This is our only product that is NOT a traditional oil/wax type finish, but a wood treatment for aesthetics and anti-rot. Ferrous sulphate is commonly used as a soil amendment to lower the pH in alkaline soils or to help with iron deficiencies. If you are in a hurry or don’t want to pay for shipping, you may be able to alternately source it from your local farm supply, though generally it is only sold in 40lb bags. We package the material in 1 lb containers and include mixing and application instructions. For custom container sizes, just leave us instructions in the order and we can bulk package and offer price reductions accordingly.
Exterior Finishes, Uncategorized
Ferrous Sulphate – 1 lb
$10.00
Sold by the pound, Ferrous Sulphate is economical option for staining wood or concrete. We love this product especially for wood that will always exposed to the weather like fences, uncovered decks or wherever people are looking for a rustic weathered aesthetic. Acting much like the popular “Lifetime” but at a fraction of the cost, the naturally acidic solution created by mixing this iron sulphate powder with water will uniformly ‘age’ wood while enhancing its decay resistance. If used on concrete, it creates a rust coloured stain. In both cases, you can top with a separate sealer (test first to ensure you like the final appearance) or leave unsealed.
Mixing Instructions
Usually 1 Tbsp per litre (4 per gallon) is plenty strong enough to provide a stain for both concrete or wood but you can experiment with different strengths – they will all appear quite similar.
Material can be dipped or sprayed using a standard garden sprayer. Be patient to see results. The final appearance may take days or even a couple weeks to establish.
Wood – Ferrous sulphate stains wood by reacting with the tannin present in the wood while greying the surface. You will see darker results t on woods that are high in tannins such as cedar, oak, walnut, mahogany and cherry and lighter grey tones on woods such as pine, maple, birch, and beech. It will produce silver-gray to steel blue colors depending on the strength of the solution and the species of wood. Prestaining woods that are low in tannin with a solution of tannic acid will produce results similar to woods that are naturally high in tannin.
Stucco and Concrete – The finished product is a rusty orange colour of varying strength depending on the solution strength. This happens because the alkaline concrete neutralizes the acidity of the solution, causing the iron particles to precipitate out and oxidize… literally rust staining your concrete.
Depending on application rates, a pound of ferrous sulphate will provide enough solution to dip several hundred shakes or spray several hundred square feet of wood or concrete. Experiment. This is a cheap and easy product to play around with.
