You’ve looked long and hard and found your dream summerhouse, the perfect bolt hole for your garden.
You’ve spent time and taken great care to treat its timbers to give it as long a life as possible to guarantee you years of pleasure – and plenty of much welcome me-time!
Now it’s time to turn your attention to the inside of the summerhouse to give it some TLC.
Choosing a treatment for the interior walls and floors will protect the timber against dirt and grime, keeping it easy to maintain and clean.
Sealing the wood protects it from water and reduces the chance of moisture absorption which can lead to splits and cracks in the wood.
You may want stamp your personality on the inside with a splash of colour on the walls to create a light, bright, inviting and stylish living space.
Or think about emphasising the natural beauty of the woodgrain in the timber with interior wood oil.
Both paint and wood oil prevent water or other contaminates from damaging the appearance of the grain and help make the wood liquid and stain resistant.
Interior Walls and Ceiling
Wood Oil:
- Adds protection by penetrating the wood to replenish its natural oils
- Enhances the beauty of the wood and emphasises its texture
- Keeps a natural feel
- Durable and long lasting
- Easy to maintain
- Makes cleaning easier
Hard wax oils are far more easy to maintain than other traditional oils such as teak or danish oil, providing increased protection from dirt and dust. Made from a combination of blend of oils, resins and waxes, this type of oil is just the job for summerhouse interior walls.
Recommendation: Osmo Polyx Oil A solvent-based hard wax oil for interior wood. Highly versatile.
Clear hard wax oils can darken the wood so if you are wanting a natural, untreated appearance inside your summerhouse, go for a specially formulated raw or natural version.
Recommendation: Osmo Polyx Oil Raw
Can you use an exterior wood oil inside a summerhouse?
To protect exterior timber from algae, mould and insects, a majority of exterior wood oils include additional additives such as fungicides and biocides. Therefore, to prevent any potential skin reactions or allergies, they are not suitable for use inside a summerhouse.
Paint:
What better way to add some character to your outdoor living space than a splash of colour. Go crazy with something bright and cheerful, or you may be wanting to create a serene, relaxing area with creams or white. A great opportunity to have some fun and stamp your mark.
Two or more coats of paint will be needed due to the highly absorbent nature of the wood – and you will need to use a wood primer with particularly porous walls.
The interior and exterior walls of a summerhouse are constructed from the same piece of wood. A good recommendation therefore is to use exterior wood paint on the inside as this will help provide resistance to moisture getting through and protect against damp.
Recommendation: Cuprinol Garden Shades Water based, easy to apply and available in a huge choice of colours.
Please note – If summerhouse walls are insulated and sealed from moisture, you have the option to use almost any kind of paint inside.
Top tip – using a paint brush would give the best results as the timber will have slight surface variations which will make it be hard to cover with a roller.
Floor
You really don’t want dirt and grime to get into the floorboards and ruin it over time.
It is therefore important to protect the floor by sealing the wood with a floor oil.
Available to be used on both hardwoods and softwoods, floor oils come in many different finishes and are a fabulous way to highlight the grain in the wood and create an eye-catching feature for your summerhouse.
Recommendation: Osmo Polyx Oil As recommended above for the walls
