Replies

1. 
   LRutherfor1 | Jul 02, 2002 01:12am | #1

   I've built several pieces of furniture with (pecky) cypress.  I use a spar varathene.  If you want to darken the color, either stain first, or mix a compatible stain with the spar.  It's beautiful wood.  Good Luck,

   Len (Len's Custom Woodworking)

2. 
   dhpascoe | Jul 02, 2002 05:05am | #2

   What you want hasn't been invented yet, and probably never will be. Wood simply will not hold up to the intense rays of the sun, unless, perhaps you are very far north. The problem with wood decks is the extreme expansion and contraction that occurs from water laying on it, baking in the sun and freezing. Take it from someone in the boat buisness, there is no product that you can apply that will work. Not even teak will withstand these conditions beyond a few years without the need to sand off the UV and fungus damaged and erroded surface, despite numerous expensive sealers that are tried and always fail. Those planks are going to absorb water from the three other sides and the ends if you only seal one side. They will expand and contract from heat and cold, then crack and check. I strongly recommend that you NOT use varnish of any type as it will not stay on and end up looking terrible. The so-called "sealers" are just as useless. Stains do not penetrate very far and will errode and leave an uneven appearance,  particularly in high traffic areas. On teak decks, it is always a mistake to apply any kind of fluid that changes the natural color of the wood. I would say that the same applies to any kind of wood on flat decks. It may be best to just let it age and wear naturally; at least the appearance will be consistent.

   Sorry for this rosy report, but wood decks are always a problem no matter how good the wood is.