Hello,
We have a new hot tub that came with a nice cedar enclosure. It was delivered with what was described as a "light stain." Anyway, the color looks great and I don't have any desire to change it.
Most advice online says to "seal it" anywhere from 4 times a year to once every 2 years or more. What does "seal it" mean in terms of what I should buy at the hardware or paint store? Is polyurethane a sealer? Or by sealer, do they mean something else? The spa installers said I could use Thompson's but even they have dozens of products and I've heard mixed reviews. Others have said teak or linseed oil but then others say those will discolor.
I use a marine grade polyurethane on a small heart pine porch that we have. Honestly if don't need to use a product like that I'd be happy since every year or so it is a process too much like painting and all the work and negative effects that come as the polyurethane builds up over repeated coatings (lots of sanding/scraping, and then over time it can flake off when it fails, etc.)
Help!?!? Wood can be ruined with one application of the wrong product. I really just want it to keep looking nice and don't mind doing something once a year or even twice a year. Thank you!