Checking over my barge boards/soffits this weekend with a view to rubbing down and repainting. They are rotten in a couple of patches.
As a cheapo option, I am planning to cut the rotten patches back to sound wood, replace with new timber, then paint.
Anyone done this and got tips for such a project? The only problem is I may have to remove the guttering in one place.
Fortunately, its a bungalow.
Bruce
I tried this on the fascias on my last place. Cut back to sound wood, chamfered the edges, used a polyurethane wood adhesive, made sure everything was well primed and painted. It lasted a couple of years before the paint started lifting along the joins. I had to go round and replace the whole lot.....
Thanks, TheW.
Replacing the whole lot is beyond my DIY skills; I am not happy about lifting tiles etc. unless I know what I am doing. And I can't afford =A33k or equally ridiculous quotes from uPVC companies to have the whole lot replaced. So it looks like a patch-up job may have to do.
Bruce
Hi,
Did the polyurethane pull away from the wood at all, and how thick was the glue line between the repair and the original wood?
cheers, Pete.
Are you talking about soffits or fascias: I have a feeling you mean fascias, the bits to which your gutters are screwed???? Repair of fascias is possible if there is enough sound wood, I have used skew nailing and exterior PVA to repair one small rotten area. Try not to split the wood with the nails, use oval nails, and maybe even drill pilot holes. Blunting the tip of the nail can help. Add filler to clean up the gaps, sand and paint. Wood moves, so it's not a great option. If you don't mind a bodge, I have found the aluminium flashing tape you can buy good for keeping weather out. It looks like lead flashing, but is bitumen backed and will stick well to smooth surfaces. I think it can be painted, though you will see its edge.
Andy.
I have a feeling you mean fascias,
Yes, Fascias. I take it skew nailing is as the name suggests, nailing from the underside of one piece at a 45 degree angle to make a neat join.
Another thing which I forgot to ask....
When I cut back the rotten wood is it worth putting some "wood hardener" on before proceeding?
Thanks Bruce
Yes, skew nailing is nailing into wood at 45 degrees, a bit tricky but the only way I know to splice a bit of wood into a fascia. The trick is to use long enough , thin enough ( or oval is better ) nails, so that you are not near the edge of the wood when the nail emerges through the end-grain, otherwise a split can occur. If in doubt, drill an undersize pilot hole, as you don't want to split your carefully crafted and treated wood insert! Make sure the nail goes in dead on line else it will emerge through an edge: very tricky stuff, skew nailing.
I used wood hardener, I'm not convinced of its usefulness but if you're going for belt and braces then use it. Make sure you let the rotten wood dry out if it is damp at all, I have a feeling that wood hardener doesn't like meeting up with damp wood, maybe that's why I'm not sure if if it was worthwhile for me. Don't skimp on cutting back the rotten wood, you can't place a nail into rotten wood and expect it to hold.
I used kiln dried planed pine. I had to plane it to thickness, as I have an imperial house and the numbskull timber merchants only offer metric. Actually, there's probably some law compelling them so I'm being unfair.
I would strongly suggest applying wood treatment too, both to the fascia and the section of wood you are splicing back in. It will be a second line of defence if the paint flakes ( it will at some point, and that's when the treatment will 'hold the line' until you get around to painting again. Modern pine is not as durable as early 20th century pine, as it is forced on in plantations now and hasn't the density of older naturally grown pine, so I'm led to believe, so don't skimp on the wood treatment. This will need a few days to dry, as will your wood hardener, so plan to do the job in stages. That's my advice anyway,
Andy.
Hi,
Make sure the patch and the existing wood is well treated with wood preserver and dry as possible. I wouldn't bother with wood hardener, just cut/chisel back to sound wood unless there really is no other option.
A polyurethane like Sikaflex 221 is pretty good, also if the 'seam' between new and old wood is fairly wide say at least 1/4" it should mean the paint has to flex less and there is less stress on the old wood as it expands and contracts.
While the sealant is curing the patch can be held in with a few thin brass wood screws, they will give a good degree of control for getting the patch level. Once cured more screws can be put in, if just the threaded bit is screwed in and the rest cut and sanded off it will hold new and old together pretty well.
Try to find a primer and paint that has some flexibility, some of the cheapest ones are pretty poor in this respect.
All IMHO...
cheers, Pete.
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