I asked about this before
http://www.summergardensummerhouses....es/0-GAZEBOS-S
LATTED-ROOF-OCTAGONAL/a0_0-GAZEBOS-SLATTED-ROOF-OCTAGONAL.jpg

and we have now had more time to think about making it watertight
following the suggestions here.

The vague plan is to try not to fall off while we remove the exterior
strips beside the curved uprights, then apply liberal sealant before
re-fitting them. This should make a good start at sealing the places
where the t&g panels butt up to the decorative bits. There are also some
drips through some tiny cracks in individual t&g slats, so....

Then apply some sort of paint.

My son has asked and been advised to use linseed oil based paint, but
the price seems utterly horrendous. I've used Jotun 2-part epoxy primer
plus a reddish-orange top coat on the boat to paint over decaying clear
epoxy + varnish surfaces and it is wearing really well, forming a robust
skin over the plywood.
I know nothing about the relative disadvantages of either paint, except
that the linseed should allow movement and some leakage perhaps, whereas
the epoxy might or might not crack.

Can anyone advise on these or other paint solutions. We also need to
redo the standard shed paint on the walls, so we don't want the roof to
look too out of place.
--
Bill

"Bill" wrote in message
...
I asked about this before
http://www.summergardensummerhouses....es/0-GAZEBOS-S
LATTED-ROOF-OCTAGONAL/a0_0-GAZEBOS-SLATTED-ROOF-OCTAGONAL.jpg

and we have now had more time to think about making it watertight
following the suggestions here.

The vague plan is to try not to fall off while we remove the exterior
strips beside the curved uprights, then apply liberal sealant before
re-fitting them. This should make a good start at sealing the places where
the t&g panels butt up to the decorative bits. There are also some drips
through some tiny cracks in individual t&g slats, so....

Then apply some sort of paint.

My son has asked and been advised to use linseed oil based paint, but the
price seems utterly horrendous. I've used Jotun 2-part epoxy primer plus a
reddish-orange top coat on the boat to paint over decaying clear epoxy +
varnish surfaces and it is wearing really well, forming a robust skin over
the plywood.
I know nothing about the relative disadvantages of either paint, except
that the linseed should allow movement and some leakage perhaps, whereas
the epoxy might or might not crack.

Can anyone advise on these or other paint solutions. We also need to redo
the standard shed paint on the walls, so we don't want the roof to look
too out of place.
--
Bill

I think there may be some overkill going on here. Surely, just suitable
coloured mastic down the grooves, followed by ordinary fence preservative of
your preferred colour will do the job?

S

In message , Spamlet
writes

"Bill" wrote in message
...
I asked about this before
http://www.summergardensummerhouses....es/0-GAZEBOS-S
LATTED-ROOF-OCTAGONAL/a0_0-GAZEBOS-SLATTED-ROOF-OCTAGONAL.jpg

and we have now had more time to think about making it watertight
following the suggestions here.

The vague plan is to try not to fall off while we remove the exterior
strips beside the curved uprights, then apply liberal sealant before
re-fitting them. This should make a good start at sealing the places where
the t&g panels butt up to the decorative bits. There are also some drips
through some tiny cracks in individual t&g slats, so....

Then apply some sort of paint.

My son has asked and been advised to use linseed oil based paint, but the
price seems utterly horrendous. I've used Jotun 2-part epoxy primer plus a
reddish-orange top coat on the boat to paint over decaying clear epoxy +
varnish surfaces and it is wearing really well, forming a robust skin over
the plywood.
I know nothing about the relative disadvantages of either paint, except
that the linseed should allow movement and some leakage perhaps, whereas
the epoxy might or might not crack.

Can anyone advise on these or other paint solutions. We also need to redo
the standard shed paint on the walls, so we don't want the roof to look
too out of place.
--
Bill

I think there may be some overkill going on here. Surely, just suitable
coloured mastic down the grooves, followed by ordinary fence preservative of
your preferred colour will do the job?

S
The reason I want to go for overkill is that this summerhouse is really
ideal for his mum, SWMBO, to go and relax in in the afternoons. (We are
not that young!). It has mains lighting, plus a distribution box for the
feed to the fish pond pump, filter system and fountain, so there is a
fair amount of electrical stuff about. I will be asking about the
fountain later.

When we have been in there and it has started to rain, there are
substantial drips from the light, over the light switch and beside the
dis unit. Apart from these there are also drips from the small cracks,
some of which are over the recliner chairs..

