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Wood Care Basics >
Wood Care Basics
Introduction
Fact: All Exterior Wood Needs Protection From Outdoor Weather!
Why? Because the damaging effects of outdoor weather on exposed, unprotected wood begins IMMEDIATELY and lasts forever.
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The day you finish installing a deck or other structure is the day trouble can start. Morning dew, rainwater and melting ice or snow are
quickly absorbed by unprotected wood, causing it to soften and swell. Direct exposure to the sun's heat causes drying, which makes
wood shrink. Continuous cycles of wet and dry, swelling and shrinking, cause wood to warp, split, crack and check - all of which lead to
premature wood degradation and expensive repairs.
Unprotected wood is also subject to surface graying caused by constant exposure to the sun's ultra-violet rays. Persistent moisture
exposure creates ripe conditions for the growth of mildew, mold, algae and other fungal organisms that feed on wood, eventually
spreading across and staining the surface. Termites and other wood boring insects also use wood for a food source, causing ultimate
wood rot and decay.
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Wood Care Basic #1:
Exterior Wood Care Involves Just Two (2) Simple Steps: Restore and Protect!
To protect exterior wood from water and weather damage, rely on premium performance WOLMAN or WOODLIFE Wood Care
Products to properly restore, prepare, protect and beautify your valued investments in outdoor wood.
Wood Care Basic #2:
Always read and follow product label directions!
This may seem obvious, but technical service call reports prove that many people get quite far along into a project without reading
label instructions, and often cause themselves unnecessary grief and re-work. Even if you've successfully completed many similar
jobs before, always read the label instructions to make sure you've chosen the right product for the outcome you want, and are
using the right tools and procedures to prepare the surface, apply the product and clean-up afterward.
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Wood Care Basic #3:
Always perform a sample brush-out before beginning a job!
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To ensure the products you've chosen to protect and beautify your wood give you the exact finished look you expect, always do
a brush-out in an inconspicuous spot, and observe how the product appears after it has dried. Many colored finishes are formulated
to bind vigorously to your wood in order to give you years of long-lasting performance --these same products will not be easily
removed if you decide the color is not as appealing to you as you originally thought. Furthermore, in-store color cards and
brochures can give you good approximations of color, but cannot duplicate exactly how a product will look on your particular
wood's species and age - only you can through experimentation.
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Wood Care Basic #4:
Preserve your wood's beauty and structural integrity by following through with a regular maintenance program.
Once you've built, installed and protected your new wood structure with a water repellent coating, make sure to clean the wood and
re-apply the coating every two to three years. Daily exposure to UV rays and precipitation will eventually wear away the coating's
surface layer, thus making it necessary to re-apply periodically. To determine if that time has come, splash water on several
sections of the wood, and observe how the droplets react. If they bead or puddle, repellency is still active, if they absorb rapidly,
another coating is recommended. Generally speaking, the more water and sun exposure, the more frequent the need to re-apply,
but you can count on a minimum two seasons of water repellency on horizontals, and up to 4 years of repellency on verticals with
all WOLMAN brand coatings.
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