It is expensive but adding £100 or so to protect a £4K investment in our studio didn't seem like too bad a bet. Dunster House recommended it and don't even sell it, which actually made me realise how good it must be.
The layer thickness is on average 20 - 30 microns. A depth of 80 - 120 microns is recommended for all log cabins. We would recommend three - four coats of this treatment for maximum stabilisation and longevity with a re-application every few years.
This is stuff they recommend which is £75 for 2.5 litres.
https://www.tuin.co.uk/blog/log-cabin-treatment-panic/#If_You_don8217t_treat_it_at_all
Hm, now this bit can be a hotbed of law suits. Firstly anything expensive, we only recommend Sikkens, Kingfisher, Sadolins or our own European brands shown in our website or brochure such as Koopmans, Embadeco or Embalan and more recently the super treatment from Valvoline Max-Release Protectant – now known as ‘Carefree Protectant’ which is heralded as a revolution in timber treatment and from what I’ve seen the stuff is amazing
If it’s a cheap treatment we don’t recommend it especially ones designed for sheds or fences or which can be sprayed on.
Please don’t be tempted to use anything cheap! Any complaints we have had with cracking timber or mould algae, excessive shrinkage etc have always been found to be caused by a cheap treatment, use at your peril but we will not offer any guarantee if you have used it, I can always tell as well!
Please do NOT use a cheap treatment, all the problems that have been reported with a log cabin can often be traced back to this.
Expensive is the way forward, you get what you pay for and it’s certainly pertinent when regards to treatment. If you use treatment beginning with the third letter of the alphabet and only given it two coats and then complain in a few months time that you have splits I will tell you to apply five more coats of the same treatment or treat it again with something expensive.
If I was to get technical we need a depth of treatment of between 80 and 120 microns. This is the equivalent to two to three coats of an expensive treatment. To accomplish the same depth with a cheap one may take up to 10 coats and this is where the problem comes when customers use a cheaper treatment and give it two coats, you may as well not bother. It’s good on a shed perhaps but no good at all on a log cabin as we need to inhibit its movement. Anything less than 80 microns is not going to do anything.
When asking a treatment supplier always specify it’s for “Planned, smooth Spruce” and let them advise you on the best treatment for that style of timber. Rough sawn treatment is not all compatible.
A great source of advice is Brewers, they’re a professional trade paint supplier and may have other ideas and I’ll always agree with them, they are the people who know treatments! Most of the time they will recommend two undercoats of preservative with two top coats of Sikkens.
My old log cabin was painted 15 years ago with Sikkens, all I do is give it a quick wash each year and that’s it, I do recommend it.
But, we have this new stuff: CareFree Protectant.
It can dry in 15 minutes, be painted on wet, it’s clear and still provides UV protection.
I’ve even seen it coat grains of sugar in a glass of water and the sugar didn’t dissolve! Clever stuff and now I’ve used it it is amazing, I even tried painting it on wet timber in the rain and all the water wicked away as I was painting (I’m not going to formally recommend painting in the rain though). Amazing! We’re now using this on everything on the show site including Larch and Hardwood furniture / fencing.
CareFree Protectant the new name for MaxRelease Protectant:
With our changing weather conditions our wood / concrete gets a lot to endure rain , sun, wind and frost . To keep your wood / concrete in optimum condition MaxRelease has developed the best protection . The water-borne coatings without organic solvent penetrates into the wood / concrete and thus provides a protective layer against moisture, sunlight , wind and rain for all types of wood and wood products , such as fences , decking , garden furniture , garden poles , log cabins , gazebos , larch and hardwoods , and concrete products such as garden poles and fence systems . It forms a thin layer on the substrate , so that the structure of the wood and the concrete remains pretty visible.
Benefits of Carefree Protectant :
- Long-term protection against moisture
- Low maintenance
- Easy to apply and easy to clean
- Excellent colour stability with minimal fading due to sunlight
- Less fungal and algae
- Impregnating
- Corrosion resistant
- Water resistant
- Inhibits the natural transfer of moisture
- Prevents kalkuitbloei in concrete
CareFree Wood Protectant is easy to use . Wood Protectant is a quick-drying material and will dry within 15 minutes ( depending on temperature , humidity, type of substrate ) . There is no primer or other type of primer is not necessary in order to bring . To Wood Protectant This makes the long-term protection of wood and concrete in a simple and quick job . MaxRelease Wood Protectant must be stored frost-free.
Having used this extensively now, I really do recommend it!
We give a ten year guarantee on our logs cabins against rot. There’s conditions and they have to be treated regularly blah, blah. If it was up to me I’d give a twenty year one and no treatment. It’s impossible for timber to rot!
Ok, maybe that’s a stupid thing to say, I’ll add a note to it: It’s impossible for timber to rot as long as it is always VENTILATED and allowed to DRY.
So I reckon our guarantee is safe. If you get any rot in 20 years time please let me know and I’ll pay for your replacement out of my own wages. It won’t happen though if she’s allowed to breathe, and, that’s the key with all timber products – ventilation. If it gets wet and it’s allowed to dry out it will NEVER ROT and that’s an inherent property of timber. Not just ours but any timber providing it is timber of a suitable quality for it’s intended use, especially for log cabins watch out for where the timber comes from, slow gown, cold climate etc.
