Painting New Cedar Siding

Cedar siding has a well deserved reputation for withstanding weather and resisting paint chipping and fading.

Painting new cedar siding.

Uncoated weathered western red cedar siding or trim can often be restored to its original color by applying commercial products called cleaners brighteners or restorers. Cedar siding can provide a warm rustic look to your home. When painting or staining new cedar with new cedar wood siding starting from scratch as in an artisan s canvas this surface area should be cleaned and dried. Beyond that western red cedar has multiple advantages over other cladding options because it is natural sustainable and is a renewal product.

This discoloration is most likely caused by a combination of excessive tannins leeching from the wood and mildew growth. Remove pollutants and remove failing paint. Do prime the exposed wood whether new or previously painted with oil primer. It is not all about protection.

Reach the high areas or apply cleaner to the less dirty areas using a roller with an extension pole which doesn t allow you to apply as much pressure or elbow grease as a paint brush. The upside is that solid color stains will block most damaging ultraviolet light. Having cedar lumber wood siding such as 1 x 6 1 x 8 1 x 12 or two inch thickness can be painted with a solid paint stain not requiring primer but still not recommended painting cedar if you can help it. Step 4 let the cleaner sit on the cedar siding for 15 to 30 minutes.

Solid color stains have solid particles but not nearly as many as paint. It s available in a variety of shades and it works well with paint or stain because of its lack of pitch and resin. Although intended primarily for restoring horizontal wood surfaces such as decks these products generally work almost as well on vertical surfaces. Besides adding beauty to your home painting your cedar siding can help protect it from rot too.

You ll have to remove the mildew and prime the wood with a stain blocking primer. Apply the wood cleaner to the cedar siding using a paint brush or roller. Brand new cedar wood and cedar siding freshly milled could have a moisture content too high accepting much of the product coatings your attempting to use. Some sections of old unpainted shingles and siding may look darker than others.

In addition well painted siding repels mold and mildew and will make it easier to wash off any dirt or grime. Painting cedar however calls for some preparation. What you get is a very uniform opaque color. Do not allow peeling paint to remain on the cedar siding before painting.

Staining cedar with a solid color stain. Thus solid color stains let some of the cedar s grain show through but none of the color.