Homemade Wood Filler??

[Cindy in NY]

We are in the process of repairing the sills under a couple of porch windows. We found some rotted wood that goes pretty deep. We want to fill the void with some kind of hard filler so that new wood can go on top. I seem to remember that you can make you own wood filler using sawdust and glue. Has anyone done this?

[Danny]

I have a small woodworking shop and use a glue/saw dust mixture all the time, it works great. I have never used it on big projects but don't see why it would not work. You would need to get the correct mixture of glue to dust and I always use water proof glue.

[harrisjnet]

Years ago I took classes at an Area Vo-Tech school. The Carpentry instructor said the glue sawdust filler was by far the best you could use. Fine dust does a great job on nail holes. The bigger fibered dust works better on the bigger knotholes and cracks. We would use a Dixie cup with Elmers Wood Glue in it to mix up our putty filler in. The consistancy of peanut butter is what you are striving for. It may crack a little when drying and need a second coat. It is much easier to sand than the commercial stuff and stains nicer to.

[Cindy in NY]

Thanks for your replies! We've got to fill one hole thats about 3" deep. I'm thinking we should do about half the depth, let that dry, then do another coat to finish it off. Does that sound right or can we do the whole thing at one time? I'm also going to put wood hardener on the whole area before we start filling the void.

When we were digging out the rotted wood, we found one huge black ant. Should we treat the area with something before we start filling?

[clovis]

If your sills are rotten, it might be cheaper just to find a wood shop that can make new ones. 3" deep with rot is pretty severe.
I have seen alot of guys use Bondo car filler on rotted sills.
I have also read that you can make filler using sawdust and boiled linseed oil, which is what alot carpenters did 100 years ago.
I would strongly suggest replacing the sills with a hardwood.
clove

[CatsPaw]

Depending on the type of rot... you may find that your filler will last, but, the rest of the wood will rot away. Replace the sill. That's what should be done so you might as well do it now.

[Cindy in NY]

Unfortunately, replacing the sill is not an option. It runs under 5 windows, is about 12' long, 10 " wide, and 3" thick. The spots that need repair are only about 4" long. This is on the plant porch; there's lots of other wood on the main house that does need to be replaced and that's where the money is going.

[harrisjnet]

I would treat with insectacide, then the hardener. Fill the major holes and let dry. Go back over the whole thing again with filler, let dry, hit the refinished spots with the hardener again. When dry you can paint and will probably be in pretty good shape. I would be very wary of using linseed oil as glue. It is too combustable. Rags with linseed oil will burst into flames with no help. I don't think the old timers used linseed oil as much as tree sap and hide glue. I use linseed oil thinned with mineral spirits on my flloors, but it is a fine coat with plenty of venalation.
If the repairs are on a plant porch, I would probably use a double coat of a good enamel to paint the sills and anywhere else water may get. It would help prevent future rot.
I think I would also look up Bob Villas This Old House web site and see what is recommended there. I also go to DIY web site to find info.
Good Luck,
Janette

[Pony]

Don't know how your funding is, but Bondo does make a kit for outside wood repairs. You can pick it up at AutoZone or Murray's or most any auto repair shop.

The carpenter ants are there because the wood is rotted. I wonder if they'd just go away once you repair the rotted wood...

There is also an epoxy wood restorer I used years ago when I was working on an antique house. It was made by Abatron. Here's their site:

http://www.abatron.com/

Good luck!

ETA: Here's the direct link for Wood Restoration Materials:
http://www.abatron.com/home002.htm

Pony!

[WisJim]

I have used the Abatron epoxy "LiquidWood" on a place on our house where water had rotted some wood, and it would have been a major job to replace the entire board because of a 3x6x1 area with some rot. It soaked in well, and hardened up as advertised. Then I used the filler material to fill in the missing wood, painted it, and repaired the damage that allowed the moisture problem to begin with so I would not have it happen again.

I had purchased the small introductory or sample kit which was fine for my needs, but you may need more.
This is what I got:
http://www.highlandwoodworking.com/i...OD&ProdID=1273
I couldn't find it right away at the Abatron site, but I had bought it from Highland Hardware as I was getting other items too.

[Cindy in NY]

Pony & WisJim - I used a similar product to the Abatron bondo when I repaired the front porch railings. It worked well in some spots (like making the round ball on one post, round again) but in other spots it cracked after the first winter. I think I was trying to fill too large a spot with it. So far on this repair, I've sprayed with insecticide and put a coat of wood hardener on the old wood. DH plans to fill the majority of the space with wood pieces and fill in around that with the glue/sawdust mixture. We just need some dry weather now to get this project done. We have removed only three of the eight windows on this side so far! Hopefully we have found the worst of the damage!