- Thread starter tycarregydwr
- Start date
plasticpigeon
Member
- Messages
- 2,462
- Location
- Birmingham
I know Sapele is African, I've used it for my sills. I got some less than complimentary comments on here about my choice of wood. It is used by joiners, (and was my choice for the sill) as it is the cheapest available hardwood. It is very hard and i'm sure will be durable. Unfortunately the provenance of many of the things we buy in the west are not well publicised to the consumer. Perhaps I would investigate other options on eithical grounds now I've been enlightened to the issues, but I'm sure it is fit for purpose.
Sapele, meranti, iroko, western red cedar, douglas fir and oak are excellent woods for exterior joinery in the right situations.
The first three are frowned upon by environmentalists but imported en masse and very widely used in this country.
Teak the most resistant especially in damp and wet conditions ( but.....the rain forests ...and all that), but still imported from " managed forests" , if you are able to believe it.
Middi
The first three are frowned upon by environmentalists but imported en masse and very widely used in this country.
Teak the most resistant especially in damp and wet conditions ( but.....the rain forests ...and all that), but still imported from " managed forests" , if you are able to believe it.
Middi
I agree with you flyfisher but I wonder if only the dead straight and unaffected trees i.e. the normal grade 1 timber specimens get selected by the timber merchants/saw mills and any grade 2 specimens such as healthy but slightly wonky trees that have to come down or good offcuts from affected trees get overlooked. If there is a glut of secondary grade timber then maybe a good price can be achieved with this. Knowing where to find the cheaper specimens and how to transport them and get them sawn to your specification is no doubt another story.
Keith Bowman
Member
- Messages
- 422
- Location
- Bottom left hand corner of Suffolk
Ash is used exrensively for traditional coachwork though and, I believe, for the handles of traditional wooden wheelbarrows. Perhaps the objection to its use for external joinery is its flexibility?
tycarregydwr
Member
- Messages
- 169
Sod's law, we planted ash saplings for a hedge the week before the news broke. It is traditionally used for many woodworking tool handles, side-axes and so on, though we were hoping to coppice ours eventually as poles for the garden and firewood. If any of it survives.
skier-hughes
Member
- Messages
- 3,414
- Location
- Staffs, UK
None of our Oaks have been affected by the oak problem, I'm hoping none of our Ash get taken by the ash problem. Ours are good hardy English native specimens, maybe they have some form of resistance 
Mine are 6 years old now and not ready to come down
Mine are 6 years old now and not ready to come down Andrew Bodenham
Member
- Messages
- 441
- Location
- North Lancs
tycarregydwr,
Your prices look competitive.
In terms of species, others have made some good points about sustainability etc. I try to avoid any tropical timbers, as there are nearly always good temperate alternatives. I think that durability of a completed window tends to be more a function of design and detailing, installation, and maintenance (or lack of it). Most of the window failures I've seen have been related to water entrapment due to poor design, or water penetration due to breakdown of coatings, or problems relating to the corrosion of ferrous fixings. If you're having to rely on the inherent durability of the material then a number of other things will have gone wrong first.
Having said that, when I made a couple of sash windows for the exposed elevation of my house I did them in european oak. The extra cost of the timber (compared to say redwood) was insignificant against the hardware, glazing, manufacture and installation cost. But on less exposed elevations I'm installing redwood sashes.
Getting the right paint system is more vital. Ask me in 20 years time and I'll tell how mine are getting on.....
Your prices look competitive.
In terms of species, others have made some good points about sustainability etc. I try to avoid any tropical timbers, as there are nearly always good temperate alternatives. I think that durability of a completed window tends to be more a function of design and detailing, installation, and maintenance (or lack of it). Most of the window failures I've seen have been related to water entrapment due to poor design, or water penetration due to breakdown of coatings, or problems relating to the corrosion of ferrous fixings. If you're having to rely on the inherent durability of the material then a number of other things will have gone wrong first.
Having said that, when I made a couple of sash windows for the exposed elevation of my house I did them in european oak. The extra cost of the timber (compared to say redwood) was insignificant against the hardware, glazing, manufacture and installation cost. But on less exposed elevations I'm installing redwood sashes.
Getting the right paint system is more vital. Ask me in 20 years time and I'll tell how mine are getting on.....