Poplar for outside trim

[kevin nee]

I have some pine trim that is punky and I am replacing it. I have enough 3/4 inch poplar
to do this project and it will be painted. My question is will poplar hold up in New England
or should I just get some pine? Also do you suggest painting both sides? I will paint it before
I install it. Thanks in advance,

[John TenEyck]

Pine will last longer than Poplar. Poplar is a really poor choice for exterior use.

John

[Jim Dwight]

I agree. If the pine failed, do you know why? If it is an extreme weathering situation, it might even make sense to use Pressure Treated wood. It takes paint well (when reasonably dry).

[Mel Fulks]

With more specific info ,I think either could work. Good NE white pine or the Borg sappy shelving boards like I just tore off my house ? Have had mostly good luck with KD heart poplar (green poplar as opposed to white).

[kevin nee]

It is my own fault the sprinkler has been hitting this for ten years. I soak the garden daily.
I am correcting that too!

[daryl moses]

My woodshop is built out of rough sawn Poplar, it's never been painted, stained or had any type of preservative put on it, I like the grey weathered look. I built it over ten years ago and there is not a bit of rot on it anywhere. In my experience wood that is not in contact with the ground or is not constantly wet will last for many, many years.
The farmers in my area prefer it for building barns etc.
It's certainly not the most rot resistant wood, but it stands up to the weather remarkably well.

[Kent A Bathurst]

It is my own fault the sprinkler has been hitting this for ten years. I soak the garden daily.
I am correcting that too!

Replacing the trim is treating the symptom. Getting the daily shower :eek: stopped is curing the disease.

Lemme take shot - the bad section of trim doesn't get much, if any, direct sunlight?

Whatever wood species you install - paint all sides and edges.

[Richard Hash]

I would use pressure treated pine. I cannot imagine poplar lasting very long at all outdoors if it was getting wet regularly...

[Kent A Bathurst]

Well, yeah, sort of - -

Untreated softwoods are pretty standard - painted all sides and edges, with the paint maintained over the years, and no daily baths......

PT would not be a bad choice at all........but then you gotta wait to paint it. The PT producers' literature does everything they can to discourage painting, for a reason - the moisture inherent in the PT process takes time to work out of the wood, and a painted surface will not stop the exodus - the paint leaves town, consumers gripe and want to file warranty claims...... I always say "wait 12 months" for the PT lumber to fully dry. Other guys here say different - shorter times.

You could go all DEFCON 5 with a synthetic material - Azek is commonly known, but there are many other brands, some of which I personally like better. Then, you can soak the stuff in a bath 24/7 with zero issues.

[John TenEyck]

Yes, AZEK is great for trim; paints well, too. Do it once and never again.

John

[kevin nee]

Thanks all, I picked up some clear pine. I will paint and caulk everything. No more watering the building. The poplar is some nice 12 inch wide stuff and can be used fir a lot of other things .

[Kent A Bathurst]

Thanks all, I picked up some clear pine. I will paint and caulk everything. No more watering the building. The poplar is some nice 12 inch wide stuff and can be used fir a lot of other things .

You are good.

Look around the building for other stupid stuff with water, eh? ;)

[Tom M King]

I built a spec house in 1980 with Poplar beveled siding a few hundred yards from the house we live in. Woodpeckers and flying squirrels are death on Cedar here. The siding on that house has been stained maybe three times since then, and it still looks good. The house has 16" of overhang all around, and is in the woods on the lake.

[John TenEyck]

I built a spec house in 1980 with Poplar beveled siding a few hundred yards from the house we live in. Woodpeckers and flying squirrels are death on Cedar here. The siding on that house has been stained maybe three times since then, and it still looks good. The house has 16" of overhang all around, and is in the woods on the lake.

If it stays dry any wood will last a long time. But if it regularly gets wet, and especially if it's in contact with the ground, poplar is one of the worst woods you can use. Page 44 of Hoadley's book lists Poplar in the "Slightly or nonresistant" column with respect to rot resistant. Eastern white pine is in the "Moderately resistant" column, and cedar, white oak, redwood, and others are in the "Resistant or very resistant" column.

John

[Peter Quinn]

Every once in a while this comes up. Poplar for exterior trim. Its cheap as all getup and great for exterior and I'm the only one who knows it right? No, not so much. I hear its used effectively for barn siding. But the standards are different. Unfinished, in a field, chance to dry out, off the ground, and its not finished space at $200/SF you are protecting. I used a little poplar I had for exterior trim as an experiment on a bad old garage I was fixing to tear down and since have. Mold food, moves a lot, sheds paint when wet...just great for the exterior! EWP is about 1/2 step higher these days, not what it used to be when it was the thing to use. Grows too fast, not enough resin to ward off bugs....


