Do I Need to Paint My Custom Wood Shed?

A brand new custom wood shed should have a protective coating such as paint, varnish, or stain applied at least to the exterior of the structure no later than 90 days after it is set in place. The reason for applying a protective coating to the wood is that the wood needs be protected from moisture and UV light from the sun. Both water and sun rays damage unprotected wood and weaken the useable lifespan of your shed. These elements taking their toll on unprotected wood can lead to splitting, warping, and rotting.

Using Exterior Wood Stain

Exterior wood stain is very user-friendly. Exterior stain is a breathable medium that allows the wood to “breathe” or gain and lose moisture with the changing seasons. Exterior wood stains are available in a large range of colors/shades to meet your style preferences. Exterior wood stain is pretty simple to maintain on a shed. When the stain needs a new coating or touch up a simple brushing to clean/prep the surface is needed and then reapply the stain. There is no extensive prep work required.

Using Paint

Paint is a popular choice for protecting the exterior of an outdoor shed because it comes in a countless variety of colors. You can even paint a shed to exactly match the exterior of your home. When using paint, the wood should be primed or treated with a moisture seal first to ensure the wood properly receives the paint so that no moisture gets trapped beneath the paint causing bigger issues such as bubbling in the paint or peeling. Paint will need to be touched up or reapplied every few years.

Using Varnish

Varnish is a similar protective coating to paint, but is without pigment as is a clear coating. This allows the natural grain of the wood to be seen. If you choose varnish you need to be careful that water does not get in behind the varnish coat as it can cause visible stains or unsightly mold and/or other fungal growths. Another good thing to know about varnish is it does require a long time to dry and anything blown onto the surface of the shed during dry time by the wind can become stuck in the varnish. Varnish will also require slow stirring to keep air bubbles from forming.

Should You Spray it On or Brush?

The method you choose to apply the protective coating to your shed is up to you. Using a paintbrush will allow you to get the coating into small crevices while spraying allows you to cover a larger area in a shorter amount of time. Of course, if you do not already own a sprayer you will need to rent or purchase one which will cost more than getting materials for painting by hand.

Applying a protective exterior coating to your custom woodshed is very important for ensuring its usable lifetime, no matter what you choose to coat it with. It is so important that at Aurora Quality Buildings we require customers to paint their shed within 90 days of installation to uphold the included warranty.

For more information on our quality custom sheds in Snohomish County and surrounding areas please contact us any time, check out the details about our products on this website, or come and visit us in person!

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