What Is The Best Finish For Exterior Wood?

Compare The Three Wood Finishes For Exterior Timber: Wood Oils, Stains or Varnish

Typically, there are three different finishes you can use on your exterior wood project: stain, varnish, and wood oil. The finish you choose will depend on the location of the wood, its use, whether you want to keep the natural look of the wood, and how often you will maintain the finish.

• Stains: there are two types of wood stains you’ll come across; oil-based and water-based stains. Oil based stains penetrate the surface fibers while water based stains penetrate and also leave a membrane on the surface.
• Varnish forms a water repellent seal on the wood surface. Varnish suits semi-protected areas like joinery and doorways. In order to maintain weather tightness, varnish needs to be rigorously checked and refinished when it shows signs of wear.
• Wood oils: These split into two types as well; penetrating and migrating wood oil.
  Penetrating oil: Oils like Dryden OilStain deeply penetrates into the wood to nourish it from within.
• Migrating Oil: Dryden WoodOil migrates into the wood and conditions the timber, keeping it from cracking and warping.

Dryden WoodOil need to be reapplied about every 6 months to 2 years, to maintain the beauty and shine of the exterior timber surfaces. Our timber maintenance guides explain everything you need to know about how to maintain timber cladding and decking.

The Perfect Blend of Aesthetics and Protection

Dryden’s WoodOil is carefully crafted to maintain a balance between aesthetics and protection. While their formulations provide unrivaled safeguarding against UV rays, they also enhance the wood’s innate beauty. The result is an outdoor space that not only stands the test of time but becomes a testament to the exquisite harmony of nature.

Can you colour wood using Dryden WoodOil?

Dryden WoodOil is a clear product allowing wood to naturally silver and weather.

If you want to deepen or alter your wood colour you can still use WoodOil instead of stain. Add colour to Dryden WoodOil with ColourTone+ to enhance or update the wood colour according to your preferred look. This gives you all the benefits of WoodOil with the colour that you get from a stain.