# To Paint or Stain this Cypress / Cedar Home?



## Katria (Mar 10, 2010)

I recently bought this house and I am about to start some needed exterior repair then either STAIN or PAINT. Should I keep it the same existing brown or change it up to bring life to this somewhat rural. 
Houses in area are all different from original cottages to modern with a mixture of style, colors, and size of lots. They are very nice, esp. compared to mine, with either brick or vinyl siding. 
So how do I beautify this house? Brand color name and number will help? 
What about the trim? 
I am replacing all of the windows with white windows, in which I began on the back of the house. 

I don't want to chicken out and keep it the same, help! 

For expense purposes I guess I wouldn't go light on the body since I would think it would cost more to lighten the brown. I have a painter lined up. 
Also I would like to enhance the house style and environment. i.e. no bright yellow more earthy maybe. 

Yes I know, landscaping could use a lot of help. I am going to try to have some trees cut down in the next few weeks and plant grass. 

Can someone please photoshop some ideas for me and slap some differnt colored paints or stain on it ..

http://s743.photobucket.com/albums/xx80/Katria41/Exterior/




Please let me know if you can give me any advice at all. 

Thank You

Kathi


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## noahweb (Feb 11, 2010)

stain first. you can always paint later if you do not like it.

but never the opposite


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## tpolk (Nov 7, 2009)

i would oil it but thats just me. looks like beautiful wood, if you stain maybe a semi transparent so the wood comes thru


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## echase (Mar 10, 2010)

Oil it? Does that preserve the look of the wood? I have a cedar siding house which is 25 years old, and never been painted, love the wood, but feel it might benefit from some protection. Does oiling it make painting more difficult in the future?


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## user1007 (Sep 23, 2009)

If you have good A grade cedar, redwood, etc. you really don't have to do anything to it unless it is discoloring (or if you want a color change) or showing obvious signs of aging, drying out and so forth. Do realize that once you start oiling/sealing, staining or painting you will have to add upkeep to your maintenance list. 

A clear, oil based finish will certainly not hurt the wood or diminish the ability to paint later. A good quality clear finish will also come with UV protection. Stay clear of wax based products (Thompson's Water Seal, etc.) though IMO. Among other things they do not penetrate as well and you will have to wait at least a season for the wax to disappear to do anything else if you do not like the look. 

Next step if there are color flaws that need to be evened out is to pick a semi-transparent stain in either latex or oil. I still prefer the latter but realize it is hard to purchase oil based products in some places. Final option with stain is to go to a solid color stain. I actually like the 100 percent acrylic latex solid color stains better than oil but others will have differing opinions. MAB (now a subsidiary of Sherwin Williams) used to make a solid color acrylic stain that was a gift from God! I think SW has re-branded but what great stuff if they have not messed with the formula. 

Stains come in a rainbow of colors. Obviously the semi-transparent ones will be no lighter than the wood to which they are applied. The sky is the limit with solid color stains. The MAB product could even be color matched. 

I would not paint siding that seems to be in decent shape like yours but if you do? Use an alkyd primer (if allowed) and then cover with a nice acrylic latex paint. Benjamin Moore Fresh Start would be my choice for primer. 

Buy stain or paint from a paint store! Box stores sell crap. Use a nice thick nap roller cover and chase it with a brush. 

Just a personal color comment. White windows might look a little stark and glaring if you keep the siding a darker color? Consider other color options for the windows?

By the way. Both SW and Benjamin Moore have virtual painting programs that let you try out color schemes. Just upload your photos, mask them off, and pick different colors.


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## mark942 (Feb 2, 2008)

Personally I would use this product, http://www.woodguard.com/Woodguard/woodguard.htm
This can be tinted as well if your looking for a hue of color. IMO clear is the only way to go with wood, but then that is just me.
I have used it on many many projects including my log home. It also works very well on Board and bat. I have also used this product on Cedar, Redwood and Pine siding with great results as well. IMO it is by far the best product on the market. It will bring out the luster of older wood and keep it water tight, but lets wood breath. 
As it has been posted, you can not stain after you paint. Good Luck :thumbsup:


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## echase (Mar 10, 2010)

Anyone have opinions on using oxygen bleach (Sodium Percarbonate) on cedar siding? www.StainSolver.com has some impressive before/after photos, but I can hardly take their portrayal as being objective.


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## cellophane (Sep 29, 2009)

i know its a little off topic but some flowers and shrubs in the beds near the house would go a really (really!) long ways.

colored shutters would also help. i personally like the natural cypress / ceder look - it just needs some life around it to really make it pop.


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## user1007 (Sep 23, 2009)

I agree and the OP acknowledged the property needs some landscaping help. I think he/she is on it? Just to help. Nothing adds to property value like tacky painted fornicating concrete or faded plastic lawn ornaments and year round silk flowers. Gazing balls are nice or post on Craig's List for bowling ball donations if you don't want to spend the money. A friend who had so much shade in her front yard made this mistake, as a joke, and stupidly put her address in the post. She ended up with hundreds delivered to the front lawn just in the first week. 

Not sure there is room for shutters to look decent. They would have to be fairly narrow given the left side clearance of that front window and I fear would look added on and would obviously not be of a size to cover the windows like real shutters would. Faux failure in the making IMO. 

I do think some enhancements to the entry could work. 

I am not much for right angle, plant near the house approaches to landscape design. Bores me. This house is very horizontal though. Some window boxes, once the new windows are in could help it show its lines and might add some needed color. 

I wonder what is behind the left side of the entrance (as we look at it)? Any room in the budget to add a window or two there to balance the look of the place and maybe add some light? Right now my eye is being drawn too much to the carport and not the entry to the house and I think it is because there is nothing going on on that left side? 

I realize the OP only asked whether to stain or paint. Hope he/she is not disappointed with all the extra advice.


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## slickshift (Aug 25, 2005)

Some Sikkens SRD would look really nice and it protects very well
It's an oil-based semi-transparent stain
They have little sample jars so you can test out what each color looks like on your specific wood, as stains (aside from solid stains) can look very different on different wood

If you wanted a "painted" look, I'd go for a solid stain on that type of material

And yes, if you stain it now you can still paint it or solid stain it later


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## slickshift (Aug 25, 2005)

echase said:


> Anyone have opinions on using oxygen bleach (Sodium Percarbonate) on cedar siding? www.StainSolver.com has some impressive before/after photos, but I can hardly take their portrayal as being objective.


I use (what I'm guessing is) a similar type product for mold/mildew/lichen removal on wood shingles, wood siding, wood and composite decks, and asphalt roofing
It also has the great bennies of being non-toxic to plants, and not only removing the fungi, but also acting as a wood cleaner and wood brightener

I wouldn't try the stuff I use outside (Wash-Safe) on clothes or carpet, but I have used a more "household use" type "oxygen" cleaner (Oxy-Clean) on them with great success
By the same token I wouldn't use Oxy-Clean to remove mold/mildew from, and clean and brighten a deck

If it were my project I'd def. Wash-Safe it before applying any semi- stain


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## poppameth (Oct 2, 2008)

We use Wolman Deck-brite to wash. Same kind of product. Comes in a powder you mix up. And actually Oxy-clean does max an exterior deck wash product 

I second SRD in this application. They have a tint base now as well that lets you use a more opaque semi-transparent color than the ready mixes.


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## Matthewt1970 (Sep 16, 2008)

Stain all the way. Try some samples like suggested like a nice clear at first.


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## jlhaslip (Dec 31, 2009)

Sikkens stuff is great!


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