Should I "Treat" The Treated Plywood That Will Go On My Trailer?

[SweetMK]

I have a 4X8 tilt trailer that is decked with a sheet of gold,, I mean 3/4" treated plywood.
The original treated plywood is 30 years old, and has "given up the ghost".
In all honesty, the treated plywood looked pretty bad at about 10-15 years old.

Because it looked so bad so quickly, I think I should treat the new gold, I mean treated plywood,, with something.

My wife likes to have the cut-in-half whiskey barrels (probably oak?) in the yard. They do not last long full of dirt.
I have a plastic planter that fits in them, that helps some.
On the last set of barrels that I bought for her, I coated the barrels with used motor oil, out of a diesel.
It has been a few years, the motor oil is holding up nicely. (no worry about plant contamination, only growing flowers)
The barrels actually still look like new. (,,, and, the oil "stained" the wood to a nice dark color)

Because of the barrel results, I am thinking about coating the plywood for the trailer with the used motor oil.

I know I could use deck stain, but, that does not seem to last much different than the used motor oil,,
AND, I think the motor oil would soak in better..
The motor oil would probably hold up better to trailer type use, compared to deck type use,,,
Am I mis-thinking this? Should I consider treating the treated plywood with something else??
(I do have left over oil based paint, similar to "Rust-Oleum",, or the "MAJIC Paint" Tractor Supply sells,, ,,Hmmmmm,,)

Yes, I am trying to cheap-out on this project, this is just a "yard-cart" type use trailer.
Besides hauling some firewood, and brush, the trailer is more often used as a mobile workbench.
The trailer was last painted when I painted a DIY picnic table frame,
I had extra paint in the gun, "and I just kept on painting"!! LOL!!

I am not much of a woodworker, that is why I am hoping you guys can give me some guidance,,,
So, what do you think? Stain? Oil? Paint? Something Else?

`~`

 

[holeycow]

oil paint. Thin the first coat with turpentine as per instructions. Do the edges and both sides. It should last nearly forever.
what kind of plywood? Fir will considerably outlast spruce. And it has to be exterior grade, which all treated ply should be anyway..

 

[ATpro]

So, what do you think? Stain? Oil? Paint? Something Else?

COPPER-GREEN Oil-based Wood Preservative

 

[holeycow]

It's already treated with that. It does not seal the surface nearly as well as paint.

 

[ozark52]

Used motor oil and a little diesel mixed in is what the old boys used around here.

 

[SS396driver]

Like ozark said used motor oil and diesel . Coat every few years this was done on old pickups with wood beds back in the day. But you will most likely need to let the plywood season a little

 

[SweetMK]

Like ozark said used motor oil and diesel . Coat every few years this was done on old pickups with wood beds back in the day. But you will most likely need to let the plywood season a little

Rather than the "BIG BOX" stores. I went to 84 LUMBER,
their treated wood is under cover, outside,, I would bet the sheet of treated plywood that I bought has been sitting since before COVID!

It is REALLY dry, that is one of the reasons I went to 84 Lumber,, they seem to have a little bit nicer wood.

So, I think I am ready,, for, WHATEVER WE decide is best!

 

[SweetMK]

When I got the sheet home, I happened to read the printed info on the sheet of plywood.
That marking said the wood was 0.688 inches thick.
Hmmmm,, ANOTHER item that you receive less, heck, 0.688 is pretty close to 5/8" (0.625")

For the heck of it, I got out the caliper and found an un-damaged spot on the old sheet.
The old, removed plywood measured 0.750",, which is 3/4" thick.

Then, I measured the new stuff,, it measures 0.750" thick.

So, what I got is a sheet of 3/4" thick.

I wonder if it was mis-marked, or do they mark it as 0.688" thick so that you will not complain if the wood shrinks,
or is accidentally made too thin??

 

[SweetMK]

It's already treated with that. It does not seal the surface nearly as well as paint.

Yes, it is treated, but, around here, the weather changes treated wood to an ugly gray color,,
Around the year 2000, we put up several hundred feet of treated board fence.
My wife stained the boards ( and posts ) before install, then another coat after install.

Just last summer, she re-stained the fence,, it looks brand new,, even at 22 years old.

Hmmmmmm,, maybe, I need to use deck stain like she used on the fence,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

This is the fence she stained, when it was about 15 years old,,,,,,

 

[rancher2]

My vote is for used oil and the diesel mix. We save our used hyd oil separate from the motor oil and have used that with diesel fuel mixed on wood trailer floors for well over fifty years. Have a old low boy dozer trailer that has bridge plants on it and it get oiled once a year and that trailer hasn't seen a shed in forty years other than to repair it and the planks are still solid.

 

[SweetMK]

I had not thought of hydraulic oil,, I have LOTS of used hydraulic oil,,,,,,,,,,,

 

[bbxlr8]

I use the 3/4 treated & give it an initial coat of good quality opaque deck stain. I built sides on a very similar trailer that I have had for just under 30Y (mule or something like that?) and coat the edges of the 3/4" with silicone caulk. This last about 12-15 Y but more so due to serious abuse than degradation.

IF I went the oil route I think I would probably slip and kill myself in wet conditions as I am frequently in there

 

[gary courtney]

creosote

 

[SweetMK]

creosote

Maybe in the 1970's,, I doubt that it is sold around here,,
I saw two guys build a pit silo out of creosoted boards. (in 1972)
The boss told them, DO NOT set the nails flush, the creosote will splash.

I guess that is a hard habit to break, for a carpenter, EVERY time they set a nail flush, a tiny dot of creosote would splash up.

