Wood preservative

[51]

Builders are about to start building a block shed in my back yard. I bought a cheap door frame kit from B nQ. So how best to treat it for protection from the elements?

Thanks.

Arthur

[Ian Stirling]

Put it inside a nice shed?

[Andy]

Soak the end grain overnight in a bucket of preservative. Seal it with something when the preservative has dried ( seal the end grain that is ). The favourite parts of a door frame to rot are the lower parts of the uprights, and the cross bar if water isn't kept off it. Don't sit the uprights on the floor if possible, especially if it is prone to getting damp. I sat mine on square cut bits of slate tiles when I repaired my garage door frame, as slate is impervious to water. That's the theory anyway!

Andy.

[Mark]

Or use it as a pattern to make one from more suitable wood that will not rot within 3 years

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[Phil L]

Cuprinol wood preserver, they do a range so get one that suits your pocket, I use the all purpose because it protects against dry rot too, although this is not required in a shed. If it's already cut to size etc and you don't need to saw into it for anything, stand each length in a bucket with about an inch or two of preserver in it, this will be sucked up into the end grain, while it's in there you can apply it to half it's length, then turn it over and do the same with the opposite end, it only needs a minute or two to soak right up into the grain, this is where most rot starts

[The Natural Philosopher]

Encase it in glass fibre and epoxy. Nothing else will stop it rotting at the first sight of a winters day.

It IS B & Q, after all..

[The Natural Philosopher]

Ah. Vinegar and piclikng spice perhaps?Goies great with mangoes...

[Stuart Noble]

Forget about preservative. Stop water getting in in the first place by rubbing candle wax into all the edges, especially end grain. Quick, cheap, easy, and there is no better waterproofer known to man. It never dries out and is flexible enough to accommodate any amount of movement in the wood.

[Grunff]

I thought styrene was the preferred resin for fibre work?

[Ian Stirling]

Styrene is a component of polyester resin, in general. Epoxy is generally slightly higher performance in many cases. Probably not meaningfully in this one.