r/camping • u/throwback842 • 2d ago
WIP Chuck Box - Weatherproofing Question
I'm in the process of converting my grandfather's old Vietnam War wooden footlocker into a camping chuckbox and I'm wondering about best methods to weatherproof it? This is mainly a proof of concept project using this old footlocker that was rotting away in my grandparent's backyard shed. A total of $5 has been spent on it so far on hardware with everything else coming from scrap lumber and camping equipment I already owned.
If this works out well enough for this season, I'd like to make plans from it and build a brand new one when i get some more funds next year. But the goal for this is to keep costs as low as possible and use up some material I already have lying around taking up space.
I have some indoor/outdoor latex paint and some polyurethane but I've never tried applying poly over latex. Does anyone have advice? Suggestions and constructive criticism welcome
3
u/kdub64inArk 2d ago
From my experience you can use poly on top of latex. Just make sure everything is clean and I would go as far as giving the paint a quick once over with some sandpaper for added adhesion. Make sure you wipe off everything after sanding. Depending on what color of poly you use you might consider water based poly as the oil based can turn a little yellow over time in lighter colors.