I'm replacing my old wood fence with a new one (building myself, no contractors involved). I'm using ground contact rated pressure treated pine posts, stringers, and pickets. And I have two questions:

1. What Brand do you guys recommend for a decent oil based stain ? I used Cabot brand oil based deck/fence stain for the last fence I built, and it looks pretty good, but it's expensive. I don't mind expensive if it's a high performance product though, since I don't want to have to clean and re-stain the fence for as long as possible before it starts oxidizing from normal weather and UV exposure.

2. I'm capping each post with pressure treated pyramid shaped pine post caps. In addition to the fence/deck oil based stain I will be applying to the fence, is there anything else I can use to help seal the tops of these caps, before or after the stain, tu futher minimize rain penetration ? The longer those caps maintain their integrity and appearance, the better.

Any recommendations along these two lines are much appreciated.

1. Flood makes a good fence stain. Let the fence dry for 2 months before you treat it.

2.Best would be to use copper pence post caps, these will last the life of the fence.

I put my cedar fence up in 2006 and stained with Cabot transparent cedar stain. Still looks decent. Used cedar for the pickets and the gates, pt pine for the posts and cross nailers. I had pros install mine and am well satisfied nearly 12 years later.

Probably wrong but I think Cabot and Flood merged.

Will treated lumber take stain? I am surprised if it does.

ETA: color me surprised. Apparently it do.

Put "copper tops" on the treated. They will weather to green and provide added protection.

Treated needs to "dry" for several months before treating with stains or oils.

There are several, but find the best specific to your location.

quote:

Originally posted by arfmel:
Will treated lumber take stain? I am surprised if it does.

Yes, as long as you let it dry 2 months or so. The yellow wood isn't nearly as good at longevity as the green arsenic PT wood it replaced. Thank the EPA once again.

quote:

Originally posted by jimmy123x:
1. Flood makes a good fence stain. Let the fence dry for 2 months before you treat it.

2.Best would be to use copper pence post caps, these will last the life of the fence.

This...excellent advice. My cedar fence is 30 years old this summer following this recommendation...

And use screws on the pickets (and everything else)...makes it easy to take it down for access if needed (air conditioning units and tree removal if needed).

Another thing that's been a really popular trend here is using 2x6"s or 2x8"s mounted horizontally to make a fence rather than using verticle fence pickets.

Like these. You can bang one up pretty fast.

https://www.bing.com/images/se...74F8729F&FORM=IQFRBA

To improve longevity, I'd recommend using Coppercoat on end cuts and anything below ground, even if it is already PT.

You'd be surprised to see a PT 4x4 soak this stuff up from a fresh end cut.

This is my area of expertise, I make an excellent line of exterior wood preservatives called TWP, Total Wood Preservative. We don't however produce any kind of below-ground product, follow Arc's recommendation here.

Pressure treated lumber needs at least 6 months of weather to lower the moisture content and help remove the "mill-glaze". We tell folks to wait a year on decks before staining. For ours, or anyone else's stain to perform well, you need penetration, and wet wood will not allow a sufficient amount of stain to soak into the wood.

Go have a look at my website: http://usetwp.com/, and give us a call before you spend money on the "big box" brands.

cgeorge your product looks amazing. Is the 100% cedartone fully transparent? I put Cabot new cedar semi-transparent on the outside of my cedar fence and it wasn't the look I wanted. It has held up well.

On the inside I used fully transparent natural cedar and it was what I wanted. It has aged well also.

When applying you have to keep a wet edge. Once the sealer dries another coat wont stick so you've got to do it right the first time. I put it on fairly heavy with a roller and my wife followed with a brush and worked it in. Is that the way TWP goes on?

Leavenworth is a pretty good drive from Louisville but if you've got a better mousetrap the world will beat a path to your door.

Here's a shot when stain was a little over a year old,

quote:

TWP, Total Wood Preservative.

Awesome stuff!
I used it on a fence I built way back in 1996 or so. Lasts a long time.

quote:

Originally posted by wrightd:
2. I'm capping each post with pressure treated pyramid shaped pine post caps. In addition to the fence/deck oil based stain I will be applying to the fence, is there anything else I can use to help seal the tops of these caps, before or after the stain, tu futher minimize rain penetration ? The longer those caps maintain their integrity and appearance, the better.

