Painting a wooden summerhouse

[KaDa]

Am planning to paint my wooden summerhouse after it is built. What is the best exterior paint to use? Should I go with a recognized brand or cheap and cheerful? I don't want to repaint every year.

Any suggestions as to what should I use to finish the interior - Varnish, stain or paint?

Any help would be appreciated....

 

[JohnD]

the wood is likely to get damp, and will certainly swell and contract as the weather and the season changes.

So I would go for an elastic, breathing coating. My preference is for a water-based shed-and-fence stain, which leaves a water-repellent waxy film on the surface but allows the wood to breathe. It is also very easy to re-coat every few years, you just need to clean the surface with water, detergent and a stiff nylon brush and let it dry.

If your building has a smooth, planed surface, you need to use a stain which is recommended for planed wood, but once it has weathered for a few years and the surface has roughened, any fence stain will do.

BTW I prefer to treat the wood before building, as you can get to hidden edges and back surfaces. Any upward-facing surfaces, and timbers within 300mm of the ground, I would treat generously with a spirit-based wood preservative such as Cuprinol first.

 

[KaDa]

Would you recommend something like Protek Wood Protector & Stain?

 

[JohnD]

I've never used it. For a premium product, I use Cuprinol or Ronseal, and for economy I use a DIY-shed own-brand.

Looking at Protek's ad it looks like the same sort of thing.