What type of wood for a Pergola?

[Mark Rios]

I'm talking with a person about putting a pergola in their back yard. I've found a couple of designs but I need some information on types of hardwood for this use outdoors. I'm interested in both domestic and exotic material.

If you all would be so kind, I'd like wood type info of a few types so that we can decide on maintenance and cost issues. The wood doesn't have to be buriable, I can pour sono tubes and post brackets. But I would like to know about the treatment or not of the bottoms of the posts (setting on the brackets) of the particular types of wood. Finishing or not would, of course, be determined by the type of wood and would be a factor in what is used.


Thanks very much for any help and advice you can provide.

[Mike Henderson]

I built a pergola and went way too extreme in my wood and hardware. I would recommend redwood (or some other rot resistant wood) for the post and then just use fir for the rest - this is assuming you're going to paint it. If you put a good primer on it and keep it painted, it'll last a long time.

I did mine in all redwood, with stainless steel screws - but I now believe that's overkill. You can see mine here (http://members.cox.net/h-h.woodworks/mikes_projects.htm).

Mike

[Mark Rios]

Thanks P. Michael, nice job on the pergola.

The wood in this one will be left natural or stained, determined by the type of wood, cost of mainteneance if stained, and how the wood looks when it weathers naturally.

[Jamie Buxton]

Mark --
For exterior hardwood, I'd suggest a fun outing for you, to Oakland. Plywood and Lumber Sales (www.pals4wood.com) has several interesting-looking but obscure imported hardwoods they sell for decks. I don't recognize the names, and don't remember them now. However, I do remember that the prices are something like half that of ipe, the best-known of imported deck hardwood.

Jamie

[glenn bradley]

Thanks P. Michael, nice job on the pergola.

The wood in this one will be left natural or stained, determined by the type of wood, cost of mainteneance if stained, and how the wood looks when it weathers naturally.

Blue ceder if available weathers beautifully.

[Cecil Arnold]

Mark, don't know what it would cost in CA, but you might want to look at cypress, rot resistant and works well.