We Cover The Wood With Varnish

2023 Author: Douglas Hoggarth | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-05-24 11:23

Varnish is probably the simplest and at the same time the most complex material of all paint and varnish products. For its competitiveness, both objective and subjective parameters are equally important. Even if the manufacturer managed to achieve high performance in terms of its strength, durability, spreadability, and so on, but the aesthetic properties are low, then this product is doomed.

In the early 90s, a good range of European-made acrylic water-dispersion varnishes and their various varieties appeared on the Russian market: impregnations, glazing varnishes, tinted varnishes, etc.

The advantages of acrylic water-dispersion varnishes over alkyd ones include: ease of use, fire safety, durability, environmental friendliness, hygiene, in general, the picture is similar to the comparative analysis of acrylic and alkyd paints. All this has already been covered in previous articles.

Let us dwell on just one specific property related to the transparency of varnishes. The fact is that the alkyd film is not transparent to the UV spectrum. Therefore, taking a blow, it gradually destructs and eventually collapses. Acrylic film is transparent to UV rays and therefore their effect on it is minimal, which has a positive effect on the durability and performance of acrylic varnishes.

These materials quickly established themselves as very good but expensive products. After August 98, they became completely inaccessible.

Russian manufacturers were not ready to fully fill this market segment. Instead of working intensively to improve quality, they threw on the market a series of products that could be called varnishes with great pressure.

Unfortunately, we must admit that, unlike paints, so far domestic manufacturers have not generally provided a worthy alternative to European products.

Despite the disappointing information stated above, we can say that in many cases Russian, even incomplete, products can be successfully used, the main thing is to know what they can and what not.

Almost any acrylic water-dispersion pseudo varnish of domestic manufacturers can be successfully used for interior work, except for the floor. For the floor, no one is making yet, although they are on sale, but in fact they cannot be considered parquet. Our company produces a varnish suitable for parquet, but modestly calls it "Universal" and does not consider it specialized, although it surpasses these pseudo-parquet varnishes.

With external work, you need to be even more careful. In pursuit of a low price, manufacturers use inexpensive styrene-acrylic dispersions in the production of varnishes. They are suitable for facade paints, but a good varnish for external work cannot be made from them, especially when it comes to colorless varnish. It gradually turns yellow in the sun and subsequently flakes off. For these purposes, specialized acrylic dispersions are needed.

The situation is somewhat simpler with tinted varnishes. To a large extent, toning takes on the effect of UV radiation. But another pitfall arises here. Often, in order to save money, Russian manufacturers use pigments with low light fastness for toning, which begin to fade after a couple of years. Unfortunately, this factor applies not only to acrylic, but also to all other domestic varnishes.

Let's move on to specific recommendations for work. If you want to get the maximum decorative effect when using a tinted varnish, then it is better to use a colorless varnish for the first layer, otherwise you will see various irregularities arising from differences in the absorbency of different wood fragments. It is better to use a spray for application.

Another recommendation for choosing a varnish. For interior work, especially on surfaces experiencing mechanical stress, it is better to use harder varnishes. These varnishes are also preferred for windows and doors. For external work, flexible varnishes are preferable. In the external environment, the ability of the varnish to withstand strong temperature fluctuations is more important than mechanical stress.

And one more piece of advice. In almost every article, I look at how you can save money. It is better not to save on this class of materials.

Free cheese only comes in mousetraps.