The choice of means for processing timber

Wooden beam is very convenient for construction. Many buildings can be built from it: from a capital residential building to a temporary greenhouse. Wood is a strong, reliable and durable material, but, unfortunately, defenseless against the destructive influence of the environment, it is susceptible to decay, cracking upon drying out or can be destroyed by wood insects. Avoiding such a nuisance is easy if you know how to handle the timber.

Content:

• What can be used for protection
• Various impregnations
• Primer mixes
• Varnishes and enamels
• Home recipes
• Recommendations for choosing a tool
• Expert Advice

What can be used for protection

In order to protect wooden surfaces from damage and destruction, different means can be used.

Various impregnations

Impregnation for timber is the most optimal means of allowing its structure to be preserved for a long time and protected from damage. It is applied to the base before the start of decorative work, penetrating deeply into the wood structure, protecting it from rotting or drying out. But some impregnating solutions can change the natural color of wood - this also needs to be considered when choosing a mixture. For example, if you plan to cut a log of planed timber with varnish, preserving or slightly shading the natural shade of the material, then you need to choose transparent compositions that do not change their color after application.

Primer mixes

The use of various impregnating primers is very convenient. A primer with additional additives will not only protect the material, but also prepare the basis for applying a decorative coating. When choosing a suitable primer, in addition to its primer qualities, one must take into account the same features as when choosing an impregnating solution.

Varnishes and enamels

Impregnating varnishes and enamels have a high degree of protection, but, unfortunately, most of them are toxic. They are perfect for processing the building from the outside, protecting the structure from moisture and temperature extremes.

Home recipes

"Folk" methods suggest using improvised means, for example, used machine oils or ashes, to protect the log house from planed timber. But after such processing, the material almost always loses its natural color, and the protection of the walls, as a rule, is almost never complete.

Processing solutions may be:

1. Water based when the solvent is water.
2. Based on refined products (more often it is varnishes, enamels or paints for timber with the added antiseptic or flame retardant).
3. On a synthetic basis, where the solvent may be any chemical compound, it is often toxic.

Recommendations for choosing a tool

In order for the protective qualities of the impregnating mixtures to correspond to the operating conditions of the building, choosing the appropriate composition, the following parameters should be taken into account:

1. Protective properties.Depending on what impacts the building will undergo, you need to select the quality of the drug. For example, it can be a solution that protects against decay, or an agent with an antiseptic.
2. Depth of soaking. The deeper the solution penetrates the wood structure, the more reliably it is protected.
3. The degree of protection that is selected taking into account the operation of the building. For capital buildings, such as a residential building, a bathhouse or a gazebo, the protective qualities of the drug should be maximum, but for greenhouses and temporary canopies, weaker solutions or the use of improvised means (copper sulfate, used oils) can be used.
4. Place of processing. For example, the ends of the log house must be lubricated most carefully, using additional layers of impregnating agent. Often a log house begins to rot or develop fungal colonies from the ends, as from the most defenseless place.
5. The location of the object, what environmental conditions affect it. It is necessary to take into account parameters such as temperature changes and humidity.
6. Duration of action of protective properties. For walls outside it should be at least 2-4 years, and for internal walls this period should be 3-5 years.
7. Security. The drug should be safe for people and pets, it is important to consider when you have to choose what to process the timber inside the house or bath.
8. Profitability. It is worth paying attention to the ratio of price and dye consumption per square meter.

In addition, it must be borne in mind that the processing of timber in the gazebo will be very different from the impregnation of walls on the outside or inside of a residential blockhouse made of planed timber:

1. Outside, walls, end faces and other wooden elements should be processed most carefully, with a drug that has strong protective qualities. For a gazebo, especially if it is planned to cook a barbecue, or for the walls of the bath, you need to take compounds not only with an antiseptic and a means of protecting from high humidity, but also with the addition of flame retardants to reduce the risk of fire. If you plan to preserve the natural color of planed timber, then you need to carefully read the instructions, which indicate whether the drug does not change color after application.
2. The interior of a log house made of planed timber, where high humidity (kitchen, bathroom or bathhouse) is possible, is impregnated with water-repellent compounds so that the log house does not rot, does not collapse under the influence of mold. Inside the kitchen or bath, in addition to protection from moisture, it is necessary to do fire-retardant treatment. This can be done by purchasing a combined composition or individually using a preparation that protects against rot and moisture, and after drying, apply a flame retardant composition.
3. The walls of the dwelling premises, where the humidity is not very high, can be treated with a simple composition with an antiseptic that does not have toxicity. This is enough to prevent rotting and damage to wood by insects.
4. For a greenhouse where humidity is high and food is grown, it is important that the solution not only protects against rot, but is not toxic. In greenhouses, the use of home remedies or aqueous solutions is allowed. You can use any, even those that change color after drying, because it does not matter if the natural color of the wood is preserved. It is necessary that the wooden frame does not rot and does not collapse, therefore greenhouse painting - a reasonable option.

Expert Advice

Experienced craftsmen for long-term protection of wood recommend:

1. When processing walls from the outside, impregnation should begin to be applied from the ends. First, the ends are well impregnated, and then the rest of the wooden elements. On the ends it is applied 2-3 layers more, because it is they who are most defenseless against the aggression of the external environment, and the decay of the material begins from the ends.
2. Decoration work can only begin after the base has dried after soaking.
3. To preserve the natural beauty of wood, it is necessary to carefully study the instructions before purchasing the drug, where it is indicated whether it changes the natural color of the wood after application to the base or not.

Choosing what to process the beam, you need to take into account all the nuances so that it does not rot and does not collapse under the influence of adverse factors. A house, a greenhouse or a gazebo impregnated with a properly selected composition will serve for a long time, without requiring major repairs.