How should I finish this indoor cedar planter I've built?
September 24, 2017 11:40 AM Subscribe
Woodworkers and Designers - I'm trying to decide between polyurethane and Danish oil.
I've built a planter (in situ, close-up) out of western red cedar and I was about to hit it will some satin polyurethane when I paused. I did some test application to some scraps and they were a little shinier than I thought. I put some Danish oil on some other scraps and they look pretty good.
Its place will be among satin-finished oak flooring and poplar-stained-to-look-like-cherry, and it's going to hold a 9' ficus (oblig. dog).
Before I take this no-going-back action I thought I'd get some opinions, even if it's neither of these. I will be putting a pond liner inside so the soil will not be in direct contact with the wood.
I've built a planter (in situ, close-up) out of western red cedar and I was about to hit it will some satin polyurethane when I paused. I did some test application to some scraps and they were a little shinier than I thought. I put some Danish oil on some other scraps and they look pretty good.
Its place will be among satin-finished oak flooring and poplar-stained-to-look-like-cherry, and it's going to hold a 9' ficus (oblig. dog).
Before I take this no-going-back action I thought I'd get some opinions, even if it's neither of these. I will be putting a pond liner inside so the soil will not be in direct contact with the wood.
As it's indoors, I think oil would be nicer
posted by KateViolet at 12:22 PM on September 24, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by KateViolet at 12:22 PM on September 24, 2017 [1 favorite]
Oil looks much more high-end than poly, in my opinion. It brings out the grain so beautifully and smells wonderful. Also to consider: a clear wax, and also not doing anything at all to it, since it's inside and not going to be exposed to sun or weather or insects, and will age more slowly than outside, but will turn soft grey and be quite beautiful. Really nice planter!
posted by the webmistress at 2:01 PM on September 24, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by the webmistress at 2:01 PM on September 24, 2017 [2 favorites]
No way on the poly. NO way, both in terms of aesthetics and function; any oil is better for this, and yes maybe do nothing.
Also, what's the drainage situation? Because a large plastic pot with drainage holes and tray will give you far more control and flexibility than the pond liner, and more protection for the planter. In that case, the 'do nothing' approach also makes more sense to me.
The exposed pot may not look as nice, but you can layer sphagnum moss or similar over top to hide it.
posted by SaltySalticid at 3:44 PM on September 24, 2017
Also, what's the drainage situation? Because a large plastic pot with drainage holes and tray will give you far more control and flexibility than the pond liner, and more protection for the planter. In that case, the 'do nothing' approach also makes more sense to me.
The exposed pot may not look as nice, but you can layer sphagnum moss or similar over top to hide it.
posted by SaltySalticid at 3:44 PM on September 24, 2017
I agree with the responses above, to them I'll add that Danish oil is much easier to repair than polyurethane.
Taking that even further I'd look at some of the more modern oil based finishes like a hardwax oil or a straight oil finish, if you can cope with the dull look.
posted by deadwax at 1:30 AM on September 25, 2017
Taking that even further I'd look at some of the more modern oil based finishes like a hardwax oil or a straight oil finish, if you can cope with the dull look.
posted by deadwax at 1:30 AM on September 25, 2017
Danish oil is the best option here. it provides a water-resistant, though not completely waterproof finish. I normally put 2nd coating after the first coating has completely dried. That will have enough moisture protection.
posted by reekbeek12 at 4:23 AM on September 25, 2017
posted by reekbeek12 at 4:23 AM on September 25, 2017
Oil finish is popular because it is easy to apply and it produces an unornamented wood look that is in fashion. Since it doesn't build a film there are almost no issues related to dust, drips, orange peel, adhesion, brush quality or polish. This is makes it really easy. But, it does very little to protect wood from anything.
Contrary to popular belief, oil finish will provide very little physical, UV or moisture protection compared to other finishes. Oil finish is not good at building a film. Actual boiled linseed oil will take many layers to produce anything resembling a film with lots of drying time in between. So it doesn't provide protection that way. It also doesn't penetrate the wood very much. This can be seen by applying oil finish to a sample and carving off a corner with a sharp knife to see how far the oil has penetrated. See Bob Flexner's book on finishing for more details.
Finishes sold with the word oil on the tin are a wide array of formulations ranging from just oils to mixtures of oil and thinned varnish. So they will behave differently and protect differently. For example "Formby's Tung Oil Finish" and WATCO's Danish Oil are thin varnishes if you read the label carefully. This isn't a problem, it's just that you would expect something different from linseed oil or a product that is actually a varnish.
The pine on the top looks white next to the ceder. Stain or toning is used to unify the colors of dissimilar woods. WATCO's danish oils have a pigment in them and that would be enough.
Go with an oil. You will be happy with it, it will look good and your planter will last a long time in spite of the finish. I love oil finishes and wipe on oil/varnish finishes, they look great and are easy.
A totally different direction is to paint it wild colors like your chairs.
posted by bdc34 at 7:00 AM on September 25, 2017
Contrary to popular belief, oil finish will provide very little physical, UV or moisture protection compared to other finishes. Oil finish is not good at building a film. Actual boiled linseed oil will take many layers to produce anything resembling a film with lots of drying time in between. So it doesn't provide protection that way. It also doesn't penetrate the wood very much. This can be seen by applying oil finish to a sample and carving off a corner with a sharp knife to see how far the oil has penetrated. See Bob Flexner's book on finishing for more details.
Finishes sold with the word oil on the tin are a wide array of formulations ranging from just oils to mixtures of oil and thinned varnish. So they will behave differently and protect differently. For example "Formby's Tung Oil Finish" and WATCO's Danish Oil are thin varnishes if you read the label carefully. This isn't a problem, it's just that you would expect something different from linseed oil or a product that is actually a varnish.
The pine on the top looks white next to the ceder. Stain or toning is used to unify the colors of dissimilar woods. WATCO's danish oils have a pigment in them and that would be enough.
Go with an oil. You will be happy with it, it will look good and your planter will last a long time in spite of the finish. I love oil finishes and wipe on oil/varnish finishes, they look great and are easy.
A totally different direction is to paint it wild colors like your chairs.
posted by bdc34 at 7:00 AM on September 25, 2017
Response by poster: Thanks everybody for your input. Just to clarify a couple points: I'm engineering a hole in the bottom for drainage; I'm planning on just sliding a clear pot holder underneath to catch runoff (the height of the bottom was carefully planned to give me enough room to insert and remove something to catch water but not so tall that the Roomba would go under). I built this because the roots need more space and I couldn't find a pot big enough (that wasn't outrageously expensive). The 2x4s on the top are in fact cedar. The 'wild colors' idea is fun, but I guess if I'd thought of that earlier I'd have built this from pine, now I want to see the wood.
posted by achrise at 7:22 AM on September 25, 2017
posted by achrise at 7:22 AM on September 25, 2017
The 'wild colors' idea is fun, but I guess if I'd thought of that earlier I'd have built this from pine, now I want to see the wood.
This is off topic and well outside the tasteful expectations of wood looking like wood, but you can have both color and see the wood with a wood dye.
posted by bdc34 at 8:59 AM on September 25, 2017
This is off topic and well outside the tasteful expectations of wood looking like wood, but you can have both color and see the wood with a wood dye.
posted by bdc34 at 8:59 AM on September 25, 2017
This thread is closed to new comments.
I'd go with danish oil. You can always add coats of poly if you want to.
Maybe do poly on the inside to better protect against spills and moisture.
posted by H21 at 11:55 AM on September 24, 2017 [1 favorite]