# Good exterior sandable filler for historic home job???



## david2go

Can someone recommend a good exterior sandable filler for small holes and cracks that also keeps some flexibility for expansion and contraction over time. The job is painting a 1916 wood exterior of old heart pine that is weathered and dried out. We are applying linseed oil after sanding to bare wood and using Advanced Repair Technology's 2 part Flex-Tec HV epoxy for the larger repairs, but that's not real good for the smaller stuff because it has a 12-24 hour cure time and needs to be applied before priming. I know lots of other pros use caulk for this but we don't like to because caulk isn't sandable and most of our painters aren't good enough not to leave lump or depression. 

Anyway, I would appreciate some suggestions here. Thanx!


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## johnpaint

Bondo brand makes a (new for wood use) bondo that work good. About 12.00 per can.


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## chrisn

I read just yesterday that bondo was NOT supposed to be used over previously primed wood, he said he called the manufacturer and that's what they told him. Me, I don't know.:blink:


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## chrisn

david2go said:


> Can someone recommend a good exterior sandable filler for small holes and cracks that also keeps some flexibility for expansion and contraction over time. The job is painting a 1916 wood exterior of old heart pine that is weathered and dried out. We are applying linseed oil after sanding to bare wood and using Advanced Repair Technology's 2 part Flex-Tec HV epoxy for the larger repairs, but that's not real good for the smaller stuff because it has a 12-24 hour cure time and needs to be applied before priming. I know lots of other pros use caulk for this but we don't like to because caulk isn't sandable and most of our painters aren't good enough not to leave lump or depression.
> 
> Anyway, I would appreciate some suggestions here. Thanx!


 

Sounds like you are in need of better quality painters You could try this product


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## chrisn

Is this the same as this??

http://www.painttalk.com/f2/best-way-fix-blemishes-wood-after-has-been-primed-6648/


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## Msargent

Abatron two part mixture.Comes in 2 containers mix both in your hands hardens fast and sandable expensive tho around $400.00 for the 2 tubs I think.


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## david2go

Thanks for the responses. 

johnpaint and chrisn, as for the Bondo wood product which we have a lot of experience with, it dries hard as a rock and is workable, but does NOT have good flexible properties where there is expansion and contraction of the wood. It definitely will crack in those applications. Another product similar to the wood Bondo is the MinWax High Performance Wood Filler, also a 2 part epoxy filler, but also not good in applications of contraction and expansion. 

As for the DAP DryDex, which we have also used, same problem - easy to work with but NOT recommended for areas of contraction and expansion and my experience here is the same - it will crack (I'm not talking about using this for larger holes and cracks; we use the 2 part epoxy for those). 

msargent, I've never used Abatron, but I believe their WoodEpox and LiquidWood are similar to the Advanced Repair Technology Flex-Tec HV that we are currently using. 

We use the Flex-Tec HV (featured on This Old House) because of its excellent qualities and could also use it for the small holes and cracks, but we are looking for something with the same qualities but without the 12-24 hour cure time and something that can be applied over primer if necessary. Flex-Tec is to be applied directly to the wood. My experience is that after filling all the holes, cracks, and repairing major wood damage and then applying a coat of primer, we inevitably find other small holes, divots, cracks, etc. that need to be filled. 

Does anyone have any experience with Crawfords Painters Putty or Synko Exterior Spackling paste on exterior wood in expansion/contraction environments?

Also, just a quick comment with respect to "better quality painters". I've been a GC for a long time and my experience with "quality" based trades persons is always a battle. People who take pride in their work and profession are definitely in the minority, not considering the issue of experience. I would say less than 10% really take pride in their work. Most are living pay check to pay check and thier motivation is money and not the work. The addage that you get what you pay for certainly applies here. My experience with painters is that they tend be a bit on the hard headed side -- they've been doing things in a particular way for a long time and they have a lot of trouble "listening" to the job specs and requirements. Now that being said, I do find and work with great trades people and companies. They're just in the minority.


