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Solid Oak furniture board


MHS

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I have used solid oak furniture board to make interior shelving in the past. My question is regarding it’s suitability for an outside job. 

 

Our steel rear cockpit doors (of our semi-trad) have a timber panel inset on the inside of the frame. They have now seen better days. Has anyone used furniture board either painted or oiled for this purpose?

 

I wonder whether warping would be an issue. 

 

https://www.gwleader.co.uk/timber-c7/furniture-board-c71/gw-leader-18mm-solid-oak-blocked-furniture-board-p1501

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12 minutes ago, MHS said:

I have used solid oak furniture board to make interior shelving in the past. My question is regarding it’s suitability for an outside job. 

 

Our steel rear cockpit doors (of our semi-trad) have a timber panel inset on the inside of the frame. They have now seen better days. Has anyone used furniture board either painted or oiled for this purpose?

 

I wonder whether warping would be an issue. 

 

https://www.gwleader.co.uk/timber-c7/furniture-board-c71/gw-leader-18mm-solid-oak-blocked-furniture-board-p1501

Yes, unless they are fixed with multiple screws they will warp, new wood would be worse, it would dry and split as well.

I buy old tables at auctions for boat building timber, its better wood and totally seasoned, also cheaper! Oak flooring, maple panelling, all very inexpensive.

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15 minutes ago, MHS said:

I have used solid oak furniture board to make interior shelving in the past. My question is regarding it’s suitability for an outside job. 

 

Our steel rear cockpit doors (of our semi-trad) have a timber panel inset on the inside of the frame. They have now seen better days. Has anyone used furniture board either painted or oiled for this purpose?

 

I wonder whether warping would be an issue. 

 

https://www.gwleader.co.uk/timber-c7/furniture-board-c71/gw-leader-18mm-solid-oak-blocked-furniture-board-p1501

I doubt if warping would be the worry, more the long term resistance to water.

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3 minutes ago, Stilllearning said:

I doubt if warping would be the worry, more the long term resistance to water.

Oak is generally very resistant to water and I plan to paint it too. From memory elm is even better though not as easy to source. 

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15 minutes ago, Stilllearning said:

Ercol make some very nice elm furniture, maybe find a knackered table?

An idea I’d not thought of. I think they are quite pricey now though as they’re trendy again. 

 

I do have a beautiful solid elm Cryercraft desk which I bought with money given for my 21st birthday. I wouldn’t fancy cutting it up as I still love it!

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1 minute ago, WotEver said:

I think it's unlikely that the glue used on those furniture boards is waterproof.  Ergo it will fail outside, even if painted.

As it’s often used for kitchen worktops, as per the link, I don’t think you’d be very happy if that was the case. 

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49 minutes ago, MHS said:

Oak is generally very resistant to water and I plan to paint it too. From memory elm is even better though not as easy to source. 

But is this solid oke or reconstituted oak, a big difference. I go with Tracy's idea, down the auction room and buy an old table for a tenner

Sorry cant open the link maybe my slow connection

 

Edited by ditchcrawler
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.

 

 

7 minutes ago, ditchcrawler said:

But is this solid oke or reconstituted oak, a big difference. I go with Tracy's idea, down the auction room and buy an old table for a tenner

Sorry cant open the link maybe my slow connection

 

The boards are made of solid oak.

Generally wider sections of wood are more likely to warp, that’s why narrower pieces are joined together. 

Edited by MHS
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51 minutes ago, MHS said:

.

 

 

The boards are made of solid oak.

Generally wider sections of wood are more likely to warp, that’s why narrower pieces are joined together. 

The page has opened now, It wasn't what I was thinking when you said blockboard, I was thinking the ply sandwich stuff. That looks pretty good I would say

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1 hour ago, MHS said:

As it’s often used for kitchen worktops, as per the link, I don’t think you’d be very happy if that was the case. 

The link says "worktops", it doesn't say "kitchen worktops" which, at 18mm thick, it would be way too thin for.

 

And if you're so set on talking down any criticism of that choice, why did you ask the question in the first place?

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11 minutes ago, WotEver said:

The link says "worktops", it doesn't say "kitchen worktops" which, at 18mm thick, it would be way too thin for.

