Wood Facade Paints – How to Choose the Best Paint and Shade for Your Wood Facade?
The wooden facade is the calling card of any house, exposed daily to various external conditions—rain, snow, UV radiation, rapid temperature fluctuations, and frost—so it is essential to choose a wood facade paint that can provide long-lasting protection against external weather conditions while preserving the natural properties of the wood.
Wood structure and moisture regulation
To choose the most suitable paint for a wooden facade, it is necessary to understand how external conditions affect the physical and mechanical properties of wood. Wood is a hygroscopic material, meaning it absorbs and releases water vapor (moisture) depending on the ambient humidity level. Wood contains microscopic pores and capillaries that allow water vapor to enter and exit. As a result, in dry weather, wood mechanically contracts as it releases moisture, while in humid conditions it expands as it absorbs moisture from the environment. Such changes in wood due to external conditions occur throughout its lifetime, regardless of whether the wood is painted or otherwise treated.
Given these conditions, wood facade paint should form a hydrophobic protective layer that repels water droplets, while at the same time allowing the wood to "breathe" and release water vapor from the wood's pores. This helps maintain a stable microclimate within the wood, preventing excessive moisture absorption that can cause wood damage, rot, and mold.
Similarly, facade paint must be able to create a highly flexible coating that adapts to the wood's mechanical movements and changes caused by moisture, completely preventing the paint from cracking and peeling.
Properties of linseed oil paint
Linseed oil paint has been known for centuries. Natural linseed oil paint is based on cold-pressed linseed oil, to which natural mineral pigments are added to achieve the desired color shade, helping to protect the wood from UV radiation. Linseed oil paints possess several unique properties compared to synthetic paints.
When linseed oil paint is applied to a wooden surface, it begins to oxidize upon contact with oxygen in the air. This chemical reaction, called polymerization, forms a durable and flexible coating that penetrates deeply into the wood. This protective layer is hydrophobic, meaning it repels water droplets.
The molecules of linseed oil paint are up to dozens of times smaller compared to synthetic paints, allowing them to easily penetrate the pores and capillaries of the wood. This ensures deep absorption into the wood, filling the pores and creating a protective layer from within. This is a unique property of linseed oil paint, providing both excellent adhesion to the surface and protection against moisture and mold.
A layer of linseed oil paint forms a highly flexible coating that adapts to the wood's mechanical movements and changes caused by moisture, completely preventing the paint from cracking and peeling.
Comparison with synthetic paints
Synthetic paints often form a thicker, harder, and less elastic paint layer, which may prevent water vapor from escaping freely from the wood's pores. As a result, this can cause the paint to crack and peel, as well as lead to wood deformation, damage, and rot.
In contrast, linseed oil paints ensure that the wood can freely release water vapor from its pores while protecting it from external conditions.
Facade color selection
The color shade in the catalog or on the screen may differ from the actual shade. Likewise, the color shade after application and drying may differ slightly from the original, which can be influenced, for example, by lighting or the type of wood material. One of the advantages of our linseed oil paint range is the availability of color samples in 200ml packaging. This allows you to order and try one or more shades to find the most suitable for your facade and environment. A surface coated once with our linseed oil paint can be repainted with another shade without restrictions, allowing you to experiment and try until you find the most suitable tone.
Easy restoration
Another very significant advantage is the easy restoration of the linseed oil paint layer. When, over time, the facade begins to lose its gloss, it can be easily restored by applying boiled linseed, which not only restores the gloss but also provides additional protection against moisture. Boiled linseed is many times cheaper than any linseed oil paint, resulting in significant long-term savings.
One of the greatest advantages of linseed oil paint is that the surface does not need to be stripped of existing linseed oil paint if, after some time, you wish to repaint it in a different shade, which significantly saves both time and financial resources.
Durability
Linseed oil paints have been used for centuries in our climatic conditions. Even today, well-preserved wooden structures painted 100 or more years ago can still be found. Today, linseed oil paints are also widely used in restoration, renewing and restoring historic wooden facades, windows, doors, and other wooden structures. Their ingredients have not changed significantly since the 16th century, when linseed oil paints began to be widely used in construction and craftsmanship.
Allbäck linseed oil paints are 100% natural paints for wood, suitable for both interior and exterior use, from Sweden. Contains no solvents or stabilizers. They are especially suitable for wooden facades. Proven for over 30 years in the harshest weather conditions in the Nordic countries and elsewhere in the world, now also available in Latvia.