A person about to build a fence still does not know if the wood even needs a sealer. Thompson's WaterSeal opens the series there, before the stain. Beacon put that test in a little over two and a half minutes.
James, the House Judge, is building privacy fence and gates to hide the garbage cans and give the deck more privacy. The video says to splash water on the wood. If it sinks in within the first five seconds, the wood is ready to be sealed. That is what the video says. It is not a Beacon measure of how porous those boards were.
Another brand hiring Beacon for this kind of video is buying the minute before the project starts, when the next customer is still deciding whether to buy the can. A label can say to prep first. It cannot show the splash on the boards that are about to become the fence. James says the next video is where the process continues.
Thompson's did not need the stain color yet. They needed the wood to fail a five-second test so the can makes sense. That is what this video is for.
Read transcript Video dialogue and narration
[00:00.000] Hey everyone, I'm James the House Judge and today I'm doing a really fun project to create some privacy fence and gates. I'd like to hide the garbage cans and then also make our deck more private as well.
[00:26.080] Last summer, I made these small courtyard gates and I want to replicate the design but on a bigger scale. I'm going to be doing it all with the help of Thompson's water seal.
[00:35.060] These fences are going to be made completely out of wood and anytime that you're working with wood, it's so important to protect it with Thompson's water seal because water, sun, wind and moisture can all really damage the wood and the color of it as well.
[00:48.920] How do you know if your wood needs to be waterproofed? It's so simple. Do a splash test and it's exactly like it sounds. When you put water onto the wood, it should beat up and not darken it. If it sinks in within the first five seconds, then you know it's porous and ready to be sealed.
[01:04.640] Thompson's water seal helps homeowners to protect and beautify their outdoor spaces just like my fence. Let's get started with prepping our wood.
[01:12.500] The first thing you need to do is check the weather. You need to make sure that it's not too hot, not too cold and not going to rain for at least 48 hours. 70 degrees is ideal plus partly cloudy just like today, so it's going to be perfect.
[01:25.600] All wood should be cleaned ahead of time. I'm working with new wood to create this fence, therefore I want to make sure that all of the debris is removed from the wood first. But if you're working with existing wood, it's also really important to remove that discoloration that makes wood look unsightly. Plus, cleaning it will help with the durability of waterproofing it and staining it too.
[01:45.040] When you're working with existing wood, make sure that you use Thompson's water seal cleaner, a power washer or a combination of both to remove the discoloration and stains that come from dirt, mildew and mold buildup on the wood surfaces.
[01:58.840] Once you've got the wood prepped, how do you know that you're ready for stain? Make sure that you let it dry, but also make sure that there's no mildew, discoloration or old coatings still on it. The last step in ensuring everything is prepped is to sample a small amount on the wood to make sure it's the color that you want. If you love it, then you're ready to start staining. Make sure you check out our next video to see the entire process continue.