Any recommendations along these two lines are much appreciated.

Try searching for Kokille Quick Caps. They make a one-piece aluminum cap that has a ribbed nail in the center. You just hammer into the center and the post is protected. No rot, rust, etc.

I bought 50 of them for the fence I built last summer. They were about $5 each but considering that they will last longer than I will, it is a good deal. If you go with wood it will rot, steel may rust and streak, and plastic will eventually lose to the sun. If you need to replace a post, you can reuse the cap.

I would consider TWP to be "semi-transparent", although the terms "transparent" and "semi transparent" tend to be used loosely in the industry. Looking at your fence, I'd say the my 101 Cedartone has a very similar appearance. TWP is thin and can be applied by brush, roll or spray, I prefer to spray it on, and back brush to work it into the wood, and catch my runs and drips in the process. Our label recommends keeping a wet edge, applying two coats "wet on wet", but I've never been happy with this application method.

I prefer to spray the stain onto the substrate to the point of saturation, allow 20 minutes of soaking in time, and come back with a brush to catch any runs, drips or puddles. Then do a quick review of the surface and if you think the wood can accept more stain, then apply more, again, to the point of saturation, and repeat the process.

I've done a few fences, and spraying is far easier than rolling, but you must account for the the overspray and take steps to mitigate this before application. TWP will be very difficult to remove from an undesired surface.

You can order my stain from any of these on-line dealers:

TWP Stain

Wood Sealants

Down To Earth Products

I don't know about Leavenworth, this is made outside St. Louis. Where did you see that?

One other thing. Make sure the fence pickets are at least 2" above the ground. 4" is even better.

quote:

Originally posted by arcwelder76:
To improve longevity, I'd recommend using Coppercoat on end cuts and anything below ground, even if it is already PT.

You'd be surprised to see a PT 4x4 soak this stuff up from a fresh end cut.

Thanks Arc. I bought a gallon, and plan on using it on the end or edge grain of anything I cut.

quote:

Originally posted by cusingeorge:
This is my area of expertise, I make an excellent line of exterior wood preservatives called TWP, Total Wood Preservative. We don't however produce any kind of below-ground product, follow Arc's recommendation here.

Pressure treated lumber needs at least 6 months of weather to lower the moisture content and help remove the "mill-glaze". We tell folks to wait a year on decks before staining. For ours, or anyone else's stain to perform well, you need penetration, and wet wood will not allow a sufficient amount of stain to soak into the wood.

Go have a look at my website: http://usetwp.com/, and give us a call before you spend money on the "big box" brands.

Your TWP product gets very good reviews. I just ordered three samples of your TWP 100 series, to test for the best color for the new fence. I'm building it using pressure treated pine for the posts, stringers, and pickets.

quote:

I don't know about Leavenworth, this is made outside St. Louis. Where did you see that?

On the website search for nearest dealer Leavenworth Indiana is closest to me, Hidden Valley Log Homes about 40 miles.

quote:

Originally posted by doublesharp:

quote:

I don't know about Leavenworth, this is made outside St. Louis. Where did you see that?

On the website search for nearest dealer Leavenworth Indiana is closest to me, Hidden Valley Log Homes about 40 miles.

Ah, understood.

quote:

Originally posted by wrightd:

quote:

Originally posted by cusingeorge:
This is my area of expertise, I make an excellent line of exterior wood preservatives called TWP, Total Wood Preservative. We don't however produce any kind of below-ground product, follow Arc's recommendation here.

Pressure treated lumber needs at least 6 months of weather to lower the moisture content and help remove the "mill-glaze". We tell folks to wait a year on decks before staining. For ours, or anyone else's stain to perform well, you need penetration, and wet wood will not allow a sufficient amount of stain to soak into the wood.

Go have a look at my website: http://usetwp.com/, and give us a call before you spend money on the "big box" brands.

Your TWP product gets very good reviews. I just ordered three samples of your TWP 100 series, to test for the best color for the new fence. I'm building it using pressure treated pine for the posts, stringers, and pickets.

If you have further questions, please call us at 800-262-5710 and ask for technical services, we appreciate the opportunity to show why we make a good product.