Protective TopCoat for MilkPaint Needed...

[RionM]

All:

I built an outdoor piece of furniture (a porch glider) and have bogged down with putting on the finish. I'm considering using MilkPaint for a portion of it. Knowing that MilkPaint won't stand up to weather very well, I want to cover it with a protective topcoat of some kind - I'm considering a spar outdoor urethane.

BTW, the glider will sit outdoors under a covered porch (it will be exposed to sunlight for just a few hours a day and will only get wet if there is wind-blown rain. Being in So.Calif., it won't see snow or ice until the next Ice Age. :-)

My plan is this (it's made of white oak):
* two coats of a sanding sealer
* two coats of milk paint
* two coats of a topcoat

Is this a good plan or am I missing something?

Thx.

[cabinetman]

Your choice for a topcoat being a spar varnish will offer protection. Try it on a sample. It may deepen the color.
:)
:*
:D
"I'M NEVER WRONG - BUT I'M NOT ALWAYS RIGHT"

[RionM]

Follow-up question. The MilkPaint is water-based. Can I use a non-water-based topcoat?

[ecklesweb]

Yes, you can. (Oil-based) poly over milk paint is not unheard of.

[JBark]

General Finishes makes a pre-mixed milk paint and if memeory serves me they make a topcoat for it. I don't know if it offers the protection of a spar varnish, but few things do.

Why not use a good outdoor paint of the same color, if you can find it. If the stuff we put on our houses isn't going to stand up to the elements it shouldn't be sold for outdoor use.

John

[RionM]

Thanks, Jay.
I have 3 quarts of spar exterior urethane so I can use them here.

John:
I bought 3 small cans of the General Finish MilkPaint and tried them out on some scraps. I like the ease of applying it and the bright colors. The cans were a little on the expensive side so maybe an exterior house paint will work, if I can find a "suitable" color.

This is a picture (from WOOD magazine) of what I'm building. It's all cut, screwed and glued and just needs a finish:

[rhull]

>I bought 3 small cans of the General Finish MilkPaint and
>tried them out on some scraps. I like the ease of applying
>it and the bright colors. The cans were a little on the
>expensive side so maybe an exterior house paint will work,
>if I can find a "suitable" color.

If you like how your milk-paint sample came out, perhaps you could take that to a local paint store and have them color-match for an exterior house paint? If they can give you an exact match to what you liked in the milk paint, that would be cool.

[deirdre]

Because of the way milk paint works, there isn't really such a thing as an exact match.

[rhull]

Sorry, Ms. Pit Nicker. "Exact" match, with quotations. Sheesh! :)

My suggestion still stands - color matching may get you closer with exterior paint than anything else.

[RionM]

Well, I think you are BOTH right. If I can find a match that I like, I'll get it, otherwise I won't. The color is the main factor, cost is a close second.