Stained Windows

 

BILL: I have a cedar home built by Lindal Cedar Company, state of Washington. And it’s cedar on the outside. On the inside, the walls are pine but all the windows are framed in cedar. And over the years – it’s 34 years old. Over the years we’ve had either condensation and leaks and it’s stained; my frames and my cedar windows. And somebody told me, “Well, just paint it” and I was hoping that there’s a way to do something other than paint it.

 

TOM: So, OK. So what you have to do here, Bill, is you have to sand it. Because what you’re seeing is an oxidation or sort of a chemical reaction between the wood and the water and if you sand this, you should be able to get down to some clean wood. It’s going to be a detail job. It’s going to be one you’re going to have to spend a little bit of time on but I think you should be able to sand off the stained areas, get down to fresh wood. And then you’re going to have to seal these windows or, if you want to varnish them clear, you could put a clear polyurethane on them or you could stain them. But you can’t leave them untreated; otherwise, they certainly will stain again.

 

BILL: OK. Thanks a lot.

 

TOM: You’re very welcome. Thanks so much for calling us at 1-888-MONEY-PIT.