserve the colour of the fence. It's brand new tanalised. Or something that is a very light oak colour.

All I can find is very expensive £30 plus for a 5ltr tub.

Does any one know of a product similar priced (£10 5ltr) to the fencelife which would give me the colour I want (or the wife wants!)

Adders

 

[HERTS P&D]

The fence will fade in the sun, so do it dark brown. It will blend in beautiful.

Andy

 

[JohnD]

I wouldn't trust it to fade, if you want it lighter, try a light brown. You can always put a darker one on top if you want, but (it is not very opaque) you can't stain a dark one lighter.

 

[adders21]

Does any one know of very light oak treatment?

Thought of using tinted decking oil but it's expensive and wont last as long as the stains.

 

[JohnD]

I'd go to a few large DIY sheds. They usually have a small display of small pieces of wood treated as samples. Different chains have different brands.

 

[adders21]

Hi All,

Oiled my deck on Sunday. Thank you to all the advice I got on that post. It looks great. Does what it says on the tin. It now has the look it had before treatment when wet. I plan to start a new thread when I get chance (decent weather) with pictures. Hopefully more people will post their pictures and name of product so we can see what results you might get from diferent products.

Now the million dollar question.
What can I put on my fence to achieve the same result?
I know I could put the same decking oil on but at £30 for 5lt I was hoping for some thing a bit cheaper.
Also, how long could I expect oil to last on a fence?
Is it suitable?

Did a tour of DIY stores to try and find a stain but didn't see anything I liked. They all seem artificial.

Cheers

ps I 've got 9 tubs of Fencelife going cheap in Harvest Gold. To gold for me. Derby area.