Introduction

When I decided to build a cabin in the woods at age 18, just about everyone I told about the project asked the same question: "Are you going to build out of logs?"

Although I love the look of classic log cabins, my answer was always a decisive "no." The biggest reason boiled down to the difficulty of maintenance.

Like all outdoor wood, log buildings can be left unfinished so they gray naturally in the elements, or have a finish applied that needs to be redone every few years. Natural weathering was out, because it always looks unattractively blotchy, with some areas darkly weather-stained and more sheltered spots bright and new. Plus, refinishing a log building every three or four years is not my idea of fun.

So I opted to frame my cabin with studs rather than logs to avoid the trouble of maintaining outdoor wood. Then I fell in love with cedar shingle siding and covered my cabin with it, putting me in same conundrum as if I'd built with logs. I racked my brain trying to come up with a finishing approach that wouldn't involve years of frustration.

That's when I discovered Eco Wood Treatment. The Canadian product promised a non-toxic, water-based approach to giving outdoor wood that old-time weathered look. But unlike Mother Nature, it claimed to do it evenly, and in a few hours rather than a few years.

I bought some, tried it and was delighted. It made my cedar shingles look beautifully antique in a single afternoon, required only one coat and never needed refinishing. More than a decade and a half later, I still consider it the best outdoor wood finishing approach around.

Keep reading to learn how to give your outdoor wood a beautiful weathered look in just a few hours.

Tools Required

Materials Required

• 80-grit sanding discs (if your outdoor wood has old finish coatings)
• Distilled water
• Eco Wood Treatment Powder