Hi all, can someone tell me the best wood to use for the beams of a balcony?
Apparently oak is no good as it splits and holds water and rots from the
inside out.

Cheers

Steve

On 25 Sep, 08:33, "Mr Sandman" wrote:
Hi all, can someone tell me the best wood to use for the beams of a balcony?

Oak is good, but expensive - timber's expensive, working it takes
longer too

Larch is good rot-wise (very resinous) but it's prone to twist on
drying so you need to select your timber carefully.

Douglas Fir might be your best all-round choice. Good structurally,
light & strong, pretty good rot resistance. Easier to buy from non-
specialist yards too.


Apparently oak is no good

Yes, of course, that's why there are no oak-framed buildings left
standing that are more than a few _centuries_ old.

In article ,
Mr Sandman wrote:
Hi all, can someone tell me the best wood to use for the beams of a
balcony? Apparently oak is no good as it splits and holds water and
rots from the inside out.

No wonder all those old sailing ships sunk, then.

--
*Marriage changes passion - suddenly you're in bed with a relative*

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

On Sep 25, 8:33*am, "Mr Sandman" wrote:
Hi all, can someone tell me the best wood to use for the beams of a balcony?
Apparently oak is no good as it splits and holds water and rots from the
inside out.

Cheers

Steve

I think oak is the most durable species known


NT

NT wrote:
On Sep 25, 8:33 am, "Mr Sandman" wrote:
Hi all, can someone tell me the best wood to use for the beams of a balcony?
Apparently oak is no good as it splits and holds water and rots from the
inside out.

Cheers

Steve

I think oak is the most durable species known


As long as its nor permanently wet, its pretty good.

Not sure what a balcony beam MEANS actually.


NT

On Sep 25, 8:33 pm, Andy Dingley wrote:

Douglas Fir might be your best all-round choice. Good structurally,
light & strong, pretty good rot resistance. Easier to buy from non-
specialist yards too.

Can't you get timber in the UK that is treated against rot?
In NZ we would use H3 treated pinus radiata, as Douglas Fir won't
absorb
the treatment well, and only lasts a few years outdoor if untreated.

On Sep 25, 12:26*pm, Matty F wrote:
On Sep 25, 8:33 pm, Andy Dingley wrote:

Douglas Fir might be your best all-round choice. Good structurally,
light & strong, pretty good rot resistance. Easier to buy from non-
specialist yards too.

Can't you get timber in the UK that is treated against rot?

yes, but of course it rots. UK is a wetter climate than many
countries.


NT

On Sep 25, 11:03*am, NT wrote:
On Sep 25, 8:33*am, "Mr Sandman" wrote:

Hi all, can someone tell me the best wood to use for the beams of a balcony?
Apparently oak is no good as it splits and holds water and rots from the
inside out.

Cheers

Steve

I think oak is the most durable species known


Yew is definitely more durable.
I suspect some of the tropical hardwords are more durable.
- But both would be too expensive.

Accoya (wood with hydroxl groups replaced with acetyl groups) looks
possible.

On Sep 25, 11:21*am, The Natural Philosopher
wrote:
Not sure what a balcony beam MEANS actually.

Err - a beam to hold up a balcony surely? (The bit that sticks out
from the house, and has the decking planks laid on top of it).

Martin Bonner wrote:
On Sep 25, 11:21 am, The Natural Philosopher
wrote:
Not sure what a balcony beam MEANS actually.

Err - a beam to hold up a balcony surely? (The bit that sticks out
from the house, and has the decking planks laid on top of it).

Ah. so basically OUT of the rain.

Lots of 16th century oak beams still around doing that.

Possibly teak is slighthly better.

On Fri, 25 Sep 2009 04:30:20 -0700, NT wrote:

On Sep 25, 12:26Â*pm, Matty F wrote:
On Sep 25, 8:33 pm, Andy Dingley wrote:

Douglas Fir might be your best all-round choice. Good structurally,
light & strong, pretty good rot resistance. Easier to buy from non-
specialist yards too.

Can't you get timber in the UK that is treated against rot?

yes, but of course it rots. UK is a wetter climate than many
countries.

Although it get be pretty wet here, too, and the pressure-treated stuff
is readily available - there's as much of it in the lumber area of the
local DIY shed as there is non-treated. (comes with a 40 year guarantee
against fungal decay, too). Just loaded up the other day - $3/lf for 2x4"
and $4/lf for 4x4", so price isn't too bad either (about 30% more than
untreated)

Most if it's not rated for ground contact, which suggests that it does
need to be able to dry out once it does get wet.

Memories of living in NZ were that it could be pretty darn humid in some
places, no different from anywhere else really.

cheers

Jules

Matty F wrote:
On Sep 25, 8:33 pm, Andy Dingley wrote:

Douglas Fir might be your best all-round choice. Good structurally,
light & strong, pretty good rot resistance. Easier to buy from non-
specialist yards too.

Can't you get timber in the UK that is treated against rot?
In NZ we would use H3 treated pinus radiata, as Douglas Fir won't
absorb
the treatment well, and only lasts a few years outdoor if untreated.

Pinus radiata wouldn't last five minutes here. Nice to live in a climate
where it does :-)
I would ignore the advice and go for recycled oak beams. Pitch pine is
also reasonably easy to source, and should be a good alternative. Doug
Fir I wouldn't be so sure of.

Pitch pine; European Oak; Iroko; Teak.

Iroko is a dense heavy hardwood, far more so than Oak.
The downside of Iroko is that if recut will twist from varying
internal stresses.

Steel UB/RSJ zinc-epoxy 2pk coated with slipped in Iroko planks?
Alternative to hardwood planks is wood-fibre-in-resin rot-proof planks?