Patio table finish

[Tim Geary]

I'm building a patio table. The base is cedar painted white. The table top is white oak. What finish would be best for outdoors? It will be under a roof and will get 2-3 hours of sunlight a day. Thanks

[Jim Becker]

In general, a penetrating, non-film finish is going to be a better solution over time for something outdoors because it's easier to maintain. There are products from Sikens, Pentofin, (spelling suspect... ;) ) etc., that might be considered.

[Tim Geary]

thanks. I was just looking at the penofin blue label. And there's a dealer close to my house. Do you have an opinion on the blue label vs the marine finish?

[Art Mann]

I will share with you my experience. Several years ago, I built some Adirondack chairs to go under our North facing front porch. I used cypress. The appearance turned out so nice that I decided to try a clear finish. I used a "spar" varnish from one of the big box stores. Even though the chairs were about 90% shaded and protected from all but the most hard blowing rains, the finish started to crack and peel and mildew started growing within a year. In my frustration, I sanded off the old finish and painted them with acrylic latex paint. They have looked great now for maybe 6 years in the same location. Since then, I have carved a number of cabin and camper signs out of Western Cedar or Eastern Red Cedar and finished them with quality spar varnish from a marine store. This material is waaaaay better than the Minwax crap but the ones that have been out in the weather continuously for a few years still need refinishing. My conclusion is there is no clear film finish that will hold up outside unless it is reworked fairly often. In the future, I plan to try a penetrating finish like Jim mentioned.

[Mel Fulks]

Agree with Art. The oak will still look like oak with paint on it ,it takes a coating of asphalt to disguise it. In the color and light of of nature it's hard for oak to compete without the green leaves.

[Stan Calow]

Tim, I made a garden bench with white oak, finished in outdoor oil. It turned black within a year. Its not mold, but appears to be from oxidation and moisture. I understand it is common issue with white oak outdoors. Kind of cool looking black, but probably not what you're looking for. I wetted it in photo so you can see color. I have no other alternative recommendation.
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[Tim Geary]

That black is a pretty cool look, but not what I'm looking for. I think I'll take my chances with the penofin. If it doesn't work out I can always make a new top out of cedar and bring the oak one in.