I really like plastic! I'm a wood worker and I'm not afraid to admit I love plastic trim...because I hate painting. If you are going to paint it, and you want smooth texture, polyurethane trim wins. Its expensive, but cost effective over a lifetime. So when the pine you install fails, consider using plastic!

[Mel Fulks]

I'm familiar with those ratings ,pretty sure they originated in the Forest Products Laboratory stuff. I don't disagree with them but in the case of NE white pine " moderatly " is pretty good . Wonderful to work and and lots of old work still around. I've worked places that used white sap poplar to make stain grade cabinets and even refused to deal with supliers
who would not send only the sap wood; but if someone wanted exterior millwork of poplar they took the job and used the
sap wood. The green heart poplar is cheap and actually better outside than the often very sappy more expensive DF. And often the fir is used heart side out due to ignorance or misguided way to mitigate the sap wood.

[Tom M King]

If it stays dry any wood will last a long time. But if it regularly gets wet, and especially if it's in contact with the ground, poplar is one of the worst woods you can use. Page 44 of Hoadley's book lists Poplar in the "Slightly or nonresistant" column with respect to rot resistant. Eastern white pine is in the "Moderately resistant" column, and cedar, white oak, redwood, and others are in the "Resistant or very resistant" column.

John

That was the last house I built with it. I didn't trust it, but a supplier I dealt with had it. After that, I went to White Oak for siding. The house I'm living in now I built right after that house. The White Oak is still in great shape, and has deterred a few woodpeckers. I pressure wash it about every ten years. Other than that, it's never had anything put on it.

[Reinis Kanders]

Does your white oak weather to nice gray or does it turn blackish? I am thinking of replacing my front steps with white oak and was going to let it be untreated, but some info on internets said that it might turn blackish. My steps have southern exposure.


That was the last house I built with it. I didn't trust it, but a supplier I dealt with had it. After that, I went to White Oak for siding. The house I'm living in now I built right after that house. The White Oak is still in great shape, and has deterred a few woodpeckers. I pressure wash it about every ten years. Other than that, it's never had anything put on it.

[John K Jordan]

Are you talking about tulip poplar or true poplar? They are not the same species and have much different properties. And what pine? Not all pine is created equal.

Tulip poplar was often used as barn siding years ago. I took such boards off my 80-100 year old barn that were in good condition. I think one thing that matters is if the wood gets wet and stays wet it may deteriorate rapidly.

[Larry Edgerton]

Another vote for Versatex/Azek. It costs less than clear cedar, lasts longer, machines well, and holds paint. Its what I have on my own house. Even the belfry will be Versatex.

[Peter Quinn]

The thing with barn siding is its the original vented rain screen application. Usually no interior wall finishes.....it's a barn. No place to trap moisture, etc., often run vertical. Problem with window trim, corner boards, etc.....not usually vented, perfect place to take on a little water and trap it for a while, if caulking fails, and it always fails, trouble begins. Ime the EWP you can buy today starts to rot the second the paint fails, and when paint fails it traps moisture beneath the itself accelerating the process. Best thing you can do for your house is build 4' soffits or the biggest your house style can support, clear all the trees to let in sunlight all around, and keep all wood trim well painted. Shade is bad for wood houses.

[Jason Roehl]

Back-prime, back-prime, back-prime...

[bill tindall]

Poplar will be fine if it is all heartwood. For example, the old growth poplar used on log cabins and barns in this area has held up for decades exposed to the weather. If water gets to poplar sapwood it rots at miles per hour (based on unfortunate experience). I used poplar for trim and the occasional joint admitted water and the wood rotted for several feet in either direction. The paint looked to be fine but underneath the wood was gone.

[Tom M King]

Does your white oak weather to nice gray or does it turn blackish? I am thinking of replacing my front steps with white oak and was going to let it be untreated, but some info on internets said that it might turn blackish. My steps have southern exposure.

It gets black if I don't pressure wash it much after every ten years. It takes about a year to get to a nice silver. When I pressure wash it with my 2500 psi 4.4gpm pressure washer, it gets it back to the original wood color. When I bought it for our house in 1980, I paid a hundred bucks a thousand for it.

[Jeff Duncan]

I think a lot of posters missed location….New England! Poplar here….not a chance! You may get a few years out of it, but you'll be replacing it again:(

New England is harsh on exteriors and the poplar you get today doesn't stand up.

good luck,
JeffD