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Has anyone ever used self-made, eco-friendly sealing compound for outdoors?

  • What recipe?
  • How long does the recipe you used last?

I intend to use this sealing compound to stop wasps from getting in and out of my walls and removing styrofoam insulation (damn wasps) to build their nest.

Details:

  • The gaps are no more than 2 centimeters wide;
  • Environment is central Europe, not too warm, not too moist climate;
  • It is to fill the gaps between wood planks and concrete.
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Indians, and later voyageurs used a mix of wood ash, spruce resin and lard.

Spruce resin is just collected off of trees. Melt. Once it flows well, filter the sticks and bugs out.

Add wood ash to the point where it is less sticky -- about the same volume as the spruce.

Add a bit of lard to keep it from cracking.

I don't have a recipe off hand. The drier (harder) the pitch is, the more lard you will need. Too little, and it cracks. Too much then on a warm day it flows out of the seam.

For a stationary application like this, I wouldn't worry about the lard.

I would try other fillers too. drywall powder should work. If the cracks are large, try adding a measure of unground wheat bran, or oat husks.

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  • Cracks are not large. I may try that one, but it will take a lot of time for me to gather enough spruce. – J. Chomel Apr 3 '18 at 14:16
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    Pine resin should work. It's available on Amazon. Lard will go rancid. If you do need to soften the mix use a stiff grease or soft wax, it won't go rancid. – Sherwood Botsford Apr 3 '18 at 15:01
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To stop wasps, use metal window screen. (The plastic eventually decomposes.) Use a staple gun and simply cover gaps and holes. If you want a neater look, you can trip with some moulding or rough-sawn wood strips to match your decor.

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  • Hi Jan, thank you for the idea. That's not exactly an answer to my question. And I cannot use stapling on the concrete wall (I should have been more accurate, apologizes) – J. Chomel Apr 3 '18 at 14:18

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