Finishing Adriondack Chair

[Mike in Mystic]

if you used white oak you don't need any finish at all

[L. Wiederholt]

I recently finished building an Adriondack chair using oak wood and am wondering how to best finish it. It will be outside and, of course, I am looking for a low maintenance finish. I was wondering about using a clear house stain or something similar.

Any advice and suggestions would be most appreciated.

Thank,

Larry

[GBsCards]

"real" adriondack chairs were painted. Usually white. Since you went throug the trouble using oak you probably don't want to do that. White oak is rot resistant so a finish isn't absolutly necessary. Nothing or throw a few coats of poly on it.

I'm not sure about this and maybe others can chime in, but maybe a product like Thompsons water seal?

[John Crea]

Or cypress, or redwood, or Ipe

John

[Gregory Jensen]

YEAH.. get some Thompsons LIKE? sealer Product with some UV inhibitors.. Call it good.

[xrongor]

just wax it once or twice a year and call it good.

randy

[JGS]

[nospambob]

[mp]

Around these parts Cetol is considered to be the most durable outdoor finish. One of the most expensive, too. But expense is only relative in the short term. Last year in a fit of cheapness I put some Home Depot brand outdoor finish on some newly built outdoor furniture. Now it's a mess, and I'm going to have to strip it all off and refinish again.

I'll be using Cetol this time, and because it lasts quite bit longer, the extra materials cost works out to less over a period of time, not to mention the labour of having to reapply the cheapo finishes on a yearly basis.

[Scott]

I made a set of Adriondack chairs 2 years ago, using cypress. Any "rot-resistant" wood will discolor to some shade of gray. I don't like gray wood, so I finsihed it with several coats of "Outdoor Oil" by GF (General Finishes). I bought one quart at Woodcraft for $10.99, and that was enough for 2 chairs. After 2 years of Idaho sun/rain/snow they still look good, though I plan to re-coat this spring.

The back of the can reads, "Outdoor Oil is specially formulated for all outdoor wood projects . . . has twice the oil and resin content as other brands . . . contains UV inhibitors, heat stabilizers and mildew prohibitors . . ."

Cheers,

Scott