I am preparing to Sadolin my window frames - the sills (Cills) on the front get most of the sun and have some quite bad lengths where the grain has opened up - beyond the point where I can hope that a thick layer of Sadolin will fill the cracks. Clearly I need to do something otherwise water will get in and freeze in the winter and cause further problems. The woodwork is
20 years old - but I hope to get a bit more life out of it.
Can anyone recommend a filler - ideally in a very dark colour - that is suitable for these quite thin cracks (1mm - 2mm)
I know the problem and the solution may not appeal. Once the sill has degraded to that extent nothing will take to it properly and you will get failure of paint and filler. The only sure long-term solution to the problem is to plane off the ridges or sand them and make the sill that much thinner. If you can increase the slope on the sill and get rid of any sharp arris to a radius of say 10 mm, the paint will last longer.
If you have to fill any area then dig out the decayed (usually by UV light) wood until it is all clean, new wood and I suggest the following a) OS borne fungicide brush applied generously on a sunny day with multiple applications b) the green Dulux Weather sheild primer to all parts c) THEN fill with an epoxy resin filler rather than polyester (resins are normally 50:50 or thereabouts and polyester just has a smidgin of hardener, like a paste (peroxide?) I prefer and use a pretty expensive one specially formulated for wooden windows called "windowcare" - it has a primer resin and two part filler. It is quite superb and has good planing and other properties once set d) once the filler is in those holes that have to be filled sand and re prime e) gloss with Saddolins x 2
You will need to regloss every couple of years unlike oil based paint but no need to strip off
Mmmmm! Not very appealing - particularly as the sills are upstairs and one is over a tiled roof. I have been working from inside - this restricts things a bit. I know that what you are suggesting is really sound but I think I might just try to 'buy' a few more years and then replace with uPVC. Thanks for the comprehensive operation list.
Chris has some excellent advice on doing it properly, or why not call Sadolin and see what they say?
If I was planning a 'high quality bodge' I'd fill the cracks with brown polyurethane adhesive/sealant (the stuff that comes in a tube, not a bottle), force it it with a blunt knife, take off the excess with a sharp blade before it sets then sand it level once set.
Chris has some excellent advice on doing it properly, or why not call Sadolin and see what they say?
If I was planning a 'high quality bodge' I'd fill the cracks with brown polyurethane adhesive/sealant (the stuff that comes in a tube, not a bottle), force it it with a blunt knife, take off the excess with a sharp blade before it sets then sand it level once set.
cheers, Pete.
That is the sort of fix (bodge) I was hoping for - something thin to penetrate the cracks.
I've used this stuff with great success on a partially rotted frame - though I also used a product that claimed to be a 'wood hardener' first....I suspect it was some sort of acrylic dissolved in acetone. Worked really well - when the frame finally gave up the ghost the treated bit was still viable.
Chris has some excellent advice on doing it properly, or why not call Sadolin and see what they say?
If I was planning a 'high quality bodge' I'd fill the cracks with brown polyurethane adhesive/sealant (the stuff that comes in a tube, not a bottle), force it it with a blunt knife, take off the excess with a sharp blade before it sets then sand it level once set.
cheers, Pete.
I got a little pot of dark Ronseal Filler today. It went on well and I have given it a coat of Sadolin. Fingers crossed.
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