How to keep wood from weathering and aging

[Porter Bassett]

I want to make a woodburned outdoor sign. I don't want to paint it, and I want to keep it from getting darker and greying with age.

My first thought is to cover it silly with a bunch of polyurethane, but is there a better way?

[David DeCristoforo]

I hear there is a wood from Mars that will not react in any way to normal aging factors. But to my knowledge, there is no such wood on Earth.

[Brian Kent]

Good one David. I was trying to think of a clever way to say that, but you beat me to it.:D

[Bob Genovesi]

Porter,

One surefire way to slow it way down is to seal it from the elements. You can't do much about the sun but for moisture and the like I would use a finish that's a 2 part system so it forms a sturdy barrier and seals in the beauty.

[Mark Norman]

Its wood,,,wadda ya expect? LOL

All you can do is slow the aging. Poly would work but need attention in a few years,

[Brian Kent]

I have not used marine varnishes from a marine supply place but I they are made to slow down effects of weather that a boat lives with. People at the creek say that true marine varnishes are quite different from Home Depot type spar varnishes.

Again, I have not used marine varnishes, just passing on what I have read.

[Richard Wolf]

Think boat building. All boats used to have wood and alot of it was clear finished. Head to the marine supply and find some finish products. 2 part epoxies, spar varnish, oils. None last forever, but they are your best chance.
Most ploys don't contain UV protection, which is critical for outdoor use.

Richard

[Jim Becker]

Porter, the bottom line is that you may be able to retard the weathering/oxidation, but you can't stop it. Richard mentions boats. Despite using some of the finest products on the planet for retarding the effects of UV, etc., you'll find that wooden components on boats have to be stripped, sanded and refinished from time to time to get back the original color, etc. Nature of wood, sun and so forth.

BTW, Polyurethane breaks down quickly in UV...definitely not the right product. A good marine varnish (sold by marine supplies) is more appropriate...VERY expensive, however. That stuff at the borg just can't compete.

[Howard Acheson]

Let me add to Jim's response that in addition to poly being a bad choice for outdoors, two part epoxy is no better. Epoxy is also rapidly attacked by UV. Epoxy coated boats or other marine items are always over coated with a good marine exterior varnish that contains UV protection.

For outdoor furniture, epoxy is frequently used on the end grain wood that is in contact with the ground. That's the part that is most susceptible to moisture and water damage. It's then either painted or over coated with a UV containing exterior clear finish. Of course, the best way to beat the outdoor damage is to either make covers for the item or move it under protection when its not being used.

[Neal Clayton]

I hear there is a wood from Mars that will not react in any way to normal aging factors. But to my knowledge, there is no such wood on Earth.

another favorite response of mine is

"as long as the sun shines and the rain rains there's no such thing as maintenance free"

[Prashun Patel]

Keep your outdoor sign indoors.

[Porter Bassett]

I don't need maintenance-free. This is something that I can re-finish every few years.

I don't know of any marine suppliers in my area. Can anybody recommend a specific product or online marine supplier?

[Neal Clayton]

yeah, your local metal supply company will have products that last in the weather just fine, just like david said.

otherwise if it's wood and in the sun it's gonna age. that's it. the way to slow that process is to keep it painted.

those are your options, period.

[Conrad Fiore]

Here are a couple of marine supply choices.
Defender
http://www.defender.com/category.jsp?path=-1|10918|296162&id=10952

West Marine http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/SiteSearchView?dispName=PAINT%20_%20MAINTENANCE&jspStoreDir=wm51&catalogId=10001&Ntt=Varnishes&N=377+710+1009&langId=-1&page=CategoryDisplayLevel1&omniTag=Category%3aVarnishes&storeId=10001

Just note that all of these marine varnishes will amber.