There is evidence of earlier mastic. It now looks like a piece of
plastic tube just draped like a bit of old rope loose on the roof. We
want to do a better job because we have to try to get each thing that
needs doing put right so that we don't have to come back to it.
Everything is in a bit of a state, but recoverable I think.

We have the ride on mower going now and the lawn is starting to look
great. The Billy Goat vacuum is next before the trees really start to
shed. So much to do, so little time.....
--
Bill

"Bill" wrote in message
news
In message , Spamlet
writes

"Bill" wrote in message
...
I asked about this before
http://www.summergardensummerhouses....es/0-GAZEBOS-S
LATTED-ROOF-OCTAGONAL/a0_0-GAZEBOS-SLATTED-ROOF-OCTAGONAL.jpg

and we have now had more time to think about making it watertight
following the suggestions here.

The vague plan is to try not to fall off while we remove the exterior
strips beside the curved uprights, then apply liberal sealant before
re-fitting them. This should make a good start at sealing the places
where
the t&g panels butt up to the decorative bits. There are also some drips
through some tiny cracks in individual t&g slats, so....

Then apply some sort of paint.

My son has asked and been advised to use linseed oil based paint, but
the
price seems utterly horrendous. I've used Jotun 2-part epoxy primer plus
a
reddish-orange top coat on the boat to paint over decaying clear epoxy +
varnish surfaces and it is wearing really well, forming a robust skin
over
the plywood.
I know nothing about the relative disadvantages of either paint, except
that the linseed should allow movement and some leakage perhaps, whereas
the epoxy might or might not crack.

Can anyone advise on these or other paint solutions. We also need to
redo
the standard shed paint on the walls, so we don't want the roof to look
too out of place.
--
Bill

I think there may be some overkill going on here. Surely, just suitable
coloured mastic down the grooves, followed by ordinary fence preservative
of
your preferred colour will do the job?

S
The reason I want to go for overkill is that this summerhouse is really
ideal for his mum, SWMBO, to go and relax in in the afternoons. (We are
not that young!). It has mains lighting, plus a distribution box for the
feed to the fish pond pump, filter system and fountain, so there is a fair
amount of electrical stuff about. I will be asking about the fountain
later.

When we have been in there and it has started to rain, there are
substantial drips from the light, over the light switch and beside the dis
unit. Apart from these there are also drips from the small cracks, some of
which are over the recliner chairs..

There is evidence of earlier mastic. It now looks like a piece of plastic
tube just draped like a bit of old rope loose on the roof. We want to do a
better job because we have to try to get each thing that needs doing put
right so that we don't have to come back to it. Everything is in a bit of
a state, but recoverable I think.

We have the ride on mower going now and the lawn is starting to look
great. The Billy Goat vacuum is next before the trees really start to
shed. So much to do, so little time.....
--
Bill

Have you posted any pictures of the actual problem bits Bill? Wood is
always going to expand and contract, and in my experience, any joins you try
to paint over are going to buckle up or split one way or another. that's why
for sealing one generally uses mastic as it doesn't really set. It would
only really come adrift on its own if the wood was rotten. Was your tongue
and groove originally felted over perhaps?

S

In message , Spamlet
writes
Have you posted any pictures of the actual problem bits Bill? Wood is
always going to expand and contract, and in my experience, any joins
you try to paint over are going to buckle up or split one way or
another. that's why for sealing one generally uses mastic as it doesn't
really set. It would only really come adrift on its own if the wood was
rotten. Was your tongue and groove originally felted over perhaps?

Sorry about the verbosity!

No, we can't easily get pictures, but the roof is identical to the one
in the url posted. It is obviously designed to be decorative rather than
watertight, and the publicity material for the new version shows it with
no felt. It does look nice and there are 2 generations of SWMBO's to be
pacified.

The mainly triangular roofing t&g panels seem to be pre-assembled using
staples up from underneath. Presumably originally the walls were put up
on site, then the (approx) 6" or 8" x 1" scalloped (is that the word?)
decorative roof frames put into place. Then the t&g panels just dropped
in and 1"x1" pieces nailed into place beside the framing to hold them
down.

It doesn't look as if there is any rot - I think the whole thing is made
of pre-treated timber - but there are places where you can see daylight
through a tiny crack or where panels don't quite fit tightly. There are
also one or two pieces of t&g which are darker than their neighbours
where I suspect the dampness has had an effect.

