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Wood
Most of my outdoor
wood pieces are pressure-treated by the same process as the green
lumber you can purchase at a lumberyard. This treatment discourages
dry-rot and prevents bugs from eating it.
It's a good
idea to spray the polyethylene glycol and repaint (see sidebar)
every 5 years or so, depending on weather conditions.
For my indoor
wood pieces, the finish varies. I have used tongue oil, laquer,
and have also left them untreated. Under favorable conditions, these
finishes do not need to be re-done. A simple dusting of the piece
will suffice.
Granite
Granite is easy,
once installed. No coatings should be used. I do pressure-wash with
a widespray tip to clean the sculpture.
Bronze
Outdoor bronze
pieces should be washed with a mild conservation soap twice a year.
They should then be waxed, hot or cold (depending on the piece)
with carnuba wax.
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I
spray a solution of boric acid and polyethylene
glycol on the sculpture to further
discourage fungus and bugs. It is also a dimensional
stabilizer, which helps prevent the wood from
splitting and checking.
After
these processes have dried, the sculpture is
then painted with Cabot's outdoor semi-solid
house stain. I will often blend several colors
together by stippling, which creates a similar
patina to bronze.
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