Wood Finishes

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csonics
Anne from Little Britan
Anne from Little Britan
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Wood Finishes

Post by csonics » Wed Nov 18, 2009 4:59 pm

Posted on behalf of selfy:

selfy
Just Starting Out


Joined: 27 Sep 2007
Posts: 10
Location: County Durham,UK
Posted: Mon Oct 15, 2007 4:03 am Post subject: Wood Finishes
Hi All,
just finshed re-fixing the deck to Lark Rise, it had been fixed at 18" centres with fairly small screws, now its fixed at 4.5" centres staggered and bonded with west epoxy.
Now it's time to re-varnish, so some advice please, we are going to use Epifanes through recommendation but what are the pros & cons of "hot coating", I understand that because the last coat has'nt cured a chemical bond will take place so no need to sand between coats, sounds perfect is it right. Also how many coats should I apply.

Cheers

Paul
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Edward
Lighting the Boiler


Joined: 01 Oct 2007
Posts: 39
Location: Ambleside, Cumbria, UK
Posted: Mon Oct 15, 2007 7:49 am Post subject:
Dear Paul,
By hot coating do you mean applying the next coat of varnish as soon as the most recent one is not "tacky"? If so I'm sure it will work, rubbing down between coats helps to ensure a smooth finish but I know of one very well thought of Thames boat builder who allows about 24 hours between coats ie: leting it dry, then just roughens the surface to provide a key; before the last coat a thorough rubbing takes place to ensure the surface is asolutely smooth/level/flat. His results are excellent.
If you're down to bare wood at the moment I would thoroughly recommend starting off with 3-4 coats of Blakes Wood Seal. It's easier to apply than varnish and dries sufficiently to recoat in between 45 minutes to 1 hour depending on conditions. No need to roughen or rub down between coats unless you leave it to dry for more than about a day, in which case just roughen.
If you're only using varnish about 6 coats seems to be the norm, it rather depends on how patient you are. Once you've reached the standard you want there's no point in adding more coats. If you use wood seal you will probably save 3 coats of varnish.
I think it goes without saying that whatever you use preliminary preparation is paramount. The surface needs to be as perfect as possble before you even think of picking up a brush!
Best of luck, Edward.
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selfy
Just Starting Out


Joined: 27 Sep 2007
Posts: 10
Location: County Durham,UK
Posted: Tue Oct 16, 2007 12:29 pm Post subject:
Dear Edward,
I've been told that is exactly what "hot coating" is, to me it sounds like a great time saving proccess as I would rather have a spanner in hand than a paint brush.I have to be bullied or blackmailed at home to decorate so I see this as a chore, even though a freshly varnished deck will be the Mutts Nuts and one of those jobs that needed doing when we first got the launch.I will sand flat/smooth the last coat and see how it turns out.
Cheers
Paul
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