Outdoor gate, paint/material??

[Mark Vaughn]

I'm making a decorative garden gate that will be subjectect to a life outdoors and i would rather not spend too much on it. It is going to be painted a bright red. could i get away with using pressure treated pine or even untreated pine since it will be painted? and what kind of paint would be best? thank you guys so much

[Josiah Bartlett]

Use good exterior house paint with primer, and make sure the end grain is cut in such a way that water can slope off of it or it will rot from the inside out.

What wood you want is going to depend on your climate. In Memphis you probably want pressure treated or cypress.

[Mark Vaughn]

thanks for the advice Josiah!

[Matt Ocel]

Mark -

Un treated pine - No

Treated pine - No

Cypress - Yes

I would go with Redwood.

[Von Bickley]

Mark,

PT wood will twist and warp VERY, VERY bad. If you do use it, let it dry good before you paint it.

Cypress would probably be the best choice.

[Frank Drew]

I would go with Redwood.

Of the woods I'm familiar with, me too. Light weight, stable, weatherproof...

[Chris Carpenter]

I built an outdoor garden gate/door thing 2 years ago that's held up really well. It's made of plain old exterior plywood with some pressure treated "edge banding" to seal the edges. The banding is 1/4 inch thick strips I ripped from a 2 X 4.

It has stood up to extreme sun exposure and rain, we even had a couple of mild freezes last winter. The trick was to paint the entire assembly with 2 coats of marine epoxy (the low viscosity fiberglass wetting type) followed by several coats of Rustoleum. Epoxy is an excellent water proofer and the Rustoleum blocks UV, which epoxy can't handle.

Everything is pretty cheap too - you can get a gallon and a half of laminating epoxy on ebay for $76; I guess I used about a third of that on a standard size door.

[Bob Slater]

I'd use an oil based stain, 1st coat dilluted 10% with thinner, then two more coats.

[Matt Hutchinson]

I have done professional painting for years, and exterior stain requires a lot of maintenance, even if it's sealed/varnished. I would stick to the painting idea. I have tried painting pressure treated wood, and it ain't easy. Even after the lumber is around 7-10% moisture content the paint still takes a long time to dry. I think the chemicals greatly slow drying time, and I am not sure how great of a bond reamains. I too recommend cypress/cedar, but if you use PT wood, I would sand it with a fairly course grit, say 100 or even 80, and this will help the paint to adhere. Don't worry, after a couple coats of paint the course sanding marks won't be visible. Make sure the surface is free of dust and dirt. I personally like to use oil base primer, especially on bare wood, because it gives such a heavy coat (I would still apply 2 coats). I liked the low odor/odorless Ultra Kilz (interior oil primer). I don't know if they still make it, and there may not be an exterior equivalent. Two coats greatly increases the chance of longevity of the top coat. (But being exterior solid wood there are no guarantees.) Then two top coats, with sanding between only if you want a silky smooth finish. I would recommend getting as high a quality of top coat as possible. You can't go wrong with Sherwin Williams, Benjamin Moore, or Pittsburg Paints, especially their top end lines.


Hutch

P.S. I have never tried the epoxy that Chris mentioned. I would double check with a knowledgable salesperson or a manufacturer as to how well it holds up on wood, but it certainly sounds like a viable/good option. As far as Rustoleum goes, it's designed for metal, though it works for wood. I would check this label as well, cuz it may be fine now, but it's 5 and 10 years down the road that is the real test. I have seen Rustoleum applied to wood chip/peel after only months, but that may be due to other factors.

P.P.S As others said, pay close attention to the endgrain. More that 2 coats of primer may be necessary.

[Russell Tribby]

I don't mean to hijack this thread but I'm getting ready to spray from plantation shutters with a water based exterior latex from Sherwin Williams. Matt, I was intrigued by your comment that it's necessary to put on two coats of primer with a water based product. Why is that? I had only planned on putting on one coat of primer and then topping it off with 2-3 coats of the latex.

[Chris Padilla]

http://www.pacificgateworks.com/finishingandmaintenance.htm

I plan to follow the above advice for my cedar gate that I'm working on. Finally got 'er glued up (epoxy) and now I need to test-hang it and sand it and hopefully get some finish on it this coming weekend. Here is a thread I have going: http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=81446

Oh, I guess I should explain that I'm going to pick up some Sikkens Cetol SRD stain/sealer (alkyd oil). I'm not sure if I'll just do a clear coat or if I'll add a bit of stain to it. That'll be up to the LOML. :)

[Chris Carpenter]

The epoxy on wood idea isn't mine. I have made a few boats using this method - it's called "stitch and glue" and is pretty well proven I'd say. I guess I was taking a chance with the rustoleum, but it was cheap and I didn't want to spend the $100 a gallon of System Three crosslinked polyurethane.
This company intimates that you get a better bond with the crosslinked polyurethane than with regular alkyd oils, but there's absolutely no evidence of peeling on my gate after two years.
System Three is the epoxy company I used for my first boat. There's a lot of them out there; I mentioned ebay because it's the cheapest I've seen, and the quality seems to be pretty good.