The silicone mastic sort of stuff seems to have been pulled out in one
long piece, so maybe it didn't grip the treated timber properly and
maybe animals had a fun time pulling at it. That's why we think putting
mastic under the 1" capping pieces would be a good idea.

I don't know where he got the idea that linseed oil paint would allow
movement and still seal, but I think the price was over £30 for 750ml. I
was thinking that the epoxy paint would either grip and hold over large
areas or effectively form another roof on top. On the boat it's mainly
on ply, so it's fine there. There are some tiny cracks in the t&g and
I've marked the ones that the drips come through.

I think I'm happy with the mastic where it can be held in place, but
what I really need is advice on the best paint. I hate the useless water
based shed paint. It doesn't work well on my shed and fence or other
local fences (I'm now totally oil-based for fences) and it is falling
off this summerhouse where it has been used. I find buying paint utterly
depressing as it rarely seems to say what it is or does on the tin. Like
a BT brochure it's just loads of waffle and not a fact in sight.

The site is high and faces south, so we have to be ready for extremes of
weather.

--
Bill

On 18 Aug, 17:44, Bill wrote:
I asked about this before
http://www.summergardensummerhouses....es/0-GAZEBOS-S
LATTED-ROOF-OCTAGONAL/a0_0-GAZEBOS-SLATTED-ROOF-OCTAGONAL.jpg

and we have now had more time to think about making it watertight
following the suggestions here.

The vague plan is to try not to fall off while we remove the exterior
strips beside the curved uprights, then apply liberal sealant before
re-fitting them. This should make a good start at sealing the places
where the t&g panels butt up to the decorative bits. There are also some
drips through some tiny cracks in individual t&g slats, so....

Then apply some sort of paint.

My son has asked and been advised to use linseed oil based paint, but
the price seems utterly horrendous. I've used Jotun 2-part epoxy primer
plus a reddish-orange top coat on the boat to paint over decaying clear
epoxy + varnish surfaces and it is wearing really well, forming a robust
skin over the plywood.
I know nothing about the relative *disadvantages of either paint, except
that the linseed should allow movement and some leakage perhaps, whereas
the epoxy might or might not crack.

Can anyone advise on these or other paint solutions. We also need to
redo the standard shed paint on the walls, so we don't want the roof to
look too out of place.
--
Bill

Dear Bill

There seems to be a plethora of misunderstandings here and I will try
to help.

First never seal timbers and expect them to last. Any form of resin
will last x years (3-5) and then cause more rot than it fixes. What is
more if there is any condensation from under it there is no escape.
So how to fix?
First make the wood water repellent (water repellent preservative
stains) not water proof. Saddolins etc are good but do them every year
or at most 18 months = takes only minutes with a spray and no need to
remove old WRPS.
concentrate on ensuring any correction is done in a ventilated
fashion. Sealants are not likely to help with this. So I would be
looking at flashings of say lead in risk areas. I would concentrate on
getting my water protections underneath the structure with battens and
vapour porus roofing felt. (stuff the looks you want to be dry!)

Where you do need to protect vertical joints, add a batten suitably
shaped

Chris

"Bill" wrote in message
...
In message , Spamlet
writes
Have you posted any pictures of the actual problem bits Bill? Wood is
always going to expand and contract, and in my experience, any joins you
try to paint over are going to buckle up or split one way or another.
that's why for sealing one generally uses mastic as it doesn't really set.
It would only really come adrift on its own if the wood was rotten. Was
your tongue and groove originally felted over perhaps?

Sorry about the verbosity!

No, we can't easily get pictures, but the roof is identical to the one in
the url posted. It is obviously designed to be decorative rather than
watertight, and the publicity material for the new version shows it with
no felt. It does look nice and there are 2 generations of SWMBO's to be
pacified.

The mainly triangular roofing t&g panels seem to be pre-assembled using
staples up from underneath. Presumably originally the walls were put up on
site, then the (approx) 6" or 8" x 1" scalloped (is that the word?)
decorative roof frames put into place. Then the t&g panels just dropped in
and 1"x1" pieces nailed into place beside the framing to hold them down.

It doesn't look as if there is any rot - I think the whole thing is made
of pre-treated timber - but there are places where you can see daylight
through a tiny crack or where panels don't quite fit tightly. There are
also one or two pieces of t&g which are darker than their neighbours where
I suspect the dampness has had an effect.

