Cuprinol Wood Preserver Clear for fence end grain treatment?

[Krome10]

Hi all

I have some fencing and other bits around the garden which have been done in pressure treated timber and have freshly cut exposed end grains. I've come across Ensele before and know that Ronseal also do a specific end grain treatment, but I'd much prefer a clear finish and am having a little trouble finding that. The reason is because I have tried a "green" end grain preserver before; not Ensele. I have read that the colour fades after application but the with the one I used it didn't - hence why I'm after clear. But has anyone used the Ensele Green (which I can get locally) and if so how much did the green colour fade after application?

Also, I've just spoken to Cuprinol and they suggested their Cuprinol Wood Preserver Clear for the job:

https://www.cuprinol.co.uk/products/wood_preserver_clear_(bp).jsp

It is not marketed specifically for pressure treated/tanalised timber end grain treatment, but it does seem as it might do what I need.

Does anyone have any thoughts as to whether this would be as good as the Ensele etc?

Cheers

Max

 

[Woody2Shoes]

Hi - the Cuprinol stuff is very good. In my understanding all these products are much the same, the only variation being the exact mix of poisonous chemicals and the spectrum of lifeforms they kill, the key to success is maximising the absorbtion of the potion into the grain of the timber (some Ronseal products advise against using on planed timber as it's too smooth to absorb well - the rougher the surface, and the longer the soak, the better). Cheers, W2S

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Max - that link doesn't seem to work. I pickled the individual parts of my garden gate in Cuprinol before assembly and it's doing fine. It's only untreated spruce - 25 years ago, painted admittedly.

 

[Glynne]

I've been using Blackfriars clear preservative for years and been really pleased with it. Not too many people stock it but Paints Direct do.

 

[Krome10]

Many thanks for the replies. Very helpful.

Glynne - are you referring to this stuff:

http://www.decoratingdirect.co.uk/viewprod/t/TORSOLUNI/

phil.p - and everyone else - I have fixed the link to the Cuprinol stuff the first post. Sorry about that.

Also, I have been discussing in another forum the fact that the Cuprinol is not water repellent. Here is what I said in that forum and I wondered if anyone has any thoughts on that matter please? Sorry if I'm over-thinking this - it's all new to me!

"We won't be applying any other treatments or finishes as we want to go for the natural look and are therefore hoping for the wood to grey with age (in fact, we wish it would hurry up!)

I'm guessing that the tanalised timber in the garden is not water repellent either but I really have no idea! I just know that after it rains it goes a darker colour and the water does not bead on the surface as it does for timber painted or finished in any other way with a water repellent finish.

So with that in mind, will the Cuprinol Wood Preserver bring the end grain/cut sections up to a similar performance/protection as the parts of the wood that have not been cut?"

 

[Glynne]

Yes that's it.
I get mine from http://paint-direct.co.uk/en-GB/product/1613/1622-0-94-0-12.aspx
I used the clear for years (15) on the cladding on my workshop without any rot or change in the natural colour.

 

[Krome10]

Hi again

I see that the Enesle stuff is very specifically designed for the purpose of treating the cut ends of tanalised timber. Whereas the Cuprinol/Blackfriars/and similar are more just for general wood preservation against rot etc. How the technologies of the different products work I don't know. And whether the Ensele is similar stuff packaged/marketed in a different way, or whether it is something completely different, I really don't know. Does anyone here know?

With regards my initial concern about the green colour staying green, I was about to call them to discuss when I saw this handy video and it answered all my questions:

http://www.archtimberprotection.com/ensele/

Thought I'd post it here in case anyone stumbles upon this wondering how green the green Ensele is.

Now the only other thing is that Ensele is more expensive. So whether it is worth the extra £ I guess depends on the answers to the above questions about how it compares....

Would be great to know.

Cheers!

 

[Woody2Shoes]

The only difference between tanalising and manually drenching a piece of timber in preservative is that the tanalith process involves hydraulic pressure to speed up and maximise the absorbtion of solvent-borne preservative chemicals into the fibres of the timber. Without hydraulic pressure, you're reliant on capillary action (especially effective where end grain is exposed) to 'soak up' the solvent-borne preservative. The chemicals are pretty much identical in both cases.

The advantage of the tanalith process is that it is quick and lends itself to high-volume batch commercial processing. Tanalised softwood will go grey in sunlight.

As I said, all of these treatments (from Cuprinol, Ronseal, whoever) are much the same in chemical make-up and performance. The reason some are coloured is that it makes it easier to spot untreated patches and/or to match/complement existing stain colours. Cheers, W2S

http://www.batsfordtimber.co.uk/store/T ... ment/sc_13

 

[graduate_owner]

My opinion, for what it's worth.
Tanalised timber treatment can be very variable in quality, and I've had some that has rotted away in about six years. I would treat the entire timber, not just the cut ends, but especially the cut ends of course. I stand my timber ends in a bucket of preservative for at least 10 mins, longer if possible. Repeat treatments, where accessible, every few years. I use a spirit based preservative such as Blackfriars, barretine, etc. whatever is available at a reasonable price (under £30). I find Cuprinol a bit pricey and I'm not convinced there is much difference in the various brands.
The ones to avoid are the water based ones which seem to sit on the surface of the wood like a waxy film, and block the grain pattern, because they don't penetrate the wood.
For what it's worth, you can get a product called deep kill paste made by Sovereign Chemicals of Barrow in Furness. This product is great for reaching inaccessible timber, eg timber that has it's end embedded in a wall. The paste has a consistency of mayonnaise so you can trowel it on thick if needed and it won't run off. It will soak in and travel about 12" along the timber to where you can't reach. It is advertised as being able to kill insect and fungal attack so ideal for attics. Costs about £120 per 2 gallon tub so not cheap but if you have a timber problem this can save having to remove existing infected ( but still sound) timber.

K