We’ve been getting stuck into our to-do list lately. Last weekend we put a second coat of oil on the cedar cladding, making use the scaffolding around the bedroom pod before it was dismantled.
The boards came out of the Rosenfeld Kidson factory with one coat of oil, but we needed to apply another one within 90 days to fully protect the timber. Because our cedar has a smooth, dressed face, the oil went on effortlessly with a combo of speed brush and paintbrush.
We actually added a slight tint to the oil, which looks great and added a more polished feel to the cladding while keeping the lovely natural tones of the cedar.
Hi guys, love your cedar colour. What was the oil you picked for your first coat from the factory? Thanks
Hey Becky – thank you, it’s pretty choice eh!
The coat ex the factory is just a natural, protective oil coating, with no tint to it. We then applied ‘driftwood’ as the second coat. There are a host of colour options which makes the decision tough! We drove around houses for weeks looking at their colourings. In the end, the guys at Rosenfeld Kidson suggested we look at a house they had just finished in driftwood and that sold it for us – so much better to see the colour on a house, vs a small sample. Good luck 
Thanks Ben, we really like the driftwood, what house did you guys view it on if you don’t mind me asking?
It was on Muritai Rd in Milford – forget the number but it’s two houses back from the beach – very easy to see when you get there
– or more than welcome to pop by ours, though she’s still a building site with scaffolding and tarps up, so not the best impression at the moment if trying to see the cedar in all its glory!
Thanks Ben we just drove past and love it, thanks so much for your help.
No worries – wow, that was fast! Looks so good eh!
Hiya Ben
Love the cedar tint – did you use the Intergrain Natural Stain product?
Cheers
Hey Sue, no it’s Dryden Wood Oil – the Rosenfeld Kidson factory supplies it with one coat already applied, then supplied us with enough to put a top coat on once fixed to the house.
Hey Guys, love the house. Just a question regarding your cedar cladding, what were your reasons for choosing dressed over band sawn? Was it purely aesthetic? We really like the dressed but the companies supplying the cedar seem to all recommend/promote the band dawn. Did you have any issues with the stain “pooling” or not penetrating the wood? Thanks a lot
Thanks Melody! Yes the main reason we chose the dressed finish was for aesthetics, as we wanted a sleeker, more polished finish. It also helped make the oil application easier. We found no problems with the oil penetrating. We applied it over the cladding as the house progressed, one half was done completely in the height of summer and it just soaked it up in a matter of hours. The last 1/4 was done around May/June, on the southern side and it did sit on the surface a lot longer, but it did soak in eventually. It’s a perfect finish all over now and has weathered really well, holding a lot of colour and no sign of the boards warping. Although just getting ready to give the house another coat pre summer as per the maintenance schedule. Cedar is a labour of love! Hope that helps
Hi Guys.
Looking awesome. we’re just building a house and got some cedar cladding.
just one question 4 years on how has the Dryden hold up on the cedar?
did you put some more cote on it since?
such a hard choice how to treat the cladding…
regards
Kris
Thanks Kris.
Yeah we’re almost 6 years on now and the cedar is pretty close to new still. Not cupping or splitting and the colour is good too.
I do maintain it pretty well though, as per the Dryden recommendation, of a soft wash with water annually, then I would do a face a year at least with another coat. Although mainly the north facing sides as you’d expect. I believe Dryden recommend a new coat every 5 years so this my way of making it pretty manageable. Application is easy, especially since we have a dressed face.
Certainly not set and forget, but it’s a beautiful finish.
Hope that helps!
Cheers
Ben