If you are planning to have your wood exposed to uv and the outdoors, it's recommended provide a solid foundation to work from, and stabilize the wood as much as possible by first applying a sealer coat of epoxy or varnish. Using a thinned varnish, a thinned epoxy like our Penetrating Epoxy, or a specialized sealer like our TotalBoat Wood Sealer will add longevity to the wood, giving it years of added life. By sealing first, you penetrate the soft areas in the wood, stabilizing areas that are most susceptible to rot and ruin from water or weather. Sealers are a great first coat that, once cured, can be easily sanded, wiped and overcoated with top coats of varnish or even paint.

If you plan on thinning varnish, we recommend using specified thinners that go with your specific product. Our TotalBoat Thinner 100 is perfect for thinning Lust and Gleam varnishes, and Wet Edge Topside Paint. Thin by adding small amounts of your thinner, up to about 20% for your first application of straight varnish.

Penetrating Epoxy and TotalBoat Wood Sealer are both products that are already thin enough to use right from the can (or the mixing cup) and won't need additional thinning for great penetration.

In all cases, you would apply 1-2 sealer coats, allow them to cure or dry (Penetrating Epoxy can take 48 hours or more to fully cure), sand and wipe your wood, and then apply coats of paint or varnish on top.

You can buy TotalBoat varnish, Wood Sealer, Penetrating Epoxy and everything you need for your project at TotalBoat.com