Exterior Timber Lintels

[Anne]

Almost all of our windows have oak timber lintels above them, a lot of these are fairly new but have weathered. The new ones all have cracks in them where they have started to split. This isn't from the structure but appears to be just from the weather. Of the few old ones we have they are pretty rotted but I like them, they have so much more character. I want to prevent further rot and hopefully help them last. What if anything should I put on them to help preserve them and stop them from splitting?

Thanks in advance.

 

[biffvernon]

There's a difference between rotting and splitting. Don't worry about your oak lintels splitting - that's what oak does and given enough weathering over time the new ones will look as good as the old. To prevent further rot in the old ones is not easy with chemicals as they don't soak into oak very well. They're not painted are they? Best preventive for rot is to keep them as dry as possible and well ventilated so they can dry out when they do get wet.