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"Art Donaldson"

25/12/2004 2:54 PM

Wood selection for outdoor bench

My lady has commissioned me to build a garden bench. She wants it painted
(white). It will rest near a lake in the Blue Ridge (VA). What wood do you
suggest the bench be made of?

Thanks in advance for your advice.


This topic has 8 replies

Gg

"George"

in reply to "Art Donaldson" on 25/12/2004 2:54 PM

25/12/2004 3:31 PM

Southern yellow pine.

Make sure the wood is not in contact with the ground, though. Get it up on
something impervious to water.

"Art Donaldson" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> My lady has commissioned me to build a garden bench. She wants it painted
> (white). It will rest near a lake in the Blue Ridge (VA). What wood do
you
> suggest the bench be made of?
>
> Thanks in advance for your advice.
>
>

Bp

"Baron"

in reply to "Art Donaldson" on 25/12/2004 2:54 PM

27/12/2004 5:00 PM

Another trick is to soak the feet with a thinned solution of epoxy.
Once the epoxy has soaked into the bottoms of the feet, it will not rot due
to contact with the ground. Since the OP plans to paint the bench, there
won't be any issues with subsequent finishing.

Good Luck.


"George" <george@least> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Southern yellow pine.
>
> Make sure the wood is not in contact with the ground, though. Get it up
on
> something impervious to water.
>
> "Art Donaldson" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> > My lady has commissioned me to build a garden bench. She wants it
painted
> > (white). It will rest near a lake in the Blue Ridge (VA). What wood do
> you
> > suggest the bench be made of?
> >
> > Thanks in advance for your advice.
> >
> >
>
>

Bp

"Baron"

in reply to "Art Donaldson" on 25/12/2004 2:54 PM

28/12/2004 7:04 PM

I use acetone but I suspect other ketones should work as well. Thin as
much as you need but keep in mind that the thinner it is, the more easily it
penetrates but the more applications you need since there will be less epoxy
with each application.

I have used this method quite successfully on teak and oak. The legs on
these pieces are still as solid as the day they were placed in different
gardens about five years ago. Both pieces, by the way, were finished with
Penofin. By making sure the epoxy did not leak into the visible sides of
the legs, there was no aesthetic problem. Since the OP intends to use
paint, it won't matter if the epoxy does appear on the sides.

I have found this method to be less expensive and more readily available
for me than using a specially formulated epoxy.

Good Luck.

"Mike Rocket J. Squirrel Elliott"
<[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On 12/27/2004 2:00 PM Baron wrote:
>
> > Another trick is to soak the feet with a thinned solution of epoxy.
>
> What do you use to thin epoxy with?
>
> --
> Mike "Rocket J Squirrel" Elliott
> 71 Type 2: the Wonderbus
> 84 Westphalia: "Mellow Yellow (The Electrical Banana)"
> KG6RCR
> ------------------------------------
> Today's Deep Thought:
>
> The nice part about living in a small town is that when you
> don't know what you're doing, someone else does.
> ------------------------------------

dp

david

in reply to "Art Donaldson" on 25/12/2004 2:54 PM

31/12/2004 1:28 AM

I would consider the tropical hardwoods like ipe or mangaris...very
impervious to rot...

david

Art Donaldson wrote:
> My lady has commissioned me to build a garden bench. She wants it painted
> (white). It will rest near a lake in the Blue Ridge (VA). What wood do you
> suggest the bench be made of?
>
> Thanks in advance for your advice.
>
>

LH

"Lew Hodgett"

in reply to "Art Donaldson" on 25/12/2004 2:54 PM

28/12/2004 2:14 AM


"Mike Rocket J. Squirrel Elliott" writes:

> What do you use to thin epoxy with?

You don't, you buy the correct resin and hardener for the project.

BTW, white oak and epoxy don't seem to make a good marriage.

Lew

EP

"Edwin Pawlowski"

in reply to "Art Donaldson" on 25/12/2004 2:54 PM

26/12/2004 2:04 AM


"Art Donaldson" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> My lady has commissioned me to build a garden bench. She wants it painted
> (white). It will rest near a lake in the Blue Ridge (VA). What wood do
> you
> suggest the bench be made of?
>
> Thanks in advance for your advice.

If you keep it painted, yellow pine is a good choice. Otherwise, the cheaper
of cypress or white oak. Put some feet on the bottom to avoid ground
contact as that is the first place moisture will get to. I used square
rubber feet on a couple of benches and tables. .

Pn

Phisherman

in reply to "Art Donaldson" on 25/12/2004 2:54 PM

26/12/2004 3:26 AM

On Sat, 25 Dec 2004 14:54:21 -0500, "Art Donaldson"
<[email protected]> wrote:

>My lady has commissioned me to build a garden bench. She wants it painted
>(white). It will rest near a lake in the Blue Ridge (VA). What wood do you
>suggest the bench be made of?
>
>Thanks in advance for your advice.
>

Outdoor woods: Teak, cypress, redwood, white oak, cedar, or
pressure-treated wood. Perhaps cypress or white oak would be a good
choice. Use stainless-steel fasteners.

MR

"Mike Rocket J. Squirrel Elliott"

in reply to "Art Donaldson" on 25/12/2004 2:54 PM

27/12/2004 2:55 PM

On 12/27/2004 2:00 PM Baron wrote:

> Another trick is to soak the feet with a thinned solution of epoxy.

What do you use to thin epoxy with?

--
Mike "Rocket J Squirrel" Elliott
71 Type 2: the Wonderbus
84 Westphalia: "Mellow Yellow (The Electrical Banana)"
KG6RCR
------------------------------------
Today's Deep Thought:

The nice part about living in a small town is that when you
don't know what you're doing, someone else does.
------------------------------------


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