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Stain & Painting Fence
Your Perimeter Fencing - Considerations for Staining Your Fence
Red Barn Company just finished re-staining a perimeter fence for one of our customers in Topeka. There are many things to consider when you decide to do this type of staining project. Fences are an interesting project because they are sometimes so extensive (long) that they require a lot of labor to stain, and the professional painter must know which processes are most important to the customer. Things to consider
The Type and Manufacturer of the Stain. In considering what type of stain to use, there are several considerations. This is a useful graphic from Cabot's (below). The Solid Stain (Top) gives the best protection and the clear stain (bottom) gives the most clear wood grain appearance. How far in either direction should you go? Semi-transparent is a good choice, and the type we used here. It can come in a wide range of colors. Then there is the idea that for how expensive your time is, you should use the highest quality stain so that you don't have to do it again too soon!
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Fence Prep - Cleaning and Brightening
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Stain Application - Spraying, Brushing or Back-brushing
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Landscaping - Overspray Protection
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Handling the Exposed Wire Mesh
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The Type and Manufacturer of the Stain
Fence Prep - Cleaning and Brightening Step - How much emphasis should you put on having the fence clean and bright? Your painter should be knowledgeable about how to clean and brighten your fence, as stain will apply better and last longer on a clean surface, and look better if your fence has discoloration due to tannin oxidation. For a smaller fence that you see in detail every time you hang out outside, its a pretty easy decision to have it thoroughly cleaned and brightened. But if your fence is big, you might want to manage the expense and forgo the washing step if there are no heavily soiled sections of your fence. (If there is failing stain present, that's another conversation, and is not always an issue)
Stain Application - Spraying, Brushing or Back-brushing. Stain will last the longest and protect the wood the best if it is manually brushed into each nook, cranny and pore of the wood from each possible direction. Again, for a small project, we would highly recommend manual staining of the wood, but for a much larger project, homeowners might consider having the stain applied by spray technique. Its a balance between initial expense and duration, and you must decide if the increased expense (for manual brushing) is worth having another season or two of full protection. To be honest, most homeowners do not have us manual brush the longer fences.
Stain & Painting
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