Painting one side of a fence

Horizon81

I need to paint one side of a fence I had put up last year. The wood is pre treated but it needs a coat of paint to smarten it up. Due to location of the fence I am only able to paint my side of it, however I've read that painting only one side can lead to problems with paint peeling off, as water comes through the unpainted side. Is there any truth in this? I wouldn't want to paint my side only for it to blister up and look a mess!

Or are certain paint types preferable to others?

ValHaller

You don't want paint -which is a layer on the surface - you want a stain which soaks right in. That will deal with the lifting question

If you apply too much you will get runs on the other side, which won't matter if the other side is physically inaccessible, but might motivate an otherwise uncooperative neighbour to let you in.

evoke

Agree with ValHaller. Use a wood preserver. If you really want to paint it then it's best to do both sides. Just have a chat with your neighbour as i'm sure he/she will be happy to have their side painted for free!

Just a word of caution when painting a fence - if you use a sprayer then be mindful that it will spatter all over your neighbours garden. My neighbours painted their side of the fence that I am responsible for with a sprayer and I had dark paint (fence stain) spatter all over my beautiful stone slab feature, my decking and my patio door which was very hard to remove.

Horizon81

Yes perhaps my terminology was wrong - I was looking at Cuprinol Ducksback but that sounds waxy so it may well blister up?
Most fence paints are watery and soak into the wood are they not?

Can you recommend any?

The neighbour and I don't get on. Ideally I'd paint both sides but I'm not going to ask if I can go in their garden to do it. If it gets runs it gets runs.

evoke

^ Yes, they are designed to soak into the wood rather than just provide a surface film of protection. A wood preserver is far better than paint for exposed timber.

cyclonebri1

If you ever have a fence installed it is imperative that the panels can be removed for preservative treatment. Amazed if your installer didn't make you aware of this or didn't do it anyway.

If you have concrete post check to see what stops the wooden panels from lifting out, usually a couple of screws on your side, something similar with wooden posts.

Horizon81

cyclonebri1 wrote: »

If you ever have a fence installed it is imperative that the panels can be removed for preservative treatment. Amazed if your installer didn't make you aware of this or didn't do it anyway.

If you have concrete post check to see what stops the wooden panels from lifting out, usually a couple of screws on your side, something similar with wooden posts.

It's not panels it's a proper fence, like 9 out of 10 fences are. Posts 6ft apart, 3 rows of slats then board (6ft by 6") nailed to it.

cyclonebri1

Horizon81 wrote: »

It's not panels it's a proper fence, like 9 out of 10 fences are. Posts 6ft apart, 3 rows of slats then board (6ft by 6") nailed to it.

No, most modern fences or fence installers have the foresight to see that the fence will need maintenance.

A proper fence?. sorry short sightedness on your part, 9 from 10 now go the other way.

For what it's worth, I'm with you, the old ranch fence as it is called does look much better;);)

Horizon81

Hey who are you calling short sighted! :-p I guess it's different in your part of the world. All the fences round here, including those on new builds, are what you call a ranch style fence. I can't imagine people lifting out panels every so often to paint. I had several contractors quoting for the job and none suggested doing it your way.

Anyway, back to th pressure treated thing - should this infulence my choice of paint stain?

cyclonebri1

Horizon81 wrote: »

Hey who are you calling short sighted! :-p I guess it's different in your part of the world. All the fences round here, including those on new builds, are what you call a ranch style fence. I can't imagine people lifting out panels every so often to paint. I had several contractors quoting for the job and none suggested doing it your way.

Anyway, back to th pressure treated thing - should this infulence my choice of paint stain?

Sorry about that, it was just your dismissal of anything other than you have as in improper fence:D

But, ranch style fencing is used on new builds for 2 reasons maybe 3

It's cheap, the owners are likely to replace it with something more substantial and or open front planning regs do not allow solid fencing.

Either way it is normal practice when building an improper fence;);), to have the panels removable.

Not helpful to you I know, but these topics usually help someone else indirectly

Horizon81

We'll agree to disagree. In all my years I've never seen anyone physically removing a fence to paint it, then slotting it all back together.

Anyway, regardless of the fence composition, if it's tanalised pressure treted timber, been up for 9 months, is it ok to cover it with a water based stain like Cuprinol Ducksback?!