Finish for outdoor furniture
Rust-Oleum names railings, fences, patio furniture, house and trim for Varathane Oil-Based Spar Urethane, and not decks, high-traffic areas, siding or rough-sawn wood. General Finishes names vertical exterior surfaces, fences, railings and furniture for its water-based Exterior 450, which it says has built-in UV absorbers.
Minwax lists Helmsman Spar Urethane for interior and exterior use with UV blockers. PPG and Rust-Oleum rule their brushing lacquer and Watco Wipe-On Poly out of exterior use.
Makers who name outdoor wood
| Product | Touch-dry | Recoat | Use | Full cure | Coverage | Thinning and notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Varathane Oil-Based Spar Urethane One source: Rust-Oleum (Varathane), the maker of that product | 2 h | 8 h | 24 hlight use (full use after 3 days) | — | 380–760 sq ft per gallon | Thinning: Do not thin.Conditions: 70 °F, 50 % RH; apply at 55–90 °F.Handle after 4–6 hours; sand lightly if a coat has dried more than 12 hours. Rust-Oleum names railings, fences, patio furniture, house and trim, and not decks, high-traffic areas, siding or rough-sawn wood. |
| General Finishes Exterior 450 One source: General Finishes, the maker of that product | 30 min | 2 h | — | 21 days | up to 600 sq ft per gallon | Thinning: Water, GF Extender or GF Accelerator.Conditions: 70 °F, 50 % RH.Water-based acrylic/urethane blend with UV absorbers. |
Makers who rule it out
- Watco Wipe-On Poly: Rust-Oleum (Watco) says not for outdoor wood.
- ProLuxe (Deft) Brushing Lacquer: PPG (ProLuxe, formerly Deft) says not for outdoor wood.
These lists come from what each maker writes about its own product, not from our own testing or ranking. A product left off has not been read yet, or its maker does not mention this use.
Related
Work it out for your project
Times are the makers' own at the temperature and humidity they name, and several of them say cooler, damper conditions slow their finishes. For how much to buy, the finish coverage calculator uses these same coverage figures. Every finish side by side: the finish dry time chart. What the federal rules say about finishes and food: food-contact finishes.
Elsewhere in finishing: shellac and the shellac cut calculator; for repairs before the finish, wood filler vs wood putty; and for the glue-up, wood glue types.