Recommended wood primers for exterior elements

We often get asked about which primer would be the best to use for various wooden exterior surfaces and elements such as windows, doors, and non-dimension wooden elements such as cladding, garden furniture, garden houses, sheds, and more.

In aspects of outdoor durability and quality, a few key properties are important:

Adhesion: The adhesion of the wooden exterior primer is key for the total quality of the paint system. Adhesion is achieved by using the right binders and formulation. Anker Stuy is using a binder particle that is so small that it penetrates deep into the wood, which you can see in the photo below. Besides the penetration of the paint in the wood, it's also important that the primer does not take up a lot of moisture.

The more moisture content the primer will take up, the more swell and shrink behaviour the wooden element will exhibit, and therefore will break down faster than a primer with less moisture and water uptake.

To make sure you are using the right primer and a quality product, we advise to do adhesion testing. To determine adhesion, you can use a knife and cut across the wood after complete drying as shown in the photo below. Think of an appropriate distance between the lines of at least 1 cm, and then use regular tape to try and pull off the paint in a vertical pull. If there is no damage, then the adhesion is good.

Other important features for a good exterior primer are:

• The drying time
• Thixotropy, which means it's easy to use in an air-mix pump and high film hold up to 250 microns wet without sagging
• Coverage power
• Good staining properties with hardwood
• Availablity in different colours

Do you want to customise your colour? We can match any colour that you desire from any colour chart. Click here to match your colour.

All these aspects are combined and formulated into the following products: Hydrolux Primer Midcoat and Ankolux Opaque Woodstain.