When/How Can I Paint Over Antifreeze?

Who ever told you to use antifreeze? I never heard of that. Best would be to replace the bad wood, but if you want to save that till next year or so *you will end up doing it soon*, I'd bleach the wood to kill the rot and mold, let it dry. Then apply a wood preservative, which you can buy in gallon cans. Follow up with paint as directed.

PS, If you have pets that get outside, you definately do not want to use Antifreeze or you might end up with dead pets.

Mark

Antifreeze wont stop rot or kill mold, bleach will. Wait till it dry then paint.

I have to ask... what interesting material are you going to paint it with?

Paint.

jim

My understanding is that antifreeze (ethylene or propylene glycol) is used as a carrier for rot treatments, and is not itself a rot treatment. For example, TimBor is basically boric acid with antifreeze.

Cheers, Wayne

I hope you know which types of paint will cure correctly when contaminated with ethylene glycol.

Jim,

According to the articles that you cite the anti-freeze will volatize in a few days and the wood may then be painted. A lot of these articles seem to be variations of one article. I see no reason to believe or disbelieve thesearticles.

Dave M.

Rot is an organism, its alive , possibly a plant, bleach kills by removing the oxygen and works. Antifreeze may work, its a poison, but bleach I know works, is cheaper, easier and safer to use and be ready to paint. Bleach residue is easily washed as it is salt, antifreeze has an oily residue, you don`t want to paint over any residue that will affect a paints bonding . Im sure alot of poisons will kill rot, even rot gut booze. Mold is usualy present with rot and may be the organisms responsible for rot. Bleach is still a safe bet for repainting. I just used 20 gallons on a repaint to kill rot and mold and clean concrete all with a garden sprayer. With antifreeze you may need soap to remove the oily residue, put it on your hands to find out, with bleach after its dry you just rinse with water. If you have rot you still must remove it, paint won`t last even if the rot is inactive, the wood is to soft and will absorb moisture, ruining the paint. I would cut out the rot then use bleach to kill whats left. Look for black spots on the house, even pinhead size, if you have them its mold and should all be sprayed with bleach. Mold is a plant you don`t want to paint over it.

Actually it is a mold; and molds are more closely related to animals than plants. Of course that little bit of trivia is irrelevant.

If you can see the rot, what about what you can't see? By the time it's visible on the outside you've UNDOUBTEDLY got a much bigger problem inside. Pull a panel and see. Half-assing it just by painting over is a mistake, using anti-freeze even more so. Right now it might be a simple matter of replacing a panel and possibly some insulation. Ignoring it will end up with having to replace the sill plate, insulation, the bottom of the studs, the inside wall and drywall, the paint, etc. Then there's the bigger question of WHY did this rot appear? If you've got decent water run-off and you keep it clean there's little reason for something to rot.

Ignore it now and you not only waste the time and money on the paint but you end up making the eventually replacement end up costing triple that, if not more.

I thought mold was a plant

I'd use Tim-Bor or Bora-care depending on whether you've sanded first. (Isn't Timbor a powder?) That will not only kill the existing mold/fungus, it will inhibit future growth, too. And it's less likely to result in squirrels eating the side of your house, and then crawling into the bathroom vent to die.

kills by

poison, but

and be ready

I'd bet that the anti-freeze actively kills rot a lot longer from one application than bleach.

Bob

Yes, Tim-Bor is a powder, I meant to say Bora-Care is basically boric acid with antifreeze.

Thanks, Wayne

Antifreeze will kill everything longer than bleach, animals and your pets to

So what you are saying is that mold can be a PET? Can you put a leash on it and take it for a walk? Can it be potty trained to use a litter box? Looks like the OP has a new pet !!! :)

Ethylene glycol is added to paint as a mildewcide.

jim

You understanding is incorrect.

jim