What colour to paint a garden fence ?

[glassbrightly]

Our garden fence needs some TLC. At present it's untreated verticals boards. They haven't warped but do look quite tired. We will give them a clean but have been advised that they need some painting/ protection. Options seem to be something Ronseal like, which seems to orange for us or grey or black. My fathers painted his fences grey during lockdown and it does look smart. However, ours is a less formal garden will trees and wild planting. I am also leaning toward black - just becauce I am quite over grey ! Any thoughts ? Any treatments I am missing ?

Green if you need the garden to look bigger. The boundaries melt away.

@daryldixonwonmyheart

Sorry to hijack your thread *@glassbrightly*

Those of you who have used a paint or stain - what do you do with your fence posts? I have concrete posts and bottom boards.

you can paint them with masonry paint. I use Dulux "bitter chocolate" (but the latest one was Sandtex) to tone with a dark brown fence. It must not be lighter than the fence, but can be a little darker.

as concrete is very absorbent, give it two mist coats thinned
with 50% water, to soak in and prime the surface, before unthinned coats. It contains a lot of heavy pigment so stir it very very well.

It is easier to do before building, but probably too late now.

Give the top extra coats to protect from rain and frost

yes i have a small garden & the black fence works really well with the dimensions

The dark oak actually looks really nice as the greens and the flowers really stand out agains a dark backdrop. I like the fences to disappear into the background.

@steppemum, I've just used the Cuprinol Garden Shades, it covers concrete fence posts too so a much more seamless look. I've gone through many colours over the years, but always returned to the dark Green/browns/blacks.

Does it bleed through to next doors side? We have shared boundaries so only one fence. Currently dark oak and we want a light green colour, but we've just moved in and don't want to wreck the neighbours fences painting it and it leaking through!

OK, piggy backing this thread a bit.

2 summers agao I painted the gate and a bench with garden paint. Definitely paint not stain, I've just checked and this had a paint surface finish, and has worn badly.

So, I want to repaint. But I also need to paint the chicken house, and the wooden poles that hold the fencing in their enclosure, and maybe a worn bench seat that was previously painted blue.

I would relaly like them to have a less painty finish, more a weathered colour look. I am relaly painting them (especially chicken house) for weather proofing rather than looks, but they are all visible from house.
Chicken house fence is damp and really not going to dry out in a hurry. I probably need to give the shed something too, that is 10 years old, and looks veyr weathered, I think it came with 15 year guarantee.

So, I went to buy stuff and got really confused between things like Cuprinol colour woodstain and Ronseal fencing stain. The advantage of the Ronseal is that you can put it on wet wood. And it seems to be much cheaper. But it says rough wood, and chicken house is smooth sanded/treated. (but worn out)
I have no intention of repainting withih 5 years.

Any recommendations oh wise ones of Mumsnet?

I'm going with grey/dark grey/ black, as we have grey metal chairs, grey and black bench, table with black metal legs etc. (and I only want to buy one colour for them all)

The cuprinol was the Garden Shades, it looks quite paint like in the pictures on the tin? Is it really a stain? (says on the tin it is a stain)

Forget Ronseal/Cuprinol - used them both and they're OK but don't last long.

Bedec Barn Paint and Sadolin Classic would be my two go to's.

They're pricey but you get what you pay for.

I went for a sage green colour. It was from Wilko.

smooth wood is roughened by the weather enough to accept a Shed and Fence stain. They are a waxy emulsion that leaves a water repellent film on the wood.

new planed timber can have a very smooth, almost soapy feel that repels stain. I expect yours will be matt enough by now, especially if the previous treatment has weathered off.

for outdoor timber that is not protected from the rain, I think the water-based shed-and-fence stains are best. They allow damp water to dry out and do not crack or peel, and are very easy to recoat once their shine has dulled.

I had a garden gate made, and used the spirit-based Cuprinol Wood Preserver which is much more expensive, but also contains poisons to kill woodworm and rot. For most outdoor stuff, I just use water based. Often half-price come Autumn.

@MothershipG

Moroccan blue

oh thats lovely....where did you get this paint from..??..i love it !

@Mars2 and @MimiSunshine thank you for your replies about black in a small garden, and thanks Mimi for the great links 😊

...and PlatinumBrunette too! 😊

DH has just painted ours in Willow (Ronseal). I wasnt convinced when he bought the paint but I have to admit it looks really good!

Thanks for the help PigletJohn and notrub
x x

Simple question. Why can't you use the fence/shed ones on garden furniture? Is it because they will be too smooth etc?
Or is it because they will come off on clothing?

I have bought fence/shed paint and painted the chicken house and run. It is charcoal grey, looks great.
But it is more grey and less charcoal, I was expecting it to be darker. next time I would go for darker/ash black.

Shed stain does not adhere well to smooth, newly planed timber, and peels off.

For hardwood furniture, I use linseed oil, but it is not durable if left outdoors all year.

What do you think about bigger garden fences painted black? We are stuck between navy blue and black?

I had the bright idea to paint the rickety old fences at my old house dark green to make them look better. The neighbours were a bit dismayed to see the massive dribbles on the fences their side! Luckily they were alright with it in the end and painted over the drips with a pretty blue colour but yes, condition is definitely an issue to bear in mind.

@PigletJohn

Shed stain does not adhere well to smooth, newly planed timber, and peels off.

For hardwood furniture, I use linseed oil, but it is not durable if left outdoors all year.

the furniture I am thinking about is a garden seat with a trellis over the top. It is ancient. Was blue when we arrived 10 years ago, and it wasn;t new then. Has never been painted by us and is now mostly bare weathered grey looking wood.

I was wondering if I could use the same stuff on it, (grey fence and shed paint) or if I need to get something else. I want it to be a colour, so not linseed oil, (and there are patches of blue still to hide)

You could rub it with water and a nylon pan scourer to remove old paint and the eroded surface. Or sandpaper if you prefer.

Thanks

I need to do fences and garage door, bench etc. I’ve never done this before. Do I need to sand it or prepare it on some way, or just slap it on?

We got a cuprinol mixed up in forest mink. Soft brown/grey. Green really pops in front of it.

Easy to paint on with a fence brush.

I’ve just used culprinol Coastal Mist on our fence. It’s a pale blue and I love it - I can’t stop admiring it!