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## TJ Paint

david2go said:


> Thanks for the responses.
> 
> johnpaint and chrisn, as for the Bondo wood product which we have a lot of experience with, it dries hard as a rock and is workable, but does NOT have good flexible properties where there is expansion and contraction of the wood. It definitely will crack in those applications. Another product similar to the wood Bondo is the MinWax High Performance Wood Filler, also a 2 part epoxy filler, but also not good in applications of contraction and expansion.
> 
> As for the DAP DryDex, which we have also used, same problem - easy to work with but NOT recommended for areas of contraction and expansion and my experience here is the same - it will crack (I'm not talking about using this for larger holes and cracks; we use the 2 part epoxy for those).
> 
> msargent, I've never used Abatron, but I believe their WoodEpox and LiquidWood are similar to the Advanced Repair Technology Flex-Tec HV that we are currently using.
> 
> We use the Flex-Tec HV (featured on This Old House) because of its excellent qualities and could also use it for the small holes and cracks, but we are looking for something with the same qualities but without the 12-24 hour cure time and something that can be applied over primer if necessary. Flex-Tec is to be applied directly to the wood. My experience is that after filling all the holes, cracks, and repairing major wood damage and then applying a coat of primer, we inevitably find other small holes, divots, cracks, etc. that need to be filled.
> 
> Does anyone have any experience with Crawfords Painters Putty or Synko Exterior Spackling paste on exterior wood in expansion/contraction environments?
> 
> Also, just a quick comment with respect to "better quality painters". I've been a GC for a long time and my experience with "quality" based trades persons is always a battle. People who take pride in their work and profession are definitely in the minority, not considering the issue of experience. I would say less than 10% really take pride in their work. Most are living pay check to pay check and thier motivation is money and not the work. The addage that you get what you pay for certainly applies here. My experience with painters is that they tend be a bit on the hard headed side -- they've been doing things in a particular way for a long time and they have a lot of trouble "listening" to the job specs and requirements. Now that being said, I do find and work with great trades people and companies. They're just in the minority.


What you say about painters living paycheck to paycheck is probably right in alot of cases. I think the relationships that occur as far as GCs and painters are concerned set this up. I think in most cases the GC instigates this situation, by usually hiring the lowest bidder, and usually not valueing any type of loyalty by dropping the painter as soon as another comes along with a lower bid. What kind of quality do you expect to find within this environment? I can't say if thats how you operate, and don't assume you are like this, but as you make a generalization about painters, I guess I will generalize about GC the same way, and this is my take on this vicious cycle.


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## johnpaint

See this is why I really don't use and kind of patching material on the exterior of a house. They just don't work! The only thing that does work is caulking and I can smooth out caulking like many people wish they could. Sometimes I caulk and recaulk over that to make it look the way I want.Caulking is not perfect in any way but it is flexible, these other patches are not.And as far as caulking I always caulk after priming the wood.


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## LA Painter

Flexible and sandable don’t exist. Everything is a tradeoff.

I like Crawfords for minor skim coating on solid (primed) surfaces where expansion is unlikely.

On problem / expanding areas, feathering to bare wood is the only way to go for a lasting finish. Using caulking for a skim coat on primed surfaces works pretty good, but you gotta get it right the first time. Not for noobs.

Deep damage... depends on the exposure, but if something is really bad, I urge the HO to have the wood replaced. Otherwise, bondo or whatever, and tell them it’s only a band-aid, and not included in my warranty.


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## surfover40

WoodEpox by Abatron. Been using it for 15 yrs. Nothing Better. 2 part epoxy. Dries overnight, but can be accelerated by heat. 2 gallons is $168 with shipping. Nothing compares. go to abatron.com.


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## nEighter

I am actually going to try the arbatron out. DO NOT USE bondo. SUCKS.. almost always cracks or separates from the substrait. And NO you don't want to try to bondo on primed surfaces, must use a 80grit to profile the surface to get it to last any time at all. The primed surface will not allow for it to bite into the wood.


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## fixalot

*Abatron vs RotDoctor*

Has anyone tried RotDoctor's product? They claim to have superior penetration...

http://www.rotdoctor.com/test/penetration.html

I noticed that RotDoctor's filler has one advantage over Abatron's pre-mixed filler. You can vary the consistency of RotDoctor's filler which is a runny epoxy resin that you can mix with sawdust to any desired consistency you want. They also have a pre-mixed version available. 

I don't think you can thin out Abatron's filler which makes it impossible to reach and fill those small delineated voids deep inside a piece of damaged wood.

