# Fence Stain - Acrylic or Oil Based?



## ojtwelve (May 6, 2009)

Ok need help please. I have a fence in pretty bad color condition. Was thinking of using a solid stain. 

Do you recommend an Acrylic or Oil based stain?:confused1:

If not what type and brand of stain do you recommend?

I am looking to buy the stain tomorrow while some of these companies are having good Memorial Day sales.

Thanks to all who took the time to read and/or respond to my post.

OJ


----------



## Matthewt1970 (Sep 16, 2008)

Use Oil. Latex stain tends to peel. Sikkens is a great brand.


----------



## slickshift (Aug 25, 2005)

Oil/Alkyd-based does tend to stick longer and wear better (less prep for re-coat)
Acrylic, however, has less tendency to mold/mildew

It's a tough call
It depends on how often you are willing to do a maint. coat (should be before it actually needs it for minimal prep and best protection), and how much prep you are willing to do if you don't quite keep ahead of the game

I'd suggest Cabot's ProVT for acrylic
I'd suggest Sikkens Rubbol Siding for oil/alkyd

* IIRC the Sikkens is technically a hybrid
Regardless, it's certainly the best sticking, wearing, M/M resistant, oil/alkyd (hybrid) I've come across

-and I'm about 30 some odd miles out in the North Atlantic Ocean; constant salt air, big storms, hot/cold extremes, relentlessly-sunny/not-as-bad-as-inland snowy (but still pretty bad sometimes), frequent freezing rains, often droughts, 15 MPH winds considered a "calm day", whales in the back yard, migrating seals partying on your deck every spring/fall etc...
Basically a tough proving ground for any exterior product
(those seals get drunk easy and tend to spill quite a bit of ethanol...well...alcohol/booze... just about everywhere...it can be very hard on an exterior coating)


----------



## poppameth (Oct 2, 2008)

A few things to note on Sikkens. Rubbol Solid Stain (the oil variety) is no longer on the market. It's been completely discontinued for Rubbol Siding Finish (the Acrylic version). You could use Rubbol DEK on it though. That is still an available oil based product though it will have a satin sheen instead of flat like the old Rubbol Solid Stain had.


----------



## Matthewt1970 (Sep 16, 2008)

My Benjamin Moore dealer still caries the Sikkens Cetol Semi-Transparent Oil stain.


----------



## 4ThGeneration (May 3, 2009)

Armstrong-Clark hands down. It has a greater window to work with in case you are slower and the sun tends to be your enemy when coating.

As far as the mold thing with oil. Oil is food for organic (living) mold. Its like putting a bird feeder out for a bird. One thing is that you should be cleaning your exterior home, decks, fences, concrete and other surfaces once a year anyhow, so do not sweat the mold. It comes off easy with the right chems and with a soft wash technique.


----------



## poppameth (Oct 2, 2008)

Matthewt1970 said:


> My Benjamin Moore dealer still caries the Sikkens Cetol Semi-Transparent Oil stain.


They haven't dropped oil in the S/T stains yet. Just in the solid siding type. They just came out with an acrylic solid deck product. The oil deck product may disappear soon as well if the new acrylic performs as well as the siding type does.


----------