The silicone mastic sort of stuff seems to have been pulled out in one
long piece, so maybe it didn't grip the treated timber properly and maybe
animals had a fun time pulling at it. That's why we think putting mastic
under the 1" capping pieces would be a good idea.

I don't know where he got the idea that linseed oil paint would allow
movement and still seal, but I think the price was over £30 for 750ml. I
was thinking that the epoxy paint would either grip and hold over large
areas or effectively form another roof on top. On the boat it's mainly on
ply, so it's fine there. There are some tiny cracks in the t&g and I've
marked the ones that the drips come through.

I think I'm happy with the mastic where it can be held in place, but what
I really need is advice on the best paint. I hate the useless water based
shed paint. It doesn't work well on my shed and fence or other local
fences (I'm now totally oil-based for fences) and it is falling off this
summerhouse where it has been used. I find buying paint utterly depressing
as it rarely seems to say what it is or does on the tin. Like a BT
brochure it's just loads of waffle and not a fact in sight.

The site is high and faces south, so we have to be ready for extremes of
weather.

I wouldn't waste the money on trying to seal it all up using mastic or any
other sealer. You probably won't catch all the leaking parts. The timber
will expand and contract due to weather changes and if only one or two
pinprick holes appear, the water will travel along and down and along etc
and you'll spend the rest of your life trying to keep it sealed.

If you need to have it watertight then you'll need to form a waterproof
membrane below the roofing slats (in this case the framing as well). Either
take the roof off - fit a dummy roof underneath, felt it and replace the
original roof. Or felt the internal surface of the existing roof - use
straps to keep it tight to the roofing slats and framing. Leave enough felt
hanging down the inside walls at the eaves so that you can lift roof
sections of the original roofing from outside and push the felt flap out
over the wallboard then fit the roof edges down again. I'd place dollops of
roofing mastic (penny size) between the felt and exterior roof timbers where
the screws will run through into the wall boards. This way the water will
still get through the cracks/spaces but be shed down to the eaves and out
over the wall boards just like a normal felted roof. You could even fit a
guttering to capture the water and run it away down a downpipe to keep it
off the walls. Totally invisible from outside, you keep the look of the
original structure.

If you don't like the look of the felt on the inside of the roof, you could
clad it using t&g fitted onto the straps you will have there, keeping the
felt up against the original roofing.

Neil

"Bill" wrote in message
...
In message , Spamlet
writes
Have you posted any pictures of the actual problem bits Bill? Wood is
always going to expand and contract, and in my experience, any joins you
try to paint over are going to buckle up or split one way or another.
that's why for sealing one generally uses mastic as it doesn't really set.
It would only really come adrift on its own if the wood was rotten. Was
your tongue and groove originally felted over perhaps?

Sorry about the verbosity!

No, we can't easily get pictures, but the roof is identical to the one in
the url posted. It is obviously designed to be decorative rather than
watertight, and the publicity material for the new version shows it with
no felt. It does look nice and there are 2 generations of SWMBO's to be
pacified.

The mainly triangular roofing t&g panels seem to be pre-assembled using
staples up from underneath. Presumably originally the walls were put up on
site, then the (approx) 6" or 8" x 1" scalloped (is that the word?)
decorative roof frames put into place. Then the t&g panels just dropped in
and 1"x1" pieces nailed into place beside the framing to hold them down.

It doesn't look as if there is any rot - I think the whole thing is made
of pre-treated timber - but there are places where you can see daylight
through a tiny crack or where panels don't quite fit tightly. There are
also one or two pieces of t&g which are darker than their neighbours where
I suspect the dampness has had an effect.

The silicone mastic sort of stuff seems to have been pulled out in one
long piece, so maybe it didn't grip the treated timber properly and maybe
animals had a fun time pulling at it. That's why we think putting mastic
under the 1" capping pieces would be a good idea.

I don't know where he got the idea that linseed oil paint would allow
movement and still seal, but I think the price was over £30 for 750ml. I
was thinking that the epoxy paint would either grip and hold over large
areas or effectively form another roof on top. On the boat it's mainly on
ply, so it's fine there. There are some tiny cracks in the t&g and I've
marked the ones that the drips come through.

I think I'm happy with the mastic where it can be held in place, but what
I really need is advice on the best paint. I hate the useless water based
shed paint. It doesn't work well on my shed and fence or other local
fences (I'm now totally oil-based for fences) and it is falling off this
summerhouse where it has been used. I find buying paint utterly depressing
as it rarely seems to say what it is or does on the tin. Like a BT
brochure it's just loads of waffle and not a fact in sight.