-just my 2 cts


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## aaron61

Are you RRP Certified??? If not I'm callin the cops!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## bikerboy

http://www.elmers.com/product/detail/E848D12?filterPath=multi-purpose ?


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## brushmonkey

WoodEpox is really good stuff we use alot of it. We also use the 2 part Liquidwood by Albatron for some rotten areas. To get it in to deep areas we get large animal syringes without needles at the nearby Ranch & Farm store & inject it into beam ends /log ends/ hollow sections on window sills etc or drill a hole in an area & fill away. Its about same price @ 175.00 for 2 gallons & works awesome for spongy wood.:thumbsup:


surfover40 said:


> WoodEpox by Abatron. Been using it for 15 yrs. Nothing Better. 2 part epoxy. Dries overnight, but can be accelerated by heat. 2 gallons is $168 with shipping. Nothing compares. go to abatron.com.


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## PatsPainting

I have always made it a habit to tell the customer that pretty much what ever we use will fail after a period of time. The only true remedy is to replace the wood. I also tell them you just have to weight out your options, the cost to replace the wood or spending a half hour every year or so on fixing the failed areas. Sometimes they choose to replace the wood if its easy enough and other times they choose to patch it and deal with later. Either way I cover myself. 

I use the stuff that bikerboy posted and bondo sometimes, for hair line stuff I will use flexall.

Pat


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## Woody

fixalot said:


> Has anyone tried RotDoctor's product? They claim to have superior penetration...
> 
> http://www.rotdoctor.com/test/penetration.html
> 
> I noticed that RotDoctor's filler has one advantage over Abatron's pre-mixed filler. You can vary the consistency of RotDoctor's filler which is a runny epoxy resin that you can mix with sawdust to any desired consistency you want. They also have a pre-mixed version available.
> 
> I don't think you can thin out Abatron's filler which makes it impossible to reach and fill those small delineated voids deep inside a piece of damaged wood.
> 
> -just my 2 cts



My wife could use this stuff...my back is out


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## aaron61

*Angie's List*

This months Angie's List Magazine has an article about RRP & hiring certified contractors.They also allow you a "LeadSafe" logo on your listing.


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## Ralph Black

*Spackling*



david2go said:


> Can someone recommend a good exterior sandable filler for small holes and cracks that also keeps some flexibility for expansion and contraction over time. The job is painting a 1916 wood exterior of old heart pine that is weathered and dried out. We are applying linseed oil after sanding to bare wood and using Advanced Repair Technology's 2 part Flex-Tec HV epoxy for the larger repairs, but that's not real good for the smaller stuff because it has a 12-24 hour cure time and needs to be applied before priming. I know lots of other pros use caulk for this but we don't like to because caulk isn't sandable and most of our painters aren't good enough not to leave lump or depression.
> 
> Anyway, I would appreciate some suggestions here. Thanx!


The spacking we use is Synkloid's exterior. It's smooth texture makes it easy to work with. I do historic work in Memphis, TN. and have used it for years. The only downside is that spackling will cure hard and will not have the pliability you are hoping for. We have been using it for years on historic homes and have had nothing but good results.


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## chrisn

Ralph Black said:


> The spacking we use is Synkloid's exterior. It's smooth texture makes it easy to work with. I do historic work in Memphis, TN. and have used it for years. The only downside is that spackling will cure hard and will not have the pliability you are hoping for. We have been using it for years on historic homes and have had nothing but good results.


 
I am betting since this thread is over 2 years old , that this job is probably finished by now.:blink:


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## Steve Richards

If I was gonna claim that Synk's ext. Spackle is a good choice...

I'd want it buried at the end of a 2 year old thread too.


BTW
Sorry if that was rude


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## chrisn

_Last edited by Steve Richards; Yesterday at 10:34 AM.. Reason: been hanging around with TJ for too long _

_THAT, I believe:laughing:_


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## TERRY365PAINTER

surfover40 said:


> WoodEpox by Abatron. Been using it for 15 yrs. Nothing Better. 2 part epoxy. Dries overnight, but can be accelerated by heat. 2 gallons is $168 with shipping. Nothing compares. go to abatron.com.


I have been looking at this product for sometime . You say 168.00 for 2 gallons 
It's says on the site 318.00 for the kit . Am I looking at the wrong product then ?


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