I just had my house reroofed, and part of the work involved repairing
various areas of dry rot. That included repairs to 3 of the gable
rafters. It entailed cutting back the rafter tails and scarfing on (at
about a 45 degree angle) about 2 feet of redwood 2x6 to form the new
rafter tails. They seem to have done a good job (they used Gorilla Glue
and did some toenailing for the joins), but they didn't fill the joins
with glue and there's a lot of open cracks that are up to around 1/8
inch wide. I want to fill those cracks and then prime and paint. I'm
wondering what material to use to fill those cracks. Of course, I want
the join to be very smooth and undetectable and after priming and
painting I want them to continue to look great indefinitely. Can I get
suggestions for what to use? Thanks!

Dan

"Dan_Musicant" wrote in message
...
I just had my house reroofed, and part of the work involved repairing
various areas of dry rot. That included repairs to 3 of the gable
rafters. It entailed cutting back the rafter tails and scarfing on (at
about a 45 degree angle) about 2 feet of redwood 2x6 to form the new
rafter tails. They seem to have done a good job (they used Gorilla Glue
and did some toenailing for the joins), but they didn't fill the joins
with glue and there's a lot of open cracks that are up to around 1/8
inch wide. I want to fill those cracks and then prime and paint. I'm
wondering what material to use to fill those cracks. Of course, I want
the join to be very smooth and undetectable and after priming and
painting I want them to continue to look great indefinitely. Can I get
suggestions for what to use? Thanks!

That epoxy filler stuff they sell for window sills and porch posts sounds
about right. If the rafters don't get harsh temperature swings, you could
also try Bondo- much more sandable than epoxy.

aem sends...

On Mon, 07 Nov 2005 01:40:06 GMT, "ameijers"
wrote:

:
:"Dan_Musicant" wrote in message
.. .
: I just had my house reroofed, and part of the work involved repairing
: various areas of dry rot. That included repairs to 3 of the gable
: rafters. It entailed cutting back the rafter tails and scarfing on (at
: about a 45 degree angle) about 2 feet of redwood 2x6 to form the new
: rafter tails. They seem to have done a good job (they used Gorilla Glue
: and did some toenailing for the joins), but they didn't fill the joins
: with glue and there's a lot of open cracks that are up to around 1/8
: inch wide. I want to fill those cracks and then prime and paint. I'm
: wondering what material to use to fill those cracks. Of course, I want
: the join to be very smooth and undetectable and after priming and
: painting I want them to continue to look great indefinitely. Can I get
: suggestions for what to use? Thanks!
:
:That epoxy filler stuff they sell for window sills and porch posts sounds
:about right. If the rafters don't get harsh temperature swings, you could
:also try Bondo- much more sandable than epoxy.
:
:aem sends...

Thanks. I have some of that epoxy sill stuff from 2-3 years ago when I
repaired 3-4 bad sills. I also have some Bondo or equivalent. The
temperatures around here are fairly moderate. Lows never get below the
upper 20's, and only go below around 30-32 maybe once a decade. It never
snows, for instance. High temperatures are also rather moderate. Days in
the 90's number in the single digits, on average. Over 100 would be a
once in 3-5 year event. Maybe I'll try the Bondo, but like I say, I have
both. Maybe I'll do the exposed parts (exposed to rain and sun) with
epoxy and the unexposed parts with Bondo.

Dan

DO NOT USE Bondo in this application!


been there, done that..............Bondo is not compatible w/ redwood.

I repaired a number of south facing redwood window sills (~ six sills)
(southern California, ~15 to 20 inches of rain, no freezing) with Bondo
& then painted w/ a high quality primer & oil base paint.


The results lookes fantastic!!!!.......for about a year or two.
Now 15 years later, sills are just as messed up as be I restored them


I did remaing sills (~12) a few months later, same process except I
used Abatron Wood Epox instead of Bondo, the sills are still in great
shape, need some minor sanding & repainting


http://www.abatron.com/home002.htm

or

http://www.smithandcompany.org/


Both companies make quality products, I used both.
Their stuff is not cheap but if you value your time, use it.

Both sell mail order, Smith may have a local desrtibutor in your area &
you might save some on shipping.

cheers
Bob

On 7 Nov 2005 14:06:06 -0800, "BobK207" wrote:

O NOT USE Bondo in this application!
:
:
:been there, done that..............Bondo is not compatible w/ redwood.

Oh, geez, too late! Yesterday it was threatening rain and I got the idea
I better get something in there or the cracks would be filled with
water, which would prevent anything from working. So, I quickly grabbed
my Bondo-like fibre glass polyester product (Evercoat Home Fix Super
Strength Universal REpair Filler) and mixed up about 2 tablespoons with
hardener and slathered it into the cracks. It rained a lot last night. I
sort of doubt that the stuff has set up very hard yet, and I could take
a putty knife and scrape most of it out, but obviously can't get the
cracks clean. I have some P.C. Woody 2-part wood epoxy paste I could
use.

Dan
:
:I repaired a number of south facing redwood window sills (~ six sills)
southern California, ~15 to 20 inches of rain, no freezing) with Bondo
:& then painted w/ a high quality primer & oil base paint.
:
:
:The results lookes fantastic!!!!.......for about a year or two.
:Now 15 years later, sills are just as messed up as be I restored them
:
:
:I did remaing sills (~12) a few months later, same process except I
:used Abatron Wood Epox instead of Bondo, the sills are still in great
:shape, need some minor sanding & repainting
:
:
:http://www.abatron.com/home002.htm
:
r
:
:http://www.smithandcompany.org/
:
:
:Both companies make quality products, I used both.
:Their stuff is not cheap but if you value your time, use it.
:
:Both sell mail order, Smith may have a local desrtibutor in your area &
:you might save some on shipping.
:
:cheers
:Bob