Need a good finish for cypress adirondack chairs that I can spray

Billm0066

Bill
User
I am building the chairs now and will be finishing them by this weekend hopefully. First time working with cypress and definitely not my favorite but they should look good. I was planning to epoxy the end grain touching the ground. Then finish it with a clear finish. I have an earlex HVLP sprayer and would like to use that. Any recommendations on products I can buy locally in Raleigh? Would prefer a satin or matte finish in clear.
 

Jeff

New User
Jeff
I am building the chairs now and will be finishing them by this weekend hopefully. First time working with cypress and definitely not my favorite but they should look good. I was planning to epoxy the end grain touching the ground. Then finish it with a clear finish. I have an earlex HVLP sprayer and would like to use that. Any recommendations on products I can buy locally in Raleigh? Would prefer a satin or matte finish in clear.

Fred is correct-no finish whatsoever! The wood will age to a pewter gray color and that's okay. However, if you don't like that color paint the chairs but realize that you'll be refinishing them every few years.
 

jfynyson

Jeremy
User
for cypress no finish is the best finish IMHO.

Agreed. I'd go unfinished as well unless you do not like the grey patina and do like on-going maintenance. To keep it from greying out you'll have to keep a UV blocking film finish maintained or paint it where then you won't see the beauty of the wood. I have a cypress adirondack that I got as a kit from a seller at the Outer Banks back in the mid 1990's and it's been outside it's entire life and never had any finish on it. I've only had to pressure wash it twice and I still use it to this day.
 

Billm0066

Bill
User
Not a fan of the gray color. I found a spar urethane on clearance at Lowe’s and will just use that every year or two like my teak table and chairs that need love every year.
 

Jeff

New User
Jeff
Not a fan of the gray color. I found a spar urethane on clearance at Lowe’s and will just use that every year or two like my teak table and chairs that need love every year.

Is your "spar urethane" a varnish by Helmsman that you'll spray on with your Earlex sprayer? What have you been using on your teak furniture? Just curious.

A few pictures will be interesting to see it.
 

Billm0066

Bill
User
Is your "spar urethane" a varnish by Helmsman that you'll spray on with your Earlex sprayer? What have you been using on your teak furniture? Just curious.

A few pictures will be interesting to see it.

No I just use my deck stain on the teak stuff. Looks great for about 6 months and the finish wears off soon after. I plan to put the spar urethane over the top and see how much longer it lasts. Im ready to get rid of the teak set this year and make something or buy something on clearance this fall.
 

Graywolf

Board of Directors, President
Richard
Staff member
Corporate Member
Just like a boat, outdoor furniture is a continuous maintenance battle. there is no one finish that can combat the Sun, rain, ice, sitting on the ground all at once. These finishes on the market now can help, but they all break down and fail in the long run. So if you want to keep your outdoor furniture looking fresh then you have to relegate yourself to constant maintenance.
as far as sealing the end grain with epoxy, you can try it it may help, I haven’t tried it before, but, what ever finish you use on the rest of the piece more than likely will not bond with the effected areas you filled with epoxy. That in itself may or may not be a problem. You may not know until you try it. You may consider learning to embrace the graying of the wood, I know as my hair started turning I had to learn to embrace it. :D
 

Brantnative

Jeff
Corporate Member
Agree with Graywolf. I made some outdoor furniture with cypress. Once bench I left unfinished and the rest done with Waterlox. The unfinished bench is graying but still not completely gray after three years. The Waterlox benches stay about 90% that beautiful golden yellow. But the 10% just doesn't want to keep the Waterlox on and every year I'm sanding down and refinishing those spots. Biggest problem I have is black mold. I live near Lake Norman and cypress seems to attract it like a magnet.
 

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