Oil and a little diesel fuel for trailer deck wood.

[hube2]

Anyone have some less toxic recommendations? I really don't want to get my hands, gloves, clothes, gear, cargo, equipment, or playing kiddos smeared with nasty oils anytime in the future. But my new (to me) equipment trailer has bleached out boards after just a couple years in the elements.

Thompson's Water Seal or something like that.

Anything you use will need to be allowed to penetrate.

Once the oil has time to penetrate it does not really rub off easily. I use old oil to a lot of things and I've never had an issue with it rubbing off after a few days, especially if it is out in the elements.

When I was a kid my uncle would hire me to paint all of his fences with old oil mixed with kerosene.

But I can understand why you would not want to do this, so do a test. Take an old piece of 2x4 and put some oil on it, let it sit outside somewhere for few days, then see what you think.

The best thing is like others have said, store it inside, I just don't have luxury.

 

[Gee Ray]

Anyone have some less toxic recommendations? I really don't want to get my hands, gloves, clothes, gear, cargo, equipment, or playing kiddos smeared with nasty oils anytime in the future. But my new (to me) equipment trailer has bleached out boards after just a couple years in the elements.

Linseed oil which does dry. It is also edible.

 

[deezler]

Thanks guys. I gotta give this trailer a full once over and make sure I keep it well preserved, I want to own it for the next 30+ years. I plan to at least build a carport to cover the trailer, so it doesn't get sun (UV) and any rain/snow damage.

 

[PILOON]

When we built a log cabin we tried all kinds of oil treatments.
No matter be it 'log oil', tung or linseed they all turned black over a short while.
A fungicide was needed, however many years later the logs (once scraped) reveled still well preserved beautiful golden colored logs.
So, answer is YES oils do a great job of preserving.

 

[Snobdds]

On the ranch, we have been doing this for at least as long as I've been alive. It works really really well. Some trailers have never needed a new deck, some only needed a new deck because the equipement eventually tears up the wood. If a deck needs replaced, it's never with pressure treated wood, it only twists and shrinks. It gets good old kiln dried wood with a health douse of oil and diesel.

We also it on the wood foundation piers at the cabin. The water just beads off and the wood looks fantastic.

New paint and stain formulas do not hold up. Have you noticed how paint today never dries hard, it always remains soft and tacky...I wish they would stop trying to improve things.

 

[fried1765]

Linseed oil which does dry. It is also edible.

Boiled linseed oil!
Raw linseed oil takes forever to dry.

 

[Root Cause]

So, 50/50 mix of old oil and diesel fuel?

 

[Snobdds]

So, 50/50 mix of old oil and diesel fuel?

I tend to mix it more on the oil side of the ratio. The diesel is just there to thin it down enough to get it through your applicator. I use a 2 gallon garden sprayer.

 

[Lineman North Florida]

So, 50/50 mix of old oil and diesel fuel?

I have never measured it just used the WAG method and never had a problem, I put mine on with a paint roller on a pole so I never even have to bend over, just dip it down in the 5 gallon bucket and roll it over the boards then repeat as someone else stated the diesel is just used to dillute the oil/hydraulic/transmission fluid down to make it penetrate the wood better, trailer boards that have been exposed to the elements and never treated may soak up 4 coats or so before it's saturated good, but left out in the hot sun for a week or so all of the oily residue will be gone.

 

[hube2]

If you use a sprayer you will want to use a higher % of diesel, and you'll want to filter it for a sprayer as well.

I use a brush or a roller so I also use the WAG method. I just want to add enough so that it soaks in before it can run off. Heavy weight oil will take forever to soak in if not diluted enough.