Protecting Jarrah

[Helen T]

Advise please. . My husband's making me a large outdoor dining table from reclaimed Jarrah. He's about to put it together and we're currently "ïn discussions" about how to protect it. It will be living under a patio so doesn't need protecting from the elements, however I'm sure there will be alot of drink and food spills. Should we lacquer, wax or oil? Thanks

[BobL]

Advise please. . My husband's making me a large outdoor dining table from reclaimed Jarrah. He's about to put it together and we're currently "ïn discussions" about how to protect it.

Sorry to be pessimistic but this question has been asked here hundreds of times and to me personally at work and from friends etc dozens of times. It does not matter what you uses as a finish as soon as it is outside it will be subject to reflected UV and this will fade the colour out of the wood and eventually it will go dull and if left untreated it will go grey. Using oils or waxes outside will also attract dust and dirt and it will become grubby. Short of using a quality industrial strength marine grade two pack epoxy or urethane finish and sanding resealing it every few years it will go dull and grey and believe me after doing this a couple of times you will learn to love the grey. A better form of protection is to use a light proof cover but that too is a PITA as things will inhabit the cosy little environment that covers provide and you will need to clean the table every time you remove the cover so once again the grey will start to look good. My advice is not to spend a lot of time on it and learn to live with the grey.

[Pilchard]

Been looking after mums jarrah outdoor table for years, I'm with above poster, a pita of a job, sanding and redoing every 2 years and I have tried most varnishes and outdoor timber protectors/finishes on the market. I bit the bullet last year and used a decking stain to restore colour, looks ok for 12 months out but I will be redoing it again in 2014.

[Master Splinter]

What they said.

It's your choice between grey and an ongoing maintenance regime.

If you are going to use it frequently for outdoor eating, just chuck a vinyl tablecloth over it before dinner to keep any major spills off it.

[Dengue]

I live in the tropics, and my front door is $1,200 double door facing the west and exposed to the elements. Doesn't get much more severe than that, eh?After much research and looking at this forum, I decided on Sikkens products HLS and Cetol Filter 7. I made sure that every surface , every edge was coated properly, so as not to let any moisture in.
It has now survived two severe summers, and is still looking good. I expect to do a quick recoat in another 2 years.

[Helen T]

Thanx for that, very helpful. We'll do it all until it becomes too much of a pita and then we'll embrace they grey, as we'll have to with ourselves soon enough.

[scholl]

Advise please. . My husband's making me a large outdoor dining table from reclaimed Jarrah. He's about to put it together and we're currently "ïn discussions" about how to protect it. It will be living under a patio so doesn't need protecting from the elements, however I'm sure there will be alot of drink and food spills. Should we lacquer, wax or oil? Thanks

Hi, I have a Jarrah setting, 20+ yrs , and the table developed the dull grey appearance, 2/3 years ago I sanded and finished with ArmorAll ,it has kept it's colour but became dull, I sanded again used a product called 5 Star Tyre Shine ( $3 from Cheap as Chips ) and it looks great, it is under cover ,I used impregnated wipes( Feast Watson I think) for years and they did a good job,the table went grey due to neglect,Scholl

[Christos]

Hi, I have a Jarrah setting, 20+ yrs , and the table developed the dull grey appearance, 2/3 years ago I sanded and finished with ArmorAll ,it has kept it's colour but became dull, I sanded again used a product called 5 Star Tyre Shine ( $3 from Cheap as Chips ) and it looks great, it is under cover ,I used impregnated wipes( Feast Watson I think) for years and they did a good job,the table went grey due to neglect,Scholl

Welcome to the forum. The original post was a little while ago but might be time for them to refinish.