 

And if you're so set on talking down any criticism of that choice, why did you ask the question in the first place?

I’m not talking anyone down, I’m simply asking if anyone actually has experience of using it outside. 

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Personally, I would not use oak for exterior work, as already suggested, unless it has been seasoned for a long time (seven years used to be the standard seasoning time), it is likely to move and looked warped after a while, It also doen't take paint well. When I lined my steel back cabin doors, I used an exterior grade ply which was used for lorry flatbed floors. it is very stable, and takes paint well. I got mine from Avon Ply in Keynsham, but there must be other stockists in other parts of the country.

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3 hours ago, MHS said:

 

Our steel rear cockpit doors (of our semi-trad) have a timber panel inset on the inside of the frame. They have now seen better days. Has anyone used furniture board either painted or oiled for this purpose?

Are these rear doors of the main cabin, or are they rear doors between the enclosed bit and the stern deck. If the latter the wood would be exposed to the weather all the time (assuming no pram hood), and I suspect the multiple joints in that board would soon show through any paint film.

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26 minutes ago, David Mack said:

Are these rear doors of the main cabin, or are they rear doors between the enclosed bit and the stern deck. If the latter the wood would be exposed to the weather all the time (assuming no pram hood), and I suspect the multiple joints in that board would soon show through any paint film.

The doors between the rear cockpit and the rear counter, so yes, they would be exposed. 

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On 08/08/2020 at 20:46, Tracy D'arth said:

Buffalo board, seal the edges, lasts well.

Agreed, Buffalo board is great stuff. I’ve used it for flooring in our dog kennels for years and it lasts well. 

However i don’t think it takes paint well and we want our doors to be painted as before. 

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American oak is often used for bespoke internal structures like staircases in houses. It looks superb and  is stable . The downside is that it is porous  and totally unsuited for exterior use, won't last long at all. A bit since  iI did a test with a small piece- you can blow air through the wood into a glass of water- I didn't believe it till I tried.

On the other hand, English or European oak lasts much better, though there are issues as stated above  with keeping paint on it, all  tree wood moves about a lot according to seasons.

I am not convinced of the quality of any modern  plywood, even so-called expensive  "marine" grade.,  in my experience it delaminates  in a few years no matter how much treatment, paint or preservative you bung on it.

One possibility  is re-cycled plastic boards, though movement due to temperature change is more than wood.

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19 minutes ago, billh said:

The downside is that it is porous  and totally unsuited for exterior use, won't last long at all. A bit since  iI did a test with a small piece- you can blow air through the wood into a glass of water- I didn't believe it till I tried.

It can be.  It isn't always.  See 04:40 here: 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited by WotEver
Corrected time
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I am interested to know why so many people are suggesting Buffalo Board as a suitable material for doors, which is exceptionally good for flooring, etc. However, it is basicly exterior grade Birch Ply with a Phenolic coating on both sides, one of which is usually heavily textured and neither of which takes paint that successfully, and the edges will still need treating to prevent the ingress of moisture. The same exterior grade Birch ply without the expensive Phenolic coating can be purchased from specialist Merchants, is easier to work, and takes paint better, so why not simply use that.

  • Greenie 1
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I have used Stokbord (which is recycled plastic) for battery boxes and other tasks. It’s a great material, but tends to expand a lot in hot weather, so wouldn’t be suitable for fitting within the metal frame. 

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Blockboard isn't the best bet.  Fine as a kitchen worktop as it would never get the same attritional weathering as it would outside.

 

On 10/08/2020 at 09:17, billh said:

English or European oak lasts much better

 

English and European oak and sapele are the standard hardwoods for external joinery.  We never used American oak.  Where I worked we generally used sapele primed with aluminium primer where external joinery was to be painted.  Sapele is cheaper but oak is perhaps, and I think probably is, more ethically sound.  But for ethics I'd go for sapele if you want to paint it, its closer grain means a better paint finish.

 

And do you really need 18mm thick boards?  To me that seems a little thick for a flat panel if it's not very likely to get kicked and is backed by a steel door.  Thick planks split and warp badly too.  Unless of course you're putting a deep moulding on the panel, in which case go ahead.

 

I hope that's helpful.

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