Weather protection for red oak chairs
To make a long story short, I’ve got to make two Adirondack chairs out of Red Oak and have them ready, painted and presented by Christmas. I’ve been told by soo many people how bad Red Oak would be for soaking up water and that they’d have to be repainted almost every year, but I have no time to get a more proper species so I’ll have to go with what I’ve got.
I’m writing to ask what I can do to make these chairs weather a little better. I’ve been told to coat the bottom of the legs with epoxy and that would help stave off water absorption. Does anyone have specific advice on how to do this? I’ve worked with two part epoxies plenty before now so this isn’t totally unfamiliar territory. I’m assuming thinner epoxy would be better. The chairs will be sitting on concrete so maybe that’ll help.
I’ve also been told to paint all the parts separately before putting them together, and that this would help with not absorbing water as well.
Any other advice on what I can do to help these chairs weather better?
Thanks
*Mod note: I change the title to this post. -Ben
Replies
Black marine grade paint and keep hitting them with paint every year or so until they're gone. Should still get many many years out of them.
Rot fix. It's a 2 part epoxy. Very thin. Hit the bottom with it. End grain should suck it up like a straw. When it won't absorb any more and starts building like a film finish, paint it.
An Adirondack "purist" scoffed at me but I have made a few and attached sacrificial feet on the bottom of the legs with stainless steel screws. These can be replaced after a year or two or as needed, better than rot in the legs.
Use the rot fix first. Get a chunk of synthetic deck material and make shoes for the bottoms. Screw them on after painting.
Considering the finishing time and expense, (now and every other season) a trip to get something you can leave unfinished gets more and more attractive. Greyed out cedar chairs are beautiful. That oak will be there when there's a need for it.
Three coats of marine epoxy followed by 4-5 coats of topside marine paint or varnish. This is similar to the best finish for outdoor use from a fine woodworking article a number of years ago and is how most modern wooden boats are finished.
If you apply epoxy to the end grain of the legs with brush, that's a good start, but for an extra measure of protection, use some blue tape to create a well at the base of each leg. This will not only deter water from entering the endgrain, you'll also get a thicker epoxy (1/8" or 1/4" depending on how deep a well you use) to give you some physical protection against abrasion.
If you wish to skip epoxying the end grain, seal it with wood glue and then screw-on waterproof feet using stainless steel screws. These feet can be red oak to match and must be cross-grain. Dip them several times in the finish you choose and make several batches. Replace as necessary.
Custom covers might also be good ..
https://www.coversandall.com/