LESLIE: Orv in South Dakota is on the line with a log-cabin question. Tell us what you’re working on.
ORV: This is a cedar log cabin. Actually, it’s 4x6s with the edges eased. And four or five years ago, we stained it and it got – we stained it too dark. And I’d like to know if we can – or what needs to be done to bring it back to its original color?
TOM: OK. So, if you stained it and it’s too dark and you want to lighten it up again, it’s not practical to sand down the logs to try to get to the natural wood, nor do I think you have to. What you could do is you could apply a solid-color stain, which is essentially going to be – the color that, you know, comes out of the can is the color you’re going to get. It’s kind of like paint except that the grain of the wood shows through. So if you were to put a solid-color stain on those logs, you could definitely lighten it up.
And frankly, when we are asked about staining homes, wood siding and the like, we almost always recommend solid-color stain because it lasts the longest. It has more pigment in it than semi-transparent stains and so I think that’s the way to go, Orv. Just pick up some solid-color stain, any color you want. Apply it to the logs and you could definitely lighten up the look.
ORV: OK. Thank you very much.
TOM: Good luck with that project. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-MONEY-PIT.
i have a 110 yr old cabin. At some point it was painted and then sandblasted (it appears) to remove all the paint and subsequently stained (assuming water-based, not oil).Now needs cleaning and new coating since i purchased it.
Some cracking to the logs and some age changes (also probably more at risk of injury due to previous paint removal approach). So, at this stage of the cabin is there any reason not to go with paint (breathable) as opposed to solid-colored stain and is there truly a “breathable paint”? Don’t want to increase risk of water vapor trapping and rot, but wonder if paint is better with history to logs already.
thanks