Who said that fences and sheds had to be standard colours like brown or green? If you are looking for something a bit jazzier for your garden, the ‘Bold Plum’ option in the Johnstone’s Garden Colours makes a striking impact. It’s the best fence paint to make a colourful statement in the garden. Finally, the coverage: one litre of this paint can cover up to 6m², so the 5L pot should contain enough paint to cover 30m²– approximately six shed panels (depending on how many coats you have to do). Another benefit of this fence paint is that it can be applied on either damp or dry wood, although it still needs to be applied on a dry day. This means that even if there have been a few days of rain, you can still paint your fence or shed once the sky clears.

There’s 5 L of fence paint in one tin, so in terms of value-for-money this Sadolin paint sits roughly on par with the Cuprinol fence paint, making it a mid-range option. However, the Sadolin paint may require more coats than the Cuprinol. This fence paint is wax enriched, which helps with repelling water from the surface, and it offers an all-weather barrier to protect exterior wood. The ‘Ebony Wood’ is perfect for anyone wishing to create dark, striking fences. As a general rule, darker colour fence paints may be able to get away with one coat, depending on the original colour of the wooden fence. More vibrant colours are more likely to require a second coat (or maybe even a third).Personal preference of course plays a huge part in what colour paint you should choose. But there are a couple of things to bear in mind on top of that: Choosing a Colour Based on Function Painting a lighter colour over a darker one will likely always result in some of the base colour showing through. Better results will be achieved with several coats of paint, but there’s always a risk that it won’t turn out quite as vibrant as expected. It’s also one of the best fence paints to apply at any time of year, because it becomes showerproof within approximately 30 minutes of application. Therefore, even if you can’t rely on there being no drizzle during the whole day, you can still pop some of this paint on during a dry window.

Also remember that colours may also come out darker than expected, especially once dried, which can really change the look of a garden. For reference: a 5 – 6 L tin of paint will cover approximately 30 m² (about 10 fence panels) . Although, of course, this depends on how many coats are needed. A 9 L tin can cover around 54 m² ( up to 17 fence panels) . The paint dries as either the water or solvent dissolves, and both types of paint have their advantages and disadvantages. Water-Based Paint There are several colours in the Ronseal Fence Life range including: Gold, Medium Oak, and Dark Oak. I’m focusing this review on the Dark Oak colour which dries as a dark chocolate and has a matt finish. It’s a rich, warm colour to use in the garden. One coat should be sufficient on most rough-sawn timber if painted over a lighter colour. Fence Life Plus can be applied when the wood is damp, but not wet. So if it’s rained on the day of application, you need to wait for five hours before putting it on. The treatment can’t be applied in the rain. It needs to be a warm, dry day with temperatures above 10°C. Cold weather will stop it from drying. Clean the wood with a stiff brush to remove any dirt.

In terms of colour, this paint is available in nine different hues. I’ve chosen to focus this review on the ‘Silver’ Copse finish which is a matt, dark grey fence paint – it results in a modern, contemporary look. Both water-based paint and solvent-based paint can be used on exterior surfaces – as long as the specific paint products states that it’s suitable for this purpose. The paint tin should state whether it is water based or oil/solvent based. When it comes to fence paint, there are two directions you can go with colour. These are natural hues (like browns and greys) or shades which are more commonly found in the rainbow (reds, oranges, purples).