Best product for protecting exposed wooden building

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What's the best product for painting/staining a T&G-clad building in an exposed location? It's currently finished in some sort of red cedar coloured stain but hasn't been touched for several years.

There are a lot of products out there...just wondering what the pro decorators use to give lasting protection and good colour? I can get 25L cans of Barretine Universal and also genuine Creosote, but if there's something better I'd rather use that.

Also, what surface prep should I do?

Cheers
 
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Since 2003 the General Public are not allowed to use Creosote, it can only be used by Agricultural Community, Builders or Tradespeople.
It must not be sold to the General Public.
 
Since 2003 the General Public are not allowed to use Creosote, it can only be used by Agricultural Community, Builders or Tradespeople.
It must not be sold to the General Public.

There are also restrictions on where it can be legally used, eg not on fences in play areas.

With regard to the checks and balances to ensure that the public don't purchase it, I think that the fact that you have to buy large quantities is generally considered to be sufficient.

I do know people that use diesel which i think might be even more hazardous than creosote.

At home I have only used the pigmented crap from the diy sheds which retains the colour fairly well. Not sure how well it actually protects the wood though
 
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Part of the problem that you will have is determining what is currently on the timber.

I quite like Sadolin exterior products but in the data sheet they say "On timber previously treated with creosote or similar water repellent treatments, ensure that they are well
weathered and do not retain any smell or ‘oily’ surface." http://www.sadolin.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/sadolin-timber-stain-technical-data-sheet.pdf

If they aren't weathered enough then you could use a pressure washer.

With regard to colour fastness the waterbased products do last quite a long time. The pigment content is so high that they protect the wood from UV (and thus greying). It is the timber in contact with direct soil etc that i worry about with regard to rotting, a few coats of clear solvent based preservative might help (provided that it doesn't leave a waxy finish).

IMO they do end up looking like they were painted by a diyer who slapped it on a bit thick, ie. you cant see much of the grain any more, but by the other token an opaque oil based finish would not stop the wood from discolouring as the UV would pass through the finish.

A big advantage of the WB products is that you can safely spray them, either using the proprietary DIY systems or an old fashioned pump up pressurised container. With the latter the finish will be quite splattery and you will still need to use a brush to lay the paint off and deal with drips but it is faster than brush alone.

They are also more than capable of hiding darker colours. I have gone from dark blues to lighter greens, albeit with lots of coats (4), something that would have been difficult with the tinted creosote type products.

Do pay head to the weather restrictions though.
 
Thanks, time to browse some manufacturers websites I think and see what's out there, but it seems to be the consensus that water-based is best, yes?

EDIT - any thoughts on Sadolin Superdec? 8 year protection looks attractive, £65 a can but I can live with that if it does what it says on the tin
 

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