Copyright © 2000 Ray Ramirez

One of the frustrating things with trying to restore a porch to a style similar to the original is getting the little details to match. That is why it is so helpful if you can reuse what is already present. Fortunately, with the advent of the high performance wood fillers, even a big missing piece of a cove molding can be repaired so it looks like the original piece. Our back porch restoration (see OHC #8) had one section of the cove molding that was missing a piece and one section where a piece of the molding had broken. We did not want to try to replace the entire thing (the cost of ten feet of custom molding is very high), so the wood filler seemed a logical choice. I thought I had saved the missing piece, but since we did not do this part right after it broke, that part was now missing. So lesson one is to make sure any repairs are done as soon as possible, or make sure the pieces are saved and put someplace where they are easily found later. Once the paint was stripped off, the area was cleaned. Once the piece of molding was cleaned with soap and water, it was ready for the filler. Since I had a large part to fill, I wanted to make sure it would anchor well to the wood. The manufacturers say this step is not necessary, but it made me feel better. I drilled a small hole with a Yankee drill (see photo), then placed three small screws in the molding. The idea was to place the screws so their profile would not interfere with the profile of the filler. Once that was done, I mixed the filler. I used the Minwax High Performance (tm) wood filler. If you have a larger section, I recommend, and usually use, the Abatron Wood (tm) epoxy filler. As you can see, it is always important to make sure you follow any and all directions. (Thanks to my wife, Kelly, for that photo) Once the two parts are mixed, you have a limited time (15 minutes) before the filler hardens. With this large of a section to be filled, I just blopped it in place to fill the area. As I tried to keep the piece on end, it quickly became evident gravity would sag the filler before it would harden. To help keep it in place, I turned the molding on it's back, and took a piece of thin cardboard to hold the filler in place better. You should have seen us running around trying to find the cardboard before it started to harden. It is a good idea to make sure you have all materials and supplies ready prior to mixing the filler. Once that was done, it was easy to finish glopping the filler in place. You may notice how some areas of the filler have a grainy appearance. That is the filler that was getting hard before I got it in place. Note the gloves worn during this process. These are not necessary, but do make hand clean up much easier. It is not critical to shape the filler perfectly, but you want to overfill rather than underfill. The reason will be obvious in a minute. Once the filler is hardened (which will depend on temperature) the forming takes place. I find it easiest to start with a Stanley Sureform (tm) planer if there is a lot of material to remove. I use it to shape the filler material to the shape of the molding. If the hardened filler is close to the original profile, there is only minor sanding needed to result in a good matching profile using 60 or 100 grit sandpaper around a wooden block. I use this in the same manner as the plane. Once that molding profile is complete, the only part left is painting, unless there is a section that is underfilled. When I first started using the filler, I was timid about how aggressively one could mold the filler. I was used to wood fillers for furniture work, and they are not very structural. I can tell you that is not the case with the Abatron and Minwax high performance fillers. When I initially used the materials, I was sanding and shaping (with the planer) very gingerly, because I mistakenly thought the epoxy filler was not tough, or well adhered to the original wood. As I have worked with it now for more projects, I realize that one can treat this as if it were an original piece of wood. Remember the underfilling I mentioned a minute ago? This is where, if you underfilled, you have to start over and make a new batch of filler, and let it harden and reshape. Not a big deal if you only have one or two pieces, but if you have many pieces you are repairing, then all the repeating of steps can be frustrating. Once the piece is shaped, then all that is left to do is to prime and paint. The filler takes normal wood primer, and paint. Once the molding is painted you can reattach it. I hope this gives you an idea, and the courage to try something like this on your home. These high performance wood fillers are very interesting and exciting products, and I would encourage old house enthusiasts to look into ways to utilize this in your home to save those interesting old moldings.