# Needing to age a wooden fence



## baby86bear

Hello my fellow lumberjocks. I have been asked to replace some old fence board around my aunts house. The fence that is up now has that nice weathered look.

She has asked if i could make the new look like the old that I am leaving up. I was told my a friend that all I need to do is mix one box of baking soda in a spray container with hot water till dissolved and spray the boards.

i have never heard of that??? Please give me advice and i will try them all. and reply with the results.

thanks 
baby86bear


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## JNP

I'm looking for photos but we torched a fence to "age" it. Used one of the large propane torches used to melt ice and apply roofing. Got it at Harbor Freight


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## Dal300

Build a box large enough to hold your fence boards, use a jar of ammonia with some steel wool submerged in it. IT should take about 12 to 24 hours to age the wood.


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## JNP

Here are some pics…if you want to apply any stain, do it before burning. The heavy black will wear off or can be scraped.


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## Viking

I have used a method similar to this before with good result;

1. Shred a piece of steel wool and place the pieces in a jar.

2. Cover the steel wool shreds with white vinegar. Tighten the lid on the jar and leave the steel wool to break down in the vinegar for one or two days.

3. Bring some water to a boil in a saucepan. Pour 1/4 to 1/2 cup of the hot water into a second glass jar. Drop a tea bag into the water. Use a plain, dark type of tea. Place the lid on the jar and allow the tea to steep until the water becomes dark.

4. Paint the wood with the tea, allowing the tea to thoroughly soak into the wood. Leave the wood to dry.

5. Paint the wood with a generous amount of the solution of vinegar and steel wool. Wait for the wood to turn a deep grey color


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## FenceWorkshop

I've had good luck with baking soda.


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## baby86bear

thanks to everyone for all the great comments. I mixed up baking soda and hot water and sprayed the fence with pump sprayer. looks ok. but, i am going to let nature do the job.


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## nikar

Hi everyone I am new here and was just wondering if I can get some more info about the torched fence that JNP posted pics of. I am wanting to possibly try this tecnique to a privacy fence we just are putting up. Thanks for the help!


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## CharlesNeil

What is the wood, chemical aging works well, but it depends on the species which technique to use.


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## nikar

The fence wood is pressure treated….pine i guess?? I am looking for something that looks a bit different than what everyone else has and something that doesnt have to be done every few yrs. I will probably just let it age naturally if the only treatment i can find has regular upkeep. Thanks!


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## HorizontalMike

I used a 10% solution of nitric acid (very weak, but use loves anyway) to age the Ponderosa Pine inside of my narrow Amish Cabinet. It goes on like water and colors in about 24hr. Turns gray with occasional flecks. No streaking and it did not matter how much you used, it all comes out uniform. Just my 2-cents worth…

http://lumberjocks.com/projects/86774
BEFORE









AFTER


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## nikar

That looks very nice! Thanks for your 2-cents!!!


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## distrbd

If you like greyish "weathered" look,Minwax stain is not a bad choice:
MINWAX 271 Classic Gray(for "weathered look")


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## firefighterontheside

Probably whatever artificial method you use will just make those new boards look different from the naturally aged wood which defeats the purpose. The only thing that ages like the weather is the weather.


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## stevepeterson

Look at any existing fence with automatic watering. The portion that gets hit by the sprinklers is usually much more weathered than the top of the fence. The repeated wetting and drying will rapidly age the wood.

You should be able to speed up the aging process with a sprinkler that wets the boards every hour or two every for about a month. I think that anything else that you do will only match the color for a short amount of time.

Another option is to steal a few already weathered boards from the back fence to put into the front fence. Then put the new boards in the back where less people will see them.


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## nikar

Thanks everyone for your ideas!! I appreciate it!!


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## sgv

cabot makes a weathering stain has a grayish look when wet, drys very nice (i sell a lot of it at work for the sane thing you are doing)


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