What to seal table with

meat73

What is everyone using to seal there tables they build for the egg.  It will definately see all kinds of weather here in Iowa.  I will get a cover of some sort for it.

 

Thanks

jbates67

I would go with the MinWax Helmsman spar urethane, excellent protective properties for outdoor weather, it's what I used on my red oak table.

http://www.minwax.com/wood-products/exterior-clear-protective-finishes/minwax-helmsman-spar-urethane

Village Idiot

I had tile put on top of mine.  Easy to clean and looks good.

psalzer

Several coats of spar varnish!

meat73

When they put tile on top did they put some type of backer board down like they do when you install tile in the house or what did they do?

Village Idiot

Yes, he put the backer board on before the tile.  I posted this picture a couple of weeks ago.

bge30plus

I had my table made ay a local craftsman and he used tung oil. It is rather time consuming according to my table maker but it will last a very long time, mine is now 7 or 8 years and it look great and it spends most of the time on our deck in rain, sun, cold and the heat. I did hear that it's very hard to apply but will last longer than many syntheic applications. But now tile well that's another story. It does look great.

Deckchef

I would def not use spar urethane , even though it's rated for outdoor , after 2 years it will yellow and peel and then you have sand and redo. I would use a teak oil since you can easily redo anytime and it hardens in the wood not on the wood. Food safe and great uv protection

fishlessman

I had my table made ay a local craftsman and he used tung oil. It is rather time consuming according to my table maker but it will last a very long time, mine is now 7 or 8 years and it look great and it spends most of the time on our deck in rain, sun, cold and the heat. I did hear that it's very hard to apply but will last longer than many syntheic applications. But now tile well that's another story. It does look great.

i used tung oil on some mahogany in my row boat, its stood up well now for about 10 years. i dont think it looks as nice as spar varnish, but a year later that spar needs some work, 10 years later the tung oil still looks ok. one thing i remember about reading on tung, not good to use near food if someone has a nut allergy but i dont see using a table as a cutting board

Chubbs

Yes, he put the backer board on before the tile.  I posted this picture a couple of weeks ago.

Is your bed and alarm clock on the other side of this frame?
)

bge30plus

It has to be true because real tung oil is from the Tung Tree bean in China. Great warning. I had not ever thought of that.

yellowdogbbq

The sun is your biggest enemy when it comes to outdoor finishes.  The UV breaks down most urethane finishes no matter which one you use.  Tung oil, teak oil, or boiled linseed oil would be good choices.  I use Waterlox which is a two part system consisting of an oil finish followed by a marine finish.

fishlessman

It has to be true because real tung oil is from the Tung Tree bean in China. Great warning. I had not ever thought of that.

thats what i remembered, not sure if its a concern with the table and i would use it

stevesails

you might want to consider sikkens/cetol available at any marine store, a couple of coats of a stain, then 5 or 6 of the clear, Very nice stuff, makes teak on saliboats beautiful, i put it on my table. I am pleased.

The stuff is not cheap, but covers a lot, you will have a quart a life time.

 

fairchase

3 coats of Sikkens cetol 1 on mine.

boatbum

Marine varnish is definately the most durable - but also the most difficult to apply ( correctly and that looks good ) -- one of my hobby phases was wood working.

I think a good solid polyurethane - floated on.   3 to 5 coats - light sanding with 400 grit - then 600 grit sandpaper in between.

Final sand or so - use wet paper, with some moisture on the surface.

Every couple of years - you will have to lightly sand with fine grit - recoat.   Really simple to apply, doesnt require alot of skill ( varnish does require skill to look nice ).

 

smasch

I sealed with Behr Semi Solid Color Cedartone.  Laid out smooth and applied 3 coats.  Wipes easily and looks great.  For the cedar tables and such, I think the Spar Varnish is a solid choice and looks MUCH nicer. 

 

cortguitarman

Sikkens Cetol SRD.

eggo

eggo

I used readyseal on mine and it turned out great with 4 coats. Goes on easy. I suspect this to be mainly linseed oil with your choice of stain. My table is made with cypress wood.   www.readyseal.com

Jmorabito25

What's the best way to protect this cedar table? Granite top will go on after I seal/stain, etc. I was thinking about using the Sherwin williams semi transparent stain or Behr one. Any thoughts on why not to use a stain with sealer built in?

stompbox

yellowdogbbq said:

The sun is your biggest enemy when it comes to outdoor finishes.  The UV breaks down most urethane finishes no matter which one you use.  Tung oil, teak oil, or boiled linseed oil would be good choices.  I use Waterlox which is a two part system consisting of an oil finish followed by a marine finish.

I agree.  It is not sexy, but this is why I used an opaque deck stain/sealer.

Jmorabito25

Just to clarify it's rough sawn cedar.  

henapple

Damn, after all that I'd use the nest and handler