Finishing Bathroom Cedar

Q: How should I finish the strips of tongue and groove cedar I installed on my bathroom ceiling? Since the wood won't be in direct contact with water, can I leave it without any finish? I’d like the nice cedar smell to keep coming through.

A: You've got a number of options. Yes, you could leave your new ceiling bare, but the great smell would disappear in several months, and you'd probably find that moisture from showers and baths would stain the wood, even if it didn’t actually splash up there. I'd recommend giving your ceiling three coats of water-based urethane. Many brands develop bubbles when applied, which ruin the appearance as they dry. But I have two nearly bubble-free favourites. My first choice is made by ICI. You can get it at Glidden paint stores. Also good is Flecto's Varathane Elite Diamond Finish line. It's more readily available, though bubbles slightly more than the ICI. Regardless of what you use, it’s important to sand after the first and second coats are dry, using 240-grit sand paper with a palm sander. This approach works well for finishing any indoor wood. Avoid oil-based urethanes because many brands keep giving off a solvent odour for a long time in the warm, moist environment of a bathroom.