what wood is best for outdoors in ireland

countrywoman

Apologies if this post is in the wrong place?

I want to buy a decorative wooden bridge for the garden. I've been looking online. However I'm totally confused as to what wood would be the best, long lasting especially in Irish weather.

I like one that's made from pine wood and another has a ' teak stain'

What should I be looking for?

Could anyone offer any advice please....

fergal.b

If it is going to left uncovered outside I would go for a hardwood over a softwood like pine as it needs to be sealed against the weather every year or so, something like Teak has it's own oil and will need very little looking after but is more expensive to buy and will turn grey when left untreated, you could also look at Oak, Red wood, Iroko, and mahogany. Treated decking timber and PVC decking might also be worth a look.





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CJhaughey

I would recommend Earthwood.
I love wood and have a big enough deck that gets horribly slippery in the winter. To my mind anything here has to be able to deal with 6mths+ of being wet. Its very hard for timber to be wet that long without deteriorating.

recipio

Real teak is prohibitively expensive and hard to find. The best overall wood is iroko - not too expensive and it looks way better than a softwood anyday. There are various products to stop slipping right down to chicken wire !

countrywoman

Thanks everybody

I will have to email some of the sellers on Amazon because some of them do not specify the wood used in the bridge

blue5000

Oak and larch are both pretty durable, native grown woods.

monkeynuz

To be honest I would be surprised if any of the bridges were hardwood. The team stain one is exactly that, team coloured stain on pine I would imagine

countrywoman

I got a reply back from the seller of my favorite bridge. He said its solid wood and when I asked him to be specific he said 'fir'

monkeynuz

Like I said it would be softwood, you would need a joiner to make one bespoke probably.

moosetrax

recycled plastic would be my choice

jen81

Hi all, I have a similar question. I live in an apartment block, but I have an enclosed balcony (ceiling and sides). I have an old pine dresser that I would like to do up and put out on the balcony for extra storage space. Will this rot and damage my decking underneath?
Thanks!

Bluesky008

I don't see cedar mentioned here ... Would that be option? (Our architect recommending cedar cladding on some of our exterior walls so we are thinking about it at moment)

recipio

Bluesky008 wrote: »

I don't see cedar mentioned here ... Would that be option? (Our architect recommending cedar cladding on some of our exterior walls so we are thinking about it at moment)

Its an option but I've never seen it sold as solid wood and I'm going to guess its expensive. Even iroko is now close to 50 euro per cubic foot ..........ring around for prices ?

monkeynuz

Cedar is genre all only available as cladding, I don't think it is particularly stable structurally though.

Miname

cedar wouldnt be worth a monkeys as a foot bridge, its way too soft and will dent very easily. Most real good foot bridges ive seen made were made with oak. ash might be a nice option but either of the above will be prone to blackening and the odd split or shake. Iroko teak is probably be the most stable option. if your going down the road of getting one made make sure its a hardwood. for the few extra quid it will last forever. 2" iroko should be bought for a little under e40 at the mo.

HandsomeRover

Iroko or cedar in Ireland...
Where are they imported from and what's the quality like?

I'm thinking of cladding and am worried about the quality and grade of timber available here. Would hate to end up with low grade stuff.

Miname

HandsomeRover wrote: »

Iroko or cedar in Ireland...
Where are they imported from and what's the quality like?

I'm thinking of cladding and am worried about the quality and grade of timber available here. Would hate to end up with low grade stuff.

If your worried about the quality or grade here, where are you comparing it too, america, england, where? I hate seeing comments like these whereby its timber in Ireland, its crap. all cedar and iroko is imported here all can be bought in whichever grade or buget you require, its the exact same iroko or cedar that will be used in the majority of countries across the world. Order FAS youll get a good grade.

HandsomeRover

Miname wrote: »

If your worried about the quality or grade here, where are you comparing it too, america, england, where? I hate seeing comments like these whereby its timber in Ireland, its crap. all cedar and iroko is imported here all can be bought in whichever grade or buget you require, its the exact same iroko or cedar that will be used in the majority of countries across the world. Order FAS youll get a good grade.

Thanks for your reply.

I am indeed comparing it to America where cedar is indigenous, and so, in my opinion, suited to cladding there.

My reservations on quality/grade here stem from seeing a few (mainly public/council) projects where the cladding hasn't lasted. A lot of that is probably down to lack of aftercare, but I suppose my question is really asking how much of it was down to quality and then, regardless of quality, is cedar or iroko suitable for the Irish climate?

I'm not downing the timber industry here, far from it. Now, if a builder came along, priced up a new build including cladding, I'm sure he could cut corners on the quality given there is (i imagine) a surplus of it in yards around the country.

Fair?

HandsomeRover

Duplicate

monkeynuz

HandsomeRover wrote: »

Thanks for your reply.

I am indeed comparing it to America where cedar is indigenous, and so, in my opinion, suited to cladding there.

My reservations on quality/grade here stem from seeing a few (mainly public/council) projects where the cladding hasn't lasted. A lot of that is probably down to lack of aftercare, but I suppose my question is really asking how much of it was down to quality and then, regardless of quality, is cedar or iroko suitable for the Irish climate?

I'm not downing the timber industry here, far from it. Now, if a builder came along, priced up a new build including cladding, I'm sure he could cut corners on the quality given there is (i imagine) a surplus of it in yards around the country.

Fair?

Why would there be a surplus?

And cedar is fine in the irish climate as it is in the uk climate too. Cedar by its nature doesn't really need any care to be effective.