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How should we finish old shingles and keep the wood grain look?

Topic: 
Siding
Question: 

We are re-installing our old shingles on our 1907 Craftsman in Venice , CA. We removed all the shingles and stripped the old paint off most of the shingle. While the shingles were down, we installed insulation and shear wall. Prior to reinstalling the shingles, we applied a coat of linseed oil to both sides of the shingles. When reinstalling, we flipped the shingles, leaving the unpainted side visible.
We are now researching the best final protective coat for the shingles that will allow us to see the natural grain of the wood. A few options have come up:

1. 2 more coats of linseed oil
2. 2 coats of linseed oil and linseed wax on top of that
3. linseed oil stain (we don't really want to do this because we don't want the shingles to be darker)
4. pine tar

What is your advice? Or can you suggest any other options? If we use pine tar, will the outside of the house be forever sticky? Does the pine tar have a strong smell? Does it make the wood darker?

Is linseed oil and wax sufficient?

We also want to make sure what ever option we are using is ecologically sound and non-toxic.

Also, can you recommend a non-toxic method for removing paint....i.e. not using the very toxic liquid paint strippers.
Thanks for your help.

Answer: 

Hello Dody,

There are a number of variables with such a situation: quality and type of wood, age, exposure to sun/wind/water and the previous chemicals that have penetrated the wood. The finish application that works in one situation is unlikely to work the same way in another location and I am not aware of any testing that can give you the data for a certain result.

With that in mind, let me suggest that you start with linseed oil. One or two coats would be fine and the advantage here is that it should be compatible with what you have already done and allowed you to add more coats of the same or add the waxed product.

I used 2 coats of linseed oil on my cabin's new cedar shingles in 1993 and that has worked very well. The shingles have darkened a bit but they are still in excellent shape. But in this case, the cabin is located in a shaded area and has very good roof overhang protection.

The most important advice I have is that you keep an eye on the shingles. Look for early signs of discoloration and any kind of deflection. If you see that the coating is not working then you can always add another coat of linseed oil or switch to a new product.

Keep in mind that your desire to keep the wood as natural as possible will require more frequent coating work. One of the benefits of paints and pigmented stains is in the blocking of the damage from UV light. The more transparent the finish the more often it will have to be re-applied.

The biggest problems that I know with linseed oil is spontaneous-combustion. All rags and other material soaked in linseed oil must be stored in metal containers and away from buildings etc.

I am not familiar with the use of pine tar or low toxicity paint removers.

George