The site is high and faces south, so we have to be ready for extremes of
weather.
--
Bill

I tried to look at the link you gave earlier, but, apart from my Outlook
Express chopping it in half, it comes up as no longer valid on the website.
But it was really the state of the wood I wanted to see, though the design
might have helped.

I don't think you should be using silicon that sets on a wooden roof in the
sun. Like your boat, as it warps and changes with the weather it needs
caulking with something that can change shape and still stay stuck. It
would take a long time for mastic to get to the state your silicone was in.
So, yes, you would be best with oil based mastic and oil based paint or wood
treatment. The boards that really do have tiny cracks in could just be
sealed by teasing in pva with a palette knife/wall paper scraper etc.
(wiping it off the surface wood before it dries though.) If you feel some
of your gaps need more than mastic you could beef it up with hemp fibre as
you would caulking a boat.

Advice on the best paint is always a pain. I went though a lot of agonising
over what to use on a picket fence I made. Ended up using 5 star wood
treatment and a special 'breathable' paint that would move with the wood.
That wonder stuff didn't actually stick at all, but all the dirt did stick
and it was a filthy mess a year later. Next time I just used ordinary
exterior white gloss and it has been fine. Had I read the 'diy wiki' on
paint before hand I would have used 'lime putty' from the off: but then I
wasn't looking for waterproof between the palings.

Similarly, I've now had three or four goes at getting black gloss to stay on
a window sill that I cut back, but was stupid enough not to cut right back
out of sight, but stop at the good wood. Even though I matched the wood
with similar stuff from an old door frame, no paint whatever will remain
intact across the join, there is always enough differential expansion to
crack it.

Your summer house roof is going to get very hot, so I doubt that an epoxy
paint that goes hard will stay on. Yacht varnish is often touted for
outdoor furnitu but what goes into it nowadays, I don't know, as I now
just use solvent based 'creosote substitute' probably as you do. Still,
once your holes and cracks are filled, it probably just needs you to go over
it with something oily every year or two. Even linseed oil dries to a
varnish eventually (though the stuff I painted on my walking stick last
summer hasn't actually dried yet!).

Incidentally, you say t&g, but might it be shiplap? That is more usual on
outdoor stuff and gives a longer overlap than t&g, but if the overlapping
part splits then the water will get through, but again, you may be able to
stick it back with outdoor pva. Anyhow, keeping water out isn't exactly
rocket science, so I'm sure you will see what is needed once you get going.

Good luck,

S

"chris" wrote in message
...
On 18 Aug, 17:44, Bill wrote:
I asked about this before
http://www.summergardensummerhouses....es/0-GAZEBOS-S
LATTED-ROOF-OCTAGONAL/a0_0-GAZEBOS-SLATTED-ROOF-OCTAGONAL.jpg

and we have now had more time to think about making it watertight
following the suggestions here.

The vague plan is to try not to fall off while we remove the exterior
strips beside the curved uprights, then apply liberal sealant before
re-fitting them. This should make a good start at sealing the places
where the t&g panels butt up to the decorative bits. There are also some
drips through some tiny cracks in individual t&g slats, so....

Then apply some sort of paint.

My son has asked and been advised to use linseed oil based paint, but
the price seems utterly horrendous. I've used Jotun 2-part epoxy primer
plus a reddish-orange top coat on the boat to paint over decaying clear
epoxy + varnish surfaces and it is wearing really well, forming a robust
skin over the plywood.
I know nothing about the relative disadvantages of either paint, except
that the linseed should allow movement and some leakage perhaps, whereas
the epoxy might or might not crack.

Can anyone advise on these or other paint solutions. We also need to
redo the standard shed paint on the walls, so we don't want the roof to
look too out of place.
--
Bill

Dear Bill

There seems to be a plethora of misunderstandings here and I will try
to help.

First never seal timbers and expect them to last. Any form of resin
will last x years (3-5) and then cause more rot than it fixes. What is
more if there is any condensation from under it there is no escape.
So how to fix?
First make the wood water repellent (water repellent preservative
stains) not water proof. Saddolins etc are good but do them every year
or at most 18 months = takes only minutes with a spray and no need to
remove old WRPS.
concentrate on ensuring any correction is done in a ventilated
fashion. Sealants are not likely to help with this. So I would be
looking at flashings of say lead in risk areas. I would concentrate on
getting my water protections underneath the structure with battens and
vapour porus roofing felt. (stuff the looks you want to be dry!)

