I need to find a good seal for pressure-treated cut ends on my decks
Thomas P. Stinson| Posted inGeneral Questionson
Do they have something I can buy at Home Depot?
I am a deck builder and need to find a sealant for my pressure treated cut ends. I have looked at Home Depot and they told me they don’t stock anything that will work. I need something I can brush on right after I make the cut. What do you suggest?
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Thomas,
They lied:
https://www.homedepot.ca/en/home/p.cut-n-seal-pro-guard-soft-green-946ml.1000110347.html
C'mon, Malcolm. You're not implying that the employees hired by Home Depot may be uninformed -- are you?
Cut-n-seal is in Canada only. I tried to order but they won't ship to US.
Sorry Thomas, that's a strange one. There are so few products stocked here that aren't also carried in the US.
I used "Woodlife CopperCoat Green Wood Preservative" on my PT deck. They sell it at Menards here for $18/gal. Made by Rustoleum. You can buy it on Amazon for a bit more, or buy a whole case (4 pack) online from Home Depot.
There's a less-toxic alternative for exterior wood preservation. One part each of turpentine, wax, and linseed oil. I've used it a few times, and it seems to be very effective. Can' t find the citation now. I though it was one of the National Park Service Preservation Briefs from the 1990's. There was a long-term field study (like Martin's backyard tape experiment) that showed this mixture outperformed ALL commercial products. Could be that the combined cost of these components in smaller quantities is prohibitive; also could be that chemistry has advanced in the last twenty years so that modern formulations have less VOCs and are more effective. One other less-toxic idea for your more adventurous clients: if you have a commercial sawmill nearby, white oak (or your local durable species) will probably outlast treated softwood and is price-competitive in quantity.
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