Think I’ve found why my shed is causing me issues

[formula400]

Right so my shed has tiny bits of mould on the inside on the side that faces the garden also a small bit of the floor is damp, It’s where the wife’s bloody plants /bushes are up against it. I’ve given that side a cleanibg with diluted bleach. I’ve moved the plants away so now air is between the plants and shed and I’ll leave the tubular heater on along that wall for a few days and check it nightly.

Now my question is……. Do I tell the wife she can’t have plants against it, or can I put another bit of wood between the shed and the plants with little batton’s so they go up against that and then there is still a gap for air to circulate???

[Rockburner]

Air circulation is always a good thing.

[Rockburner]

Different question - has the shed been treated with anything since you bought it? It might be worth investing in something that will protect the outer wood surfaces on top of any pre-treatments.

[formula400]

Different question - has the shed been treated with anything since you bought it? It might be worth investing in something that will protect the outer wood surfaces on top of any pre-treatments.

no it has not been. talk to me??? you mean paint it right??? ill do that to help it. can it be done in the winter like now or is it a case of waiting??

[Yorick]

Something like a pallet is ideal to keep them away.

[formula400]

Something like a pallet is ideal to keep them away.

that's an idea, ill get in to that once its been treated

[Skub]

Cuprinol Duck's back is what we used on Mrs.Skub's she shed. 5 year guarantee,they say.

[Rockburner]

Treat or paint will help

[Horse]

Treat ... will help

Chocolates, flowers, out for a meal?

No, hang on, it was the flowers causing the problem.

[mangocrazy]

Ammonium sulphamate is good for stopping vegetation from causing problems. There may be some explaining to be done as to why all your wife's plants have shrivelled up and died though...

[demographic]

When we build timber kits that sometimes get clad with timber, we make sure there's an airgap behind the cladding. Its got insect mesh so critters don't set up home in the gap.

[Bigyin]

Cuprinol Duck's back is what we used on Mrs.Skub's she shed. 5 year guarantee,they say.

I used that on my new shed when we moved in May 2019, 2 full coats .... i repainted it summer 2022 as it was fading a lot so the 5 year guarantee is a load of bollocks

Does a good job of beading the rain over the first couple of years though so i will continue to redo it every 3 years or so

[Pirahna]

I've had mixed success with Ducks Back. It was fantastic on the weather boarding on the house, the open grain in the board just soaked it up and it did what is said on the tin. On wood with a closer grain I found it didn't work well at all. My dad has two sheds with an almost planed finish, painted them in Ducks Back and had to do them again a few months later with a different paint (can't remember what I use though). Our fence panels also had a dislike to Ducks Back, normal fence paint was fine though.

[Le_Fromage_Grande]

Impregnate the wood with creosote like a telegraph pole, they last about 20 years and rot from the inside outwards.

[Rockburner]

Impregnate the wood with creosote like a telegraph pole, they last about 20 years and rot from the inside outwards.

IIRC you can't buy 'proper' creosote any more because it's highly carcinogenic. The stuff you get 'over-the-counter' is something different, and far less effective. (it might be just heavily watered down).

I imagine things like telegraph poles are treated with 'proper' creosote in (allegedly) properly managed H&S approved conditions.

[DefTrap]

I may have treated my (getting on for 10yo now so aesthetics aren't a high priority) decking with diesel/oldMotorOil for that gypsy chic.
I did it before with some of that 'NoNonsense' brand stuff, and it was a bit of a waste of time TBH

[v8-powered]

There's a stuff called Creocote that is pretty much as good as old Creosote, did the decking in our old house with it and lasted about 5 years before needing doing again.

[mangocrazy]

I believe that the 'real' creosote is available from places like agricultural suppliers who sell to farmers. Not sure on what background checks they apply, but if you were to walk into a place selling tractor spares in clothes you've used to fix the car/van in and act as if it's all routine, you could probably walk out with a 20 litre drum of the stuff.

Just don't ask for a litre bottle. That marks you out as a DIY Nigel immediately.

[Horse]

I may have treated my (getting on for 10yo now so aesthetics aren't a high priority) decking with diesel/oldMotorOil for that gypsy chic.
I did it before with some of that 'NoNonsense' brand stuff, and it was a bit of a waste of time TBH

'Treat'?

I pressure wash my decking once a year. The boards are 24 years old.

[cheb]

You can buy real creosote, just as you can buy paint stripper based on methylene chloride (dichloromethane) . You just have to be trade and not just a member of the public. This is of course rigorously enforced and comprehensive checks are made, it's not like you can just buy it via Ebay or the like and have it posted, that would make a mockery of the legislation.