Where you do need to protect vertical joints, add a batten suitably
shaped

Chris

Nicely put,
I was trying to waffle my way there, but you put it in a nutshell.

S

Thanks to everyone for the thought provoking advice. I have discussed
briefly with son and we both now feel very tired.

I've put some photos up at

http://picasaweb.google.com/billaboard/Summerhouse#

To me the roof panels do look like t&g, but with a couple of the bottom
pieces being different, so they may be shiplap. We don't necessarily
need total watertightness, just a good enough job to stop water dripping
from the light and switches

The real problem with felt would be our abilities, the complexity of the
roof and the looks. I don't think the ladies will accept stuffing the
looks. If the weather keeps on like today, it will be next year for the
job anyway.
--
Bill

"Bill" wrote in message
...
Thanks to everyone for the thought provoking advice. I have discussed
briefly with son and we both now feel very tired.

I've put some photos up at

http://picasaweb.google.com/billaboard/Summerhouse#

To me the roof panels do look like t&g, but with a couple of the bottom
pieces being different, so they may be shiplap. We don't necessarily need
total watertightness, just a good enough job to stop water dripping from
the light and switches

The real problem with felt would be our abilities, the complexity of the
roof and the looks. I don't think the ladies will accept stuffing the
looks. If the weather keeps on like today, it will be next year for the
job anyway.
--
Bill

It's shiplap: the boards can be seen to be butting up on the inside but
overlapping on the outside. Not ideal for a sloping roof unless v steep
because the overlap is not all that great and the scalloped top edge makes
the join even less so. That said, I'd say your Summerhouse looks to be in
much better condition than I had imagined, and your main problem I would say
is the horrible red wood treatment! I should think that once you have
plugged any obvious knot holes and cracks, your main job - or someone
helpful's is going to be to get up there carefully for a few days and go
over it with a wire brush to get as much of that red mess off as poss before
spraying the whole thing inside and out with a nice water resistant wood
preservative treatment, that will soak well in. (Shame you missed the chance
in this years unusually long dry spell.) As the wood inside is a nice oaky
colour I'd start with something light. There do not seem to be any drips of
red down the inside of the boards, so I would say that was not very heavily
applied in the first place.

Once you've got it so that it isn't going to absorb water, then you just
have a few minor leaks to deal with I'd say: you could even just cut some
nice shaped pieces of felt to stick over where the actual light is, but it
looks like it is probably a sealed unit and reasonably safe, but do take it
down and check any grommets and seals are still working. Then make sure any
wiring flex has loops in strategic places so any water that does get on them
drips off rather than running down into any switches etc (I would imagine it
may already be arranged like that.)

You will find, as the wood is - or was till recently - very dry, it will
soak up gallons and gallons of creosote substitute (I just use Travis's own
brand: seems fine to me), so we are probably looking at spraying it on with
one of those pump up garden sprayers (wearing proper mask and getting out
frequently while doing the inside). My little shed ~7'x4' (with felt roof),
took about 4 gallons after it's initial restoration - floor included).
Ideally I would empty it out and do another gallon inside and out every
year - as it looks so much nicer when the treatment is fresh.

Just get yours a different colour ASAP is what I say!

S

In message , Spamlet
writes

"Bill" wrote in message
...
Thanks to everyone for the thought provoking advice. I have discussed
briefly with son and we both now feel very tired.

I've put some photos up at

http://picasaweb.google.com/billaboard/Summerhouse#

Bill

It's shiplap: the boards can be seen to be butting up on the inside but
overlapping on the outside. Not ideal for a sloping roof unless v steep
because the overlap is not all that great and the scalloped top edge makes
the join even less so. That said, I'd say your Summerhouse looks to be in
much better condition than I had imagined, and your main problem I would say
is the horrible red wood treatment! I should think that once you have
plugged any obvious knot holes and cracks, your main job - or someone
helpful's is going to be to get up there carefully for a few days and go
over it with a wire brush to get as much of that red mess off as poss before
spraying the whole thing inside and out with a nice water resistant wood
preservative treatment, that will soak well in.

