Understanding Interior & Exterior Cedar Wood Treatments

Natural wood can make a beautiful addition to any home, where this stunning material is known to be both versatile and hard wearing. Whether you’re looking to install decking planks in your garden or bespoke furniture in your living room, wood is likely to be a top choice if you’re looking for an aesthetically pleasing material that is built to last.

Cedar may be at the top of your wishlist as you look to enrich your home, where this is regarded as a particularly attractive and widely coveted softwood. Cedar planks are easy to work with and contain natural oils that can protect them from decay, making this wood type the ideal choice for homeowners everywhere.

At Treatex we stock a range of environmentally safe products that are especially designed for taking care of your cedar, whether you’re looking to weatherproof an external installation or customise indoor furniture.

Read on to find out more about our full range of cedar wood treatments, with a look at how you can take care of and customise your natural wood features.

What Is Cedar Wood?

Like many other softwoods, cedar has been widely used for building work over several centuries. Commonly found in the Pacific Northwest, cedar has also been naturalised across the UK, where it has been popularised in both white and red forms for its appealing aesthetic qualities.

In particular, cedar is highly regarded for its natural oils, which help to prevent decay and insect infestations. This means it is ideal for outdoor applications, where it is also relatively resistant to moisture penetration and warping.

Beyond this, the relative softness of cedar wood means that it can be shaped, cut and finished with ease for complex indoor installations. This combines with its fine grain and uniform texture to produce an ideal resource for stunning furniture pieces and flooring.

Cedar is also known for its distinguished reddish-brown hue, which can range from a light shade to a deep purplish tone. Over time, weather exposure can cause cedar to fade to a silver-grey colour, where this unique effect is desired by many architects and designers.

Our Cedar Oil Products

We supply a number of specialist cedar wood products to help you to take care of this special material. We’ve outlined these products below:

Cedar Oil

Our top cedar product is the specialist Treatex Cedar Oil, where this is designed for use on exposed exterior wooden structures such as sheds and outbuildings. This oil is designed to provide long lasting protection for your wood, by shielding it from the elements and preventing water damage.

You should always apply your Cedar Oil on unfinished timber, where any previous finishes must be fully removed before proceeding. Your surfaces should also be thoroughly cleaned to wash away any contaminants such as dirt and dust.

Ensure that outdoor temperatures are between 8 and 25 degrees celsius during the application and drying process, where your timber should have a moisture content of below 18%.

Stir your Cedar Oil thoroughly and apply evenly using a roller or brush. It is essential to make sure that the product is applied in the same direction as the wood grain, and liberally on the end grain.

Leave your Cedar Oil to dry for 12 hours before applying a second coat, then leave the surface untouched for an additional 12 hours for a complete application.

Grey Cedar Oil

At Treatex, we understand how the ageing process of cedar is an important part of its lifecycle, which is why we’ve developed a specialist Grey Cedar Oil to look after your stunning silver surfaces.

As with our standard Cedar Oil, the Grey edition is designed to protect exterior wooden surfaces from the elements. In addition to this, the Treatex Grey Cedar Oil is also designed to enhance the colour of your exposed cedar to draw out mature silver tones.

You can progress the development of this silver colour with additional applications of the Grey Cedar Oil, or you can choose to let your colour mature naturally over time.

Your Treatex Grey Cedar Oil can be applied in much the same way as our standard Cedar Oil, where you should remove any old finishes prior to application and wait 12 hours before applying a second coat.

Cedar Maintenance & Preservation

Although cedar is rich in natural oils which can help to preserve the wood, it is also porous in nature, where this can expose your surfaces to harmful mould spores. Mould and fungus can cause your wood to deteriorate, leading to unsightly breakages and discoloration.

We recommend that you utilise one of our wood preservation products to combat this, such as the Treatex W216 Preservative for exterior surfaces. This wood treatment is designed to offer protection against blue stain and fungal attacks.

Whilst this product is ideal for doors, windows and cladding, it should not be used to treat surfaces that are in constant contact with water or the ground.

Your Treatex W216 Preservative can be applied by brush, roller or spray, where it should be left to dry for 24 hours, under a rain cover if necessary.

Painting Options

Cedar responds well to paint, as long as you prepare your surface correctly, removing any old finishes before painting. We offer a number of paint options that can be used on cedar, where these include:

Classic Colour Collection

The Treatex Classic Colour Collection can be used on exterior and interior cedar surfaces to achieve a stunning finish. Its formula is designed to produce long lasting results, even when your wood is subjected to harsh weather conditions. Choose from stunning colours such as Sage Green, Sea Mist and Terracotta to find your perfect match.

You should leave your first coat to dry for 12 hours, before leaving your second coat to dry for approximately 12-24 hours. After this, you should assess if a third coat is required, where this may be necessary for darker timbers.

Colour Tones Ultra

The Treatex Colour Tones Ultra range is ideal for interior cedar surfaces. This treatment is designed to provide a natural finish, adding a subtle colour whilst still allowing the character of the wood grain to shine through. You can choose from authentic colours such as Teak, Mahogany and Pebble Grey to perfectly finish your cedar.

One coat of Colour Tones Ultra is usually all you need to achieve a subtle finish, where drying should take around 3-6 hours in a warm, well ventilated room. We recommend that you seal this product with two coats of Treatex Hardwax Oil Ultra Clear, where this will prevent the natural pigments from fading.

Treatex: Premium Cedar Wood Treatment For Your Surfaces

If you’re looking for an environmentally safe cedar wood finish for your surfaces then you’ve come to the right place. At Treatex, we supply a specialist range of cedar wood treatment exterior oils, where these are designed to hydrate and protect your natural surfaces.

Our team can provide you with expert advice and guidance on which product is best for your wood. Whether you’re looking for the best oil for your cedar cladding, or you’d like to give your cedar furniture a fresh coat of paint, we’ll be able to help.

Beyond this, we supply specialist products for teak, walnut and laminate flooring, designed to protect and enhance your surfaces. If you’re looking for an environmentally safe paint, you could also consider our Eco Colours range, which provides an odourless, solvent free paint solution.

Get in touch with us today to find out more, or check out our FAQ page to have your questions answered.