Fixing Punky Door Frame

[Sam Chambers]

OK, so I didn't paint the front door frame like I should have. Now I have about 4" of slightly soft, "punky" wood at the bottom edge of the brick moulding. It's not rotten to the core, just a little soft at this point. Isn't there somehting I can use to stabilize the wood so I can seal, prime and paint it? if so where the heck can I find it? (I checked Home Depot, but found nothing.)

Thanks!

[Kent Parker]

Sam,

If the wood is not too soft try some penetrating epoxy sealer. I'd use at least three coats, drying each between coats. CPES is about as thin as water and penetrates into the wood fibers. Once cured, it provides a very effective barrier against moisture. Typically takes about a day to cure before you can paint, depending on temperature. You can get it with the slow or fast hardener. Tremendous wood sealer!! My wood ketch soaked up gallons of it during restoration.

Its made here in the bay area by Smith and Co. in Richmond, Ca. You can purchase it here on line.

http://www.jamestowndistributors.com/decoder_CPES.jsp

Cheers,

Kent

[Vaughn McMillan]

Sam, I don't recall the name, but I've used a non-epoxy wood hardener on punky wood with good results. (Fixing minor spots of dry rot and termite damage that had been improperly patched in the past.) I found it at my local Do-It Center (more of a regional borg than Home Depot) in the area where the wood putties and finishes are. Like the stuff Kent described, its viscosity is about like water, and it soaks into the wood pretty readily. By the next day, it's hardened sufficiently to further patch and paint it. (I did follow-up patching with Bondo for Wood, and once painted, it was invisible.) I'll see if I can dig up a name, but do know there are products that'll help you.

- Vaughn

[Matt Meiser]

Our front door had the same problem when we bought the house. Our home inspector mentioned an epoxy that you inject into holes drilled in the punky area. I ended up just replacing the door since the door itself wasn't the best looking door.