I am working to restore and save old wood sash windows in a listed building I have recently purchased and moved into. The windows had been neglected for many years so, even where there is no rot, much of the exterior wood is very damp (perhaps I should say soaking wet). I can make the various replacements and repairs and get the windows to the point where all they need is a good primer and coat of paint. But how do I deal with the wet wood? With its exterior exposure it is never going to dry as bare wood, but if I paint it wet, the paint will seal in the moisture (until it peels off!). Is there any solution to this?? How about Goretex paint?
Why is it that it will never dry? As far as I know there is no paint made that will cure and not peel when applied over a wet surface. If there is, you will surely be asking for trouble.
If there were such an animal as Goretex paint, the market would be cornered.
ToolQueen
This message has been edited. Last edited by: Schu'sALegend,
It won't dry for the same reason it is wet now. It's part of the permanent exterior frame of the window. At least here in the northern Pennines we get more rain than sun year round, so any exterior wood that is not painted immediately and closely looked after gets wet and stays wet. A seemingly insoluble problem, but I'm hoping someone has a revolutionary fix for it!
If it's that bad then the window needs to come out and be replaced. Trying to cover it up is againt the law for nondisclosure of a known fault when selling a home. And the windows just going to keep on rotting and cause wall and siding damage as well.
joecaption
Posts: 10965 | Location: Halieford VA | Registered: Jan 31, 2004
There might be some solution that local painters or paint stores (other than big box stores) might be familiar with.
Short of replacing, which I agree is the best solution, you might want to try and remove the entire window, cover the opening and let it dry naturally, then paint and reinstall. You should be able to remove the entire window, it might be a little bit tiresome, but if it's a traditional window, it can be done. Assuming that the windows across the Big Pond are manufactured in the same manner as they are in the US. This would also give you the opportunity to explore the structure of the wall surrounding the window to see if the dampness has caused any further problems.
If you do replace the window, prep and paint before removing and installing.
Good luck with your problem. Let us know when you find a solution.
ToolQueen
This message has been edited. Last edited by: Schu'sALegend,
You 'might' try this, and see if it works, (but, thats not going to help you on the 'rot' as it NEEDS to be replaced, instead of painted over!), but, take some plastic sheathing, and place it over the entire casing, (I would go about 6 inches past the window that needs the paint job), and seal it all away around the entire window.
NOW, run a dehumidifier in that room, with the window OPEN... It SHOULD dry the window sill out in a few days...(though you will probably also be drying out the entire house and need to empty your receptacle that the water will be dripping into quite a few times a day, but, eventually that window will become dry...just place it below the window so that it 'bears down' on it faster than the rest of the house).
Make sure you put something, like wood bracing or other types to keep the plastic sheathing from contacting the wood, (have it stand out from the frame with thin strips of wood tacked onto the sides of the frame), and it will be sure to dry quicker with air circulating around it.
You could even build a box frame, and attach it to the sides of the building as a temperary thing so that you can prime and paint it while on the inside, so it stays dry, then move it from window to window using the same plastic sheathing!
(Yea, it will look terrible to the neighbors, but, after you explain what your doing, and they see your nice newly painted windows, you may even get 'jobs' for them wanting you to paint THIERS! )...
if it's always wet, it's rotted. if wood always does that, install vinyl windows. you are NOT going to get paint and primer to adhere to wet wood, and if it's rotten or punky, there's no use playing with it, it's failed hard.
seriously. about time to tear that thing out and see if the wall is damaged, too.
sig: if this is a new economy, how come they still want my old-fashioned money?
I just realized I'm on an American board, which is sometimes hard to tell. I'm in England, and much is different here in the building trades. We're talking about a historically significant 150 year old stone house, and here people go to great lengths (often because the law requires us to) to repair and save the original features of their houses.
Because the window is set in a 2 foot thick stone wall, there is no worry about damage to the wall. If the window does have to be replaced it will have to be with a custom built wood frame window exactly like the original. Plastic windows are out before you even mention them. Carpenters (joiners, as they're called here) still routinely hand make custom windows and doors, not just for high-end McMansions, but for ordinary old houses owned by ordinary old people.
I suspect that here in rainy England someone has a solution for my problem, but I haven't found it yet!
We once had the MOST WONDERFUL painter (he retired and moved back to his native Argentina). Don't know if this technique would help, but I will pass it along anyway?
He carefully used a propane torch to blister the peeling paint completely clean from the wood surfaces. He said it both removed the paint and dried the wood, so with a light sanding, the oilbase primer adhered better. He really did great work, and his paint jobs tended to last as long as the paint guarantee, about 11-12 years. Very unusual for this climate. Wish we could find another like him.
This message has been edited. Last edited by: Conrad,
yes, historical significance is an issue for us Yanks, as well.
in the olden days, you didn't order windows and have them tossed off the truck two weeks later, hopefully after it slowed down a little. they were built on-site, invariably.
and in the olden days, they didn't have much for preservatives. if you didn't use a good wood and keep the maintenance up, they went to heck really fast.
so, you're going to have to check the windows and if rotted, get a tradesman to replace them. the good news is that with routers and shapers common tools of the trade, they should be able to replicate the millwork strips that the windows were made from. but they have to have intact pieces to make setup guides from.
yeah, it's going to be a few pounds. that's life in the custom lane.
sig: if this is a new economy, how come they still want my old-fashioned money?
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