How To Repair Foam Column Base On Indoor Column

Concluding Updated on Feb 19, 2022 past

Well, I had a scrap of a setback with my porch column project. If you missed the first part of this project, yous tin click here to read it…

• Role one — How To Wrap Front Porch Posts (Plow Skimpy Front Porch Posts Into Pretty Columns)

Just afterwards I wrapped those columns and wrote that post, I had to get back and brand some pretty pregnant changes to the columns. Remember final calendar week when I showed y'all a movie of my porch columns wrapped in plastic?

I did that because I had spent the day working on them — sanding, wood filling, sanding again, caulking — and past the fourth dimension the sun went downward, they were ready for primer and paint. Just with so much raw wood exposed, and a chance of rain that nighttime, I decided to wrap them earlier heading in for the evening.

So Fri, my goal was to at to the lowest degree get them primed with oil-based primer, thinking that if it rained, the oil-base primer would be enough to protect them from the rain, and I wouldn't have to keep wrapping them every time there was a threat of pelting in the forecast.

Well, Saturday evening and Saturday night, information technology did rain. And on Sunday morning, I learned just how wrong I was about the power of oil-based primer against the rain. The bases of all three columns that I had worked so hard getting but right with the sanding, wood filling, sanding once again, and caulking looked awful.

Every single mitered corner and butt joint had separated, the oil-based primer had cracked and was peeling, the wood underneath was damp all the fashion through, and the caulk in some areas was peeling off as well.

Needless to say, I was frustrated. And angry. And I may accept thrown a little tantrum and hurled a few choice words at those columns and the pelting. 😀

And so subsequently regaining my composure, and coming upwardly with a plan, I got to piece of work yesterday afternoon making the repairs. I started by removing all of the trim from the base of the cavalcade. So using my Dremel Multi-Max (that's this oscillating tool that I couldn't live without), I trimmed the spacers and the outer woods and so that information technology was about three/4″ away from the porch.

Then I gave it a quick sanding with my rotary sander and began re-trimming the base in pretty much the same way that I had trimmed information technology out before. Only this fourth dimension, instead of woods, I used PVC boards and PVC trim (all found at Lowe's) for the bases of the columns. I started by cut pieces of a 1″ x viii″ PVC lath, and this time I attached them and then that they were about 1/ii″ from the porch floor.

And so I cut and fastened the base of operations cap trim around the top, and the panel molding around the bottom. Again, these are both PVC trim rather than existent wood. And this time when attaching the console molding around the bottom, I left a tiny gap (somewhere between i/16th and 1/eighth inch) between the molding and the porch floor for air flow.

Looks pretty much the same, correct? Right. But this will concord up much amend for much longer. And since it'southward plastic, information technology won't be wicking up water the next fourth dimension it rains.

I originally hated the idea of using PVC. There's just something about building with plastic instead of wood that doesn't actually seem appealing to me. But when you compare them side-by-side, yous really tin can't tell a difference. And in fact, I similar the shape of that PVC panel molding around the base of operations much better than I like the wood version.

(FYI, my porch flooring is actually filthy and covered in dust from all of the sanding I've been doing, which is why it looks similar it's a different color. Information technology  hasn't faded that much over the last week. 🙂 Information technology just needs a good hosing off.)

In that location were quite a few lessons learned with this one. I'yard and then used to doing indoor building projects, then building things for outdoor use that will concord up against the conditions is new for me. I had no idea that oil-based primer wouldn't stand up to rain. And I also had no idea that PVC boards and trim could expect and then pretty. And I also learned the importance of keeping real forest up off the ground (or the patio or the porch flooring) because fifty-fifty if it's primed, it'll still wick upward moisture. At present I know. 🙂

So if I had to practice this projection all over once again from scratch, I'd wrap the entire column, from top to lesser, in PVC boards and trim. PVC is pretty like shooting fish in a barrel to work with and doesn't require any special tools. You lot can cut the boards and trim with your regular table saw and miter saw, and yous can attach them with construction adhesive and finishing nails only similar wood, and you tin even sand them quite easily just like forest. And one time it's painted, I really don't recollect anyone would be able to tell the difference.

Oh well. We live and learn. I'll know better for next time…if there'south a next time.

UPDATE:

The porch columns are finished! Click here to meet the finishing details and how they turned out.

Addicted 2 Decorating is where I share my DIY and decorating journey as I remodel and decorate the 1948 fixer upper that my husband, Matt, and I bought in 2022. Matt has One thousand.S. and is unable to do concrete piece of work, and so I practice the majority of the piece of work on the house past myself. Yous can larn more about me hither.

I hope you'll join me on my DIY and decorating journey! If you lot want to follow my projects and progress, you tin can subscribe below and have each new post delivered to your email inbox. That mode you'll never miss a thing!

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