Natural weathering on coated tropical woods

Abstract

Teak and pine are common wood species in Indonesia. The purpose of this research is to evaluate the performance of the coating layer in these wood species after six months natural weathering. The durability on natural weathering is evaluated due to microbial disfigurement (fungi or algae), checking and cracking, whereas microbial disfigurement (fungi or algae) is evaluated using ASTM D 3274-95, checking with ASTM D660-93, and cracking with ASTM D 661-93. Wood samples of 30 (l) × 15 (w) × 2 (t) cm are sanded before painted, then preservatives, water repellents, and its combinations are applied on the surface of the samples. The results showed that the coating layer of the combination of paint and preservatives and the combination of paint and water repellents could provide better protection of the surface on long rotation teak, short rotation teak, and pine boards against microbial disfigurement, checking and cracking compared to the other coating layers after 24 weeks of natural weathering. The coating layers on long rotation teak and short rotation teak gave better protection against microbial disfigurement, checking and cracking than pine wood. The coating layer on the radial section gave better protection compared to the tangential section. However, the durability of the coating layer on the radial and tangential section is not significantly different.