The next day, both guys were covered in red dots, where the creosote got on their flesh,,,
and LOTS of spots on their faces,,

 

[Captain Bruce]

I have a 4X8 tilt trailer that is decked with a sheet of gold,, I mean 3/4" treated plywood.
The original treated plywood is 30 years old, and has "given up the ghost".
In all honesty, the treated plywood looked pretty bad at about 10-15 years old.

Because it looked so bad so quickly, I think I should treat the new gold, I mean treated plywood,, with something.

My wife likes to have the cut-in-half whiskey barrels (probably oak?) in the yard. They do not last long full of dirt.
I have a plastic planter that fits in them, that helps some.
On the last set of barrels that I bought for her, I coated the barrels with used motor oil, out of a diesel.
It has been a few years, the motor oil is holding up nicely. (no worry about plant contamination, only growing flowers)
The barrels actually still look like new. (,,, and, the oil "stained" the wood to a nice dark color)

Because of the barrel results, I am thinking about coating the plywood for the trailer with the used motor oil.

I know I could use deck stain, but, that does not seem to last much different than the used motor oil,,
AND, I think the motor oil would soak in better..
The motor oil would probably hold up better to trailer type use, compared to deck type use,,,
Am I mis-thinking this? Should I consider treating the treated plywood with something else??
(I do have left over oil based paint, similar to "Rust-Oleum",, or the "MAJIC Paint" Tractor Supply sells,, ,,Hmmmmm,,)

Yes, I am trying to cheap-out on this project, this is just a "yard-cart" type use trailer.
Besides hauling some firewood, and brush, the trailer is more often used as a mobile workbench.
The trailer was last painted when I painted a DIY picnic table frame,
I had extra paint in the gun, "and I just kept on painting"!! LOL!!

I am not much of a woodworker, that is why I am hoping you guys can give me some guidance,,,
So, what do you think? Stain? Oil? Paint? Something Else?

`~`

The cost of a sheet of plywood is crazy, but certainly doesn''t make it Gold. Its a trailer. Its keeping your stuff right.
Leave the upper face be or use 4 bucks worth of linseed oil. Something that will soak in, and butts can sit on, and stay clean. The underside should get a rolled thick coat, of roof sealer. Used engine oil is to be re-cycled, at no cost, anywhere in the country. We have 3 of these small trailers. Nice Red! Is that a Tractor Supply paint?

 

[SweetMK]

The cost of a sheet of plywood is crazy, but certainly doesn''t make it Gold. Its a trailer. Its keeping your stuff right.
Leave the upper face be or use 4 bucks worth of linseed oil. Something that will soak in, and butts can sit on, and stay clean. The underside should get a rolled thick coat, of roof sealer. Used engine oil is to be re-cycled, at no cost, anywhere in the country. We have 3 of these small trailers. Nice Red! Is that a Tractor Supply paint?

Yea, I believe it is MAJIC Paint, IH red.

We could not find a carpenter to replace the 40 year old door on our home.

(something about it being difficult because there is brick inside, and outside?)

Well, my wife chose a color, I decided to try and paint the door with tractor paint, as a primer (it is a steel door)
I figured it might be good to try to match the color she selected, so that if the top coat chipped, or wore away, the primer would be similar.

I mixed 50% IH red, 35% Allis Chalmers orange, and 15% JD green.
I almost hit the color she wanted.

It is so close, we have not repainted it,, yet.
I added hardener, so it is VERY high gloss.
Gloss paint is seldom seen on houses, so everyone comments about the door, that, "for some reason" it looks really nice.
I think it is the high gloss, it catches your eye,,,

 

[preventec47]

I am 68 years old and my grandfather had a barn when I was a kid that still stands in good shape
where they have periodically coated the sides of the barn outside with used oil from their tractors. The exterior appears to be black. I would go with the used oil and I dont think hydralic or motor oil matters. Be sure the wood has near zero moisture and best to apply in hot hot mid summer sun where you know the heat has cooked the moisture out before application. The only thing that is a little off putting is there is that familiar oil smell always present.

 

[dboyd351]

Your first picture shows oriented strand board (OSB) not regular plywood
If the plywood you are talking about costing with oil is oriented strand board I would not do it for fear that the oil Soaking into it might cause it to delaminate
Oriented strand board is made by gluing together many small pieces of wood instead of made from sheets of intact wood
I think paint would be much safer than treating OSB with oil or you could fiberglass it

 

[SweetMK]

Your first picture shows oriented strand board (OSB) not regular plywood
If the plywood you are talking about costing with oil is oriented strand board I would not do it for fear that the oil Soaking into it might cause it to delaminate
Oriented strand board is made by gluing together many small pieces of wood instead of made from sheets of intact wood
I think paint would be much safer than treating OSB with oil or you could fiberglass it

I think the plywood looks like OSB because some of the fibers from another sheet was stuck to this sheet while the glue was drying.
The extra pieces of wood can be seen in this pic, on the left side, next to the fender,,

It is plywood, and is easier to see on the "back" side, that is not so damaged.
Also, it is possible that it looks like OSB because there is so much damage to the plywood.

(When I built that bench, the first time my 8 year old granddaughter saw it, she said,, "Cool, a chair, with wheels!" )

 

[dboyd351]

I think the plywood looks like OSB because some of the fibers from another sheet was stuck to this sheet while the glue was drying.
The extra pieces of wood can be seen in this pic, on the left side, next to the fender,,

It is plywood, and is easier to see on the "back" side, that is not so damaged.
Also, it is possible that it looks like OSB because there is so much damage to the plywood.

(When I built that bench, the first time my 8 year old granddaughter saw it, she said,, "Cool, a chair, with wheels!" )

OK, my mistake. Was viewing it in my phone and the small picture looked like OSB.