Staining wood fence

[Slackdaddy]

I put up a 4 board wood fence (CCA treated)
I am looking to stain it a dark brown, for color and additional preserve)
All the "fence and barn" treatment sold at TSC is now water based latex (basically paint)
I do not want a water based "paint" to lay on top of the wood, then peel off in a year or 2.
I want an oil based stain to soak in.
1 gal. of oil based wood stain is around $50.00 if you can find it. But this is a stain you would use of a fine cedar home or such.

Is there a economical, basic wood fence stain??
Can you "Mix" your own??

Thanks,
Slack

 

[smstonypoint]

I have read here about using a mixture of used motor oil and diesel to treat trailer decking; e.g., http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/trailers-transportation/178895-new-trailer-floor-treatment-2.html. It would be worth testing out to see if the color is acceptable for your fence.

Good luck.

Steve

 

[RBLapham]

I had 600 ft of pressure treated fence and used stain from sherwin-williams stain which lasted for years before needing to apply a new coat. Cost was in line with latex paint. I used the blackest stain they had. Not sure if it was oil or water based, but think oil. That was on my previous home and I no longer have the can. I see they presently have a sale and a Gal is $33. See Finishes - Sherwin-Williams

 

[CADplans]

I have not looked for oil based lately, but, we did use it about 20 years ago,,
we have over 1000' of CCA treated fence that is stained.
The color my wife selected is the color we believed CCA treated wood will "go to" in time.

If you choose this color, there is MUCH less concern about the finish coming off.

The girl mowing the grass was 10 years old when we installed the fence behind her,,,

That is my daughter, she now has a 7 year old daughter,, and the fence looks great.
Two neighbors installed oak board fence within 3 years after we installed the CCA fence.

Both neighbors put some "black" finish on the oak,,,
both oak fences are now broken and falling down,

Coincidentally,, my daughter purchased one of the places with the oak board fence.
Here is a pic of some of that fence,,
you can see there are sections where the oak boards are falling down.

 

[zzvyb6]

I make my own using 50% linseed oil and 50% turpentine. It's a much better version of 'Water Seal'. Spray with a power painter. Shake well before using. Love the smell. Run the power painter off a generator.

 

[Deere Dude]

I have heard that putting anything on treated wood before it is totally dry will have negative effects. It was suggested to put it up and let it dry for a few months to a year before paining or staining.

 

[EddieWalker]

Modern day pressure treatment of wood requires a massive amount of water that is forced into the wood. It takes months for this water to work it's way out. Even if the board feels dry to the touch, there is still a lot of moisture inside of it that needs to come out. If you seal it, paint it or stain it before it's totally dry, the water inside the wood will destroy what you used. I tell all my clients to wait 6 months before staining or painting a deck that I build for them. In that amount of time, I've seen boards 12 feet long shrink an inch in length.

Your just wasting your time and money if you do it any sooner.

As for what to use, Sherwin Williams is usually one of the best brands. Cabot is oil based and used to be sold at Lowes, but then the pulled it for that really bad Olympic brand, but I think I heard somebody say that they are selling it again, so that might be another option.

 

[JRobyn]

I have been using this - Wolman™ WOODLIFE(R) CREOCOAT(R) Product Page

Mail-ordered 5gal through Home Depot. Evidently, retail sales are somewhat restricted, at least in our locale. I was hoping that it would be DARK brown to black like the Cabot's creosote stain that my dad used to use. Alas, it is grayish brown over our year-old CCA pine fencing. It IS darker where we used a small roller to apply, so coat thickness matters.

 

[Stimw]

I overheard a guy talking about dissolving steel wool in vinegar, filtering it and applying it with a pump sprayer.
Just gogled- steel wool vinegar wood - Google Search
What ever you use do the pump sprayer, they are cheap and if you have to throw it away no big deal.