# Hardener with oil for outdoors?



## Corrie100 (Apr 30, 2015)

Hi,

I want to protect and strengthen an outdoor deadwood sculpture I'm making.

I recently purchased Osmo protection oil 420 to apply to the branches

a) to give them more resistance against weather
b) because it also gives protection against algae and mildew.

The branches are brittle however and I wondered about using a wood hardener (like Minwax) but I don't know if I can also use the Osmo oil - or if I even need to if the hardener provides protection.

Any ideas or advice??

I'm guessing most wood hardeners are resin based and would then stop any oil penetrating the wood. If I use the oil first, I'm guessing the hardener won't soak in!

Thanks in advance


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## Canofworms (Apr 15, 2014)

I don't know what they are based on, but I've use the wood hardener and I know that your wood won't soak up anything after you apply that.

I know that before aluminum gutters people used to treat their wooden gutters with boiled linseed oil once a year and they would last for decades.

So, my vote is for boiled linseed oil.


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## Corrie100 (Apr 30, 2015)

Thank you Canofworms - I think I'll find some offcuts and do some trials.
I'm trying to find a way of making the wood less brittle as well as protecting it, I'm not sure if anything exists that does both. 
I'll definitely try the boiled linseed oil though
Thank you


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## Purrmaster (Sep 1, 2012)

Boiled linseed oil is not particularly water resistant. I wouldn't count on it for much protection.

What about something like Thompson's Water Seal? It only lasts about a year but it does work and doesn't change the color much.


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## Corrie100 (Apr 30, 2015)

Thank you,
do you have any experience of weather protection that also hardens the wood - I'm working with brittle driftwood so waterproofing alone may not be enough.
Thanks


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## Purrmaster (Sep 1, 2012)

This may sound insane but… epoxy is a good gap filler and hardener. You could brush/rub the epoxy as deep into the grain as you can then try to wipe off the excess. To do that you're going to need to use an epoxy that cures slowly (i.e. 5 minute epoxy is out) and probably something a little thin.

I know that you can clean off uncured epoxy with xylene but I don't know if xylene could be used as a thinner.

West System http://www.westsystem.com makes a bunch of different kinds of epoxy.


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## Canofworms (Apr 15, 2014)

the problem that I foresee with epoxy is that you will put a coating on the outside and then open it up to rot from within.

I've used minwax wood hardener on a camper roof that was leaking. I pealed back the aluminum and poured it on then resealed. It it made the dry crumbly wood hard. 
I also used on on a few soft spots on a porch. It is still hard after a few years.

Give it a shot on some test spots.

I think the Boiled linseed oil was used to prevent rot on surfaces that were going to get wet.

Who knows if the guy was doing the right thing, I just remember that I heard an old story about someone's father coating the wooden gutters on their house with boiled linseed oil once a year and they didn't rot.


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## madts (Dec 30, 2011)

There is a product called Git-Rot which is a penetrating epoxy. This might do the job.


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