Autstrailian Timber Oil on cedar: lots of mold

[Thomas G. Marshall]

My composite deck has cedar rails, for esthetic reasons. I know, I know, don't bust on me.

I've treated the rails with Austrailian Timber Oil, which did a wonderful job at keeping a red hue while showing all of the grain.

Problem is, mold has grown on it like crazy.

Could I add fungicide to it? ATO is an odd beast and supposedly cannot even take a tint added to it.

Or should I just punt ATO entirely and go with Cabbot, like everyone else in the world seems to like for outdoor stuff ?

[RicodJour]

I love cedar. I don't love what you have to do to cedar to keep it looking new. Horizontal surfaces directly exposed to the elements are the toughest. You may want to look into replacing the rails with a composite that looks like cedar. You'll save yourself a lot of maintenance work and they'll look better for a lot longer.

I've read that the oils themselves are what the mold likes. Two-edged sword.

mildecide in it. Good stuff, but as with any of the sealers, you'll get a year or two of life out of them.

R

[Roger]

[Thomas G. Marshall]

Roger said something like:

[Thomas G. Marshall]

Ignore prior send with empty message (if it didn't cancel). Apologies....STUPID outlook express shortcut caught me by surprise.