What sort of wood treatment are we talking about here? Water-based with
wax inside or oil-based? I've never had much success on shed or fence
with water based products. All the things called creosote substitute
seem to turn out a very dark colour no matter what it says on the
container. I've been using white spirit based things in light colour or
clear on the sheds and fences here and they seem to soak in, work and
look fine. Is this sort of thing water resistant in the way you are
advocating?

Snip

Once you've got it so that it isn't going to absorb water, then you just
have a few minor leaks to deal with I'd say:
It's the gaps where the roof panels connect to the roof framework that
is the main source of the water, we think. So we still think taking the
external capping pieces off and putting some sort of flexible
non-setting gunge underneath would be worth doing. Again, is there a
name for the best sort of gunge?
you could even just cut some
nice shaped pieces of felt to stick over where the actual light is, but it
looks like it is probably a sealed unit and reasonably safe, but do take it
down and check any grommets and seals are still working.
Yes, I was thinking of making a drip cover for the light, and maybe a
small hat over the light switch
..
Just get yours a different colour ASAP is what I say!
Yes! Thanks again for the help and reassurance.
--
Bill

"Bill" wrote in message
...
In message , Spamlet
writes

"Bill" wrote in message
...
Thanks to everyone for the thought provoking advice. I have discussed
briefly with son and we both now feel very tired.

I've put some photos up at

http://picasaweb.google.com/billaboard/Summerhouse#

Bill

It's shiplap: the boards can be seen to be butting up on the inside but
overlapping on the outside. Not ideal for a sloping roof unless v steep
because the overlap is not all that great and the scalloped top edge makes
the join even less so. That said, I'd say your Summerhouse looks to be in
much better condition than I had imagined, and your main problem I would
say
is the horrible red wood treatment! I should think that once you have
plugged any obvious knot holes and cracks, your main job - or someone
helpful's is going to be to get up there carefully for a few days and go
over it with a wire brush to get as much of that red mess off as poss
before
spraying the whole thing inside and out with a nice water resistant wood
preservative treatment, that will soak well in.

What sort of wood treatment are we talking about here? Water-based with
wax inside or oil-based? I've never had much success on shed or fence with
water based products. All the things called creosote substitute seem to
turn out a very dark colour no matter what it says on the container. I've
been using white spirit based things in light colour or clear on the sheds
and fences here and they seem to soak in, work and look fine. Is this sort
of thing water resistant in the way you are advocating?

Yes. As Chris said: it's water repellent you want, so water based would not
be favourite. My local Travis Perkins does 2 colours of 'creosote
substitute' and one is quite a bit paler than the other, you will probably
find even paler if you look around, and any colour you like if you go for
ranges like Sadolins - though I generally favour the darker in truth. Once
you have got the wood to absorb as much of such a basic treatment as poss:
then you could look at the Sadolins for the final colour on the outside
perhaps.

I did wonder about something like the 'waxoyl' they used to spray inside car
doors and the like, but I would imagine that just like candles left in the
glove compartment, they would end up on your carpet after a sunny day.
(Though in some respects such an annual melting and hence pore filling might
not be such a bad idea!)


Snip

Once you've got it so that it isn't going to absorb water, then you just
have a few minor leaks to deal with I'd say:
It's the gaps where the roof panels connect to the roof framework that is
the main source of the water, we think. So we still think taking the
external capping pieces off and putting some sort of flexible non-setting
gunge underneath would be worth doing. Again, is there a name for the best
sort of gunge?

If you are going to do that you can probably cut some rubber sheet to go
along under the battens - or roofing felt - and the gunge is mastic.


you could even just cut some
nice shaped pieces of felt to stick over where the actual light is, but it
looks like it is probably a sealed unit and reasonably safe, but do take
it
down and check any grommets and seals are still working.


Yes, I was thinking of making a drip cover for the light, and maybe a
small hat over the light switch

Better to put the cover on the outside if you can: even if drips can't get
into the electrics it still does not look good having water dripping off
them. It should be fairly doable to prevent any leaks in the small area
above the light, even if you can't get the whole roof 100% drip free.

S


.
Just get yours a different colour ASAP is what I say!
Yes! Thanks again for the help and reassurance.
--
Bill

Thanks for all the advice which I will cut and paste into a resume for
my son who has to fund the various coatings.
--
Bill

"Bill" wrote in message
...
Thanks for all the advice which I will cut and paste into a resume for my
son who has to fund the various coatings.
--
Bill

YW

Good luck with the weather!

S