Rob Hanson wrote:

Greetings!

It has been years since I've been on rec.woodworking! I wonder if some
of
the old names are still here?

Question out of desperation -- a blend of 'woodworking' and large-scale
finishing:

I have a high-value client who did an extensive renovation on their house
a few years ago. (I did their walnut floors with a fine shellac and wax
finish... killer.) But, on the exterior of this house/mansion, there are
extensive amounts of wood beam, decorative features, and panels. The
client is no longer happy with the look of the finish done during
restoration (I didn't do it); parts are sun-faded, and she wants to take
everything down to the original wood for a more natural-looking finish.
Lots of mahogany, I think, hard to tell, because...

... All this wood was finished with some crappy looking, dark walnut,
oil-based stain, perhaps MinWax. I have no clue how to remove that
stuff,
or if it has penetrated so deeply that it'll never come out. I'll be going
there on Saturday to excavate a few areas to see how deep it runs.
Sanding? Sandblasting?

I can likely secure a crew to do sanding and scraping. In my usual one-
off
woodworking, I favor a natural look such as we get from shellac. We'd
want
to avoid any finish that a) fades too much in the sun, or b) obscures the
look of the original wood, and c) will last a good, long time.

What finish might be recommended for this exterior application? Are we
relegated to only standard commercial products, like Behr, etc? Is there
any shellac that is suitable for exterior application?

The client says, "This WILL be done," and I'm sure she means it. I just
need to know which direction to go in.

Thanks for any insight or pointers!

Rob


If you are going with a stain, I would pressure wash, but with a lower
pressure to avoid removing more than just the dirt, and let the chemicals to
the major portion of the work.

It all depends on where you are located as to what finish to would apply.
Here in the soggy South, I would go with BLP Mobile paint or stains,
because of their excellent mildew resistance.

But my favorite exterior finish is General Finishes Exterior Oil. Good
protection and minimal color change.

Deb