Looking for an outdoor wood choice

[Tim Morton]

I am building a pair of potting bench's for the LOML and her mother.I downloaded a nice set of plans last night from wood magazine, and reading the cut list is suggests using cypress. I'm not sure if I will be able to find cypress around here and if I do will I be able to justify the cost for 2 of these. Is there other options? Rough sawn pine with a Blo finish comes to mind I am looking at using 4/4 and 8/4 stock..

[Jim Becker]

Outdoors demands you use something that is naturally weather resistant. Cypress is one choice as you already know. Others to consider, depending on local availability include white oak (not RED), mahogany (true mahogany, not luan), ipe, teak, etc. I think that lyptus also is acceptable, but would have to check to be sure.

The rough-sawn pine will only work if the object will be under cover and not really exposed to the elements...and a BLO finish offers zero benefit in an outdoor setting. The woods listed above require no finish for outdoor use, but if you do want to put something on them, an outdoor rated penetrating oil, such as Sikkens or similar will work nicely. Just be aware you'll need to reapply it regularly. Avoid anything containing Polyurethane...it breaks down under UV rays. Another interesting choice for an outdoor finish is the oil-based tint base for exterior paint. With no pigments added, it dries clear with all the same properties as the paint...this is a favorite of former long time WOOD Online Finishing Forum moderator Jim Kull.

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Edit: I missed Cedar as Kelly pointed out. I suspect that, as well as white oak, should be easily sourced locally for you in New England.

[Kelly C. Hanna]

I'd make it of Cedar, then apply an outdoor deck/fence stain to it for the best protection. Australian Timber Oil is a good one, but a bit pricey. Cypress is a great wood, but if it's not in your area, try Cedar. They are comparable in price here in Dallas with Cypress being a tiny bit cheaper.

Pine can be used as well, but won't hold up for nearly as long as Cedar. Best to use deck stain/Timber Oil on that too. Like Jim said, no poly will work well outdoors for long (even Spar Urethane wears off in full sun within a few months).

[Steve Cox]

Redwood is another choice although I'm not sure what's available there. Also both Western Red Cedar and Alaskan Yellow Cedar are good choices as is Douglas Fir. All of these are west coast woods so I don't know cost or supply in VT.

[Tim Morton]

I guess its time to call the lumber yard....I'm sure cedar is readily available as is poplar, but I'm guessing poplar would be no better than pine.

[Kelly C. Hanna]

I guess its time to call the lumber yard....I'm sure cedar is readily available as is poplar, but I'm guessing poplar would be no better than pine.

I didn't mention Redwood cause it's so high right now....it's a full $.25 above Cedar a LF here, but it would work as well. Not sure about Poplar outside.

[Mark Singer]

Tim,

Honduras mahogony or Ipe...both great!

[Steve Cox]

Poplar sucks outside. Having said that though, almost any wood will work if you paint it and keep it well painted and sealed.

[Frank Pellow]

Cedar is by far and away my first choice for outside furniture.

[Jerry Olexa]

Tim, Don't use Pine and esp w BLO. In order, my choices would be cedar, redwood and last resort Pressure treated SYP. Good builders generally use cedar for all their trim and than paint or stain over it. Any of these will last w/o topcoat and age gracefully but can take a stain or protective UV coating. G Luck, my man. How did the Band Saw work out? Big game for the CELTS tonite...

[John Bush]

Hi Tim,

I have made several potting and sitting benches using recycled cedar fencing. I am a bit lucky living in the Pacific NW having cedar readily available. I use the 4x4's for the legs/uprights, then M&T 2x4's in for cross members/aprons and the side supports, then use the 1x6's for the flat surfaces. Usually wire brush the dust and moss off the exposed surfaces and the finished piece has a nice rustic look and can handle the elements without any maintainance.
I made a double Adirondac chair ,which has two chairs joined with a table in between, for our town's Arboretum club and the bidding was so fierce I offered to make three more. I'm now scrambling to find enough wood to make them.
Try calling your local fencing contractors and see if they have any tear-out piles. They love "sharing" their treasure.
Also, I've seen nice benches made with the 5/4" radius edge cedar decking . Again, out here it is standard stuff at any lumber yard and is very reasonable relative to Ipe or mahogany. Good luck, John.

[Ellen Benkin]

Redwood is always mentioned as a good outdoor wood. I'm sure it is better than pine, but you should be aware that redwood will rot and get termites eventually. Probably all wood will, but I'm most familiar with redwood.

[Hunter Wallace]

Up here where we are Tim, eastern white cedar is readily available and
(relatively) inexpensive. I had it on a deck for 10 years and, after the
first year, never put a finish of any kind on it. I guess I got lazy, but it
turned a beautiful silvery gray, didn't splinter and was as solid as the day
I put it in, plus It's light weight (good for portability...i.e. winter storage)
Good luck...whichever you choose it sure is fun building stuff for outside use!

[Sam Chambers]

Tim:

I used cypress for my patio set (table + 4 chairs). It's been istting outside for 4 years, with no ill effects. I used a product called Penofin (penetrating oil finish) on it, and it's held up OK. After 4 years it's time for a sanding and recoating. (A word of warning about Penofin...it really stinks for a few months after application.)

[Tim Morton]

Cypress is not available to me, and after talking to the guy at the wood store he has 1x12 knotty red cedar at 2.09 a foot. That puts the wood cost per bench at a little less than $150 bucks and hardware will run about $50 I'm guessing. I'll pass the info on to LOML and see if she wants to go further. Thanks for the input.