Woodoc in Namibia

A penetrating sealer soaks into the timber and cures inside the fibres, feeding and sealing from within — where varnish sits on top as a film. Namibian conditions destroy films: UV embrittles them while single-digit humidity shrinks the wood underneath, so varnish cracks and peels in a season or two and must be stripped. A penetrating sealer weathers by slow surface erosion instead; maintenance is a clean and a fresh coat, never stripping. That difference is why the Namibian trade standardised on Woodoc decades ago.

Read the number as exposure level. Interior: 5 (wax finish), 10 (velvet), 25 (the interior standard, in matt to gloss), 2000 for floors. Exterior: 30 is the standard for doors, frames and furniture; 35 and 55 add colour; 50 is the heavy-duty grade for extreme exposure and the coast. Decks get the dedicated Deck Sealer or Water-Borne Deck; timber near water gets the Water-Borne Marine range. If you describe the piece and where it lives, our counter will name the number in one sentence.

The colour side is stocked as range, not sample: gel stains, Woodoc Stain, Deck Sealer and Dressing colours, and the Universal Colours card — all fourteen shades, from Beaufort Grey, Inky Blue and Knysna Green to Kalahari Red, Imbuia and Ebony. Colour goes on first, clear sealer over it for depth and protection. Joineries doing production runs order colour in trade quantities on account, and we keep the card at the counter so clients can choose on the spot.

With the product made for it: Woodoc Wood Reviver chemically cleans and brightens weathered, greyed timber so sealer can bond to sound wood again — scrub on, rinse thoroughly, let it dry completely (quick in this climate), light sand only where fibres have lifted, then three coats of the appropriate sealer. No full sanding-back on most pieces, no replacement. Deck restorations that look like new timber are mostly Reviver plus Deck Sealer and patience; it is the most satisfying product demonstration in the range.