Exterior Chairs - wood?

[Dennis Peacock]

I am looking to build some adirondack chairs for a more "comfy" sitting under the shade trees. I have found some cypress that is somewhat "local" to me...about 1.5 hours drive one way at a price of $1.45 PBF......should I build these chairs out of cypress? Any other suggestions from all by "buds" here on the creek?

[Noah Alkinburgh]

I am looking to build some adirondack chairs for a more "comfy" sitting under the shade trees. I have found some cypress that is somewhat "local" to me...about 1.5 hours drive one way at a price of $1.45 PBF......should I build these chairs out of cypress? Any other suggestions from all by "buds" here on the creek?


White Oak or Sasafrass

[Dennis Peacock]

Hey Noah,

Didn't think about White Oak, but what about it's weather resistance? Does it need to be painted/treated to make it last? I can get white oak at $1.30 PBF and only have to drive 45 minutes to get there. The cypress is south-east from me and the white oak is at my normal lumber supplier that is north of me. I am pretty sure I can NOT find sassafrass.

[Noah Alkinburgh]

Hey Noah,

Didn't think about White Oak, but what about it's weather resistance? Does it need to be painted/treated to make it last? I can get white oak at $1.30 PBF and only have to drive 45 minutes to get there. The cypress is south-east from me and the white oak is at my normal lumber supplier that is north of me. I am pretty sure I can NOT find sassafrass.

White Oak is very decay resistant. It is uses quite often for building barrels and boats. I believe it also the "traditional" wood of Adirondack furniture. Might be worng about that though. You can leave it and it will weather gray. Sasafrass is about the same on the decay restance level. Another option is cedar. You could always got the Teak or Mahogany route too if you want to be comfy and feel like you are sitting on a million bucks :D

Noah

[chris toomey]

dennis

if i had a choice i'd use cypres. thats a great price. i don't have my price sheet in front of me but up here in the north i'd pay a lot, lot more than that. white oak would be heavier too.

[Scott Coffelt]

I did some out of cedar. There lite though. You can also look into Teak, but that's another price. I hear cyprus is pretty good. You can research and find that often oak, teak, cyprus and cedar are used. Pine if its gonna be painted.... but in a yard getting wet, sounds like trouble to me. Mine are on a deck, so cedar will last for many, many years to come.

[Ed Falis]

Scott's right on all scores. Still, I'd probably use the white oak of the bunch, given that you have it most accessible (and it's nice and heavy).

- ed

[Jerry Solomon]

Dennis - I've heard folks say that much of today's cypress is not the same wood as the cypress in the "good old days". I don't know how truth there is in that but I can tell you that we bought a small cypress 2-seat rocker at a craft show a couple of years ago. We live in SE Louisiana and it's been sitting on the back patio since we got it. The patio is not sheltered so it's at the mercy of the elements 24/7 year 'round. Also, we didn't use any aftermarket treatment on the wood as the manufacturer said it wasn't necessary. The wood looked great when it was new but it's not looking that great today. This may be an unusual situation but then again maybe not. I'm not so sure I would build something for outdoor use in our area using cypress.

[Dennis Peacock]

So what I am reading from most all of you is that I should use White Oak instead of the cypress. Any other voters out there before I decide to make a final decision on what to use for outside adirondack chairs?

I do plan on using stainless steel screws for the chairs. I just wanted to check here about what wood to use before I went to the labor and expense of making the chairs.

[Steve Nelson]

Hey Dennis Ace and I are getting ready to make a few of those chairs and we bought cypress for them, all the reasearch we did made cypress look like the best choice. Just my .02 worth. Steve Ps are you and Hatfield going to be able to make it to Dallas?

[Ken Salisbury]

USE THE CYPRESS -- an old man's 2¢ worth

[Brad Schafer]

an alternate idea, and probably cost prohibitive ...

i saw some stuff made from ipe that was flat beautiful. i hope to put up a deck next spring using the stuff for exposed parts. i guess it's a booger to work with, but sure is nice to look at.


b

[Terry Quiram]

Since when do you have time to sit in the shade and sip lemonade? :D You don't want any of the mentioned wood. My suggestion to you is Bois D' Arc. Heirloom chairs for your great, great, great grandchildren. Those babies will NEVER rot and the wind won't blow them over.

Terry

[Steve Inniss]

I am looking to build some adirondack chairs for a more "comfy" sitting under the shade trees. I have found some cypress that is somewhat "local" to me...about 1.5 hours drive one way at a price of $1.45 PBF......should I build these chairs out of cypress? Any other suggestions from all by "buds" here on the creek?

All good points here. You might also want to consider where you'll be placing the chairs. Although cypress and white oak (and cedar) will resist decay at the point where they touch the ground, if it's grass or soil, the oak will be stronger - less tendency to rock at the joints and fall apart over the years- if on uneven ground. Will you be glueing the joints, or just using the stainless screws?

[Dennis Peacock]

All good points here. You might also want to consider where you'll be placing the chairs. Although cypress and white oak (and cedar) will resist decay at the point where they touch the ground, if it's grass or soil, the oak will be stronger - less tendency to rock at the joints and fall apart over the years- if on uneven ground. Will you be glueing the joints, or just using the stainless screws?

Steve,

I live in the "flat" part of Arkansas. Winter and spring can be very wet to say the least. The chairs would be sitting on grass/soil and I could store them for the winter in my shop. I just want something that will hold up better than the usual "lawn chairs" that seem to fall apart every single year. Besides that, a co-worker here at work wants 4 of the adirondack chairs...so I want to make his chairs to where they will last a long time.

[Steve Inniss]

Steve,

I live in the "flat" part of Arkansas. Winter and spring can be very wet to say the least. The chairs would be sitting on grass/soil and I could store them for the winter in my shop. I just want something that will hold up better than the usual "lawn chairs" that seem to fall apart every single year. Besides that, a co-worker here at work wants 4 of the adirondack chairs...so I want to make his chairs to where they will last a long time.
I would go with the cypress. Up here it's not available, the standard for adirondack chairs is cedar. It lasts forever, but it is not very strong. Most plans call for 1/2", I use 3/4" to compensate. I have a pair still going strong that I built when I was 17 ...um let's see - 30 years ago. They have gone from natural(weathered grey), to oiled, to stained, to painted, white then yellow, and now back to cedar - opaque cedar color stain.
Steve

[John Christiansen]

I am looking to build some adirondack chairs for a more "comfy" sitting under the shade trees. I have found some cypress that is somewhat "local" to me...about 1.5 hours drive one way at a price of $1.45 PBF......should I build these chairs out of cypress? Any other suggestions from all by "buds" here on the creek?

I just recently finished this one from Cypress. Everything but the seat and back slats is full 5/4" the seat and back are 3/4". Cypress is a good wood for exterior use. Even better if you finish it. The finish on this one is spar poly. Gorilla glue and screws unless you like mixing epoxy, is the way to go for exterior work.

[Ken Wright]

where Cypress is plentiful .... its the wood of choice for the application that you describe.

It'll stand the 24x7 exposure and turn a real nice shade of gray ... but I'd use a waterproof glue to reinforce the screwed joints.

You know, I'm probably less than 2 miles from a pretty sizeable grove of cypress standing in a couple of feet of water ... and I don't think I could come close to that price ... better grab it.... at the worst you could sell it for a nice profit on Ebay.

[Terre Hooks]

If you want to be able to move them without a crane or engine hoist, build them out of cypress. It is by far the best material for the money for those chairs. A cypress chair will weigh about 20-30 pounds. One made out of White Oak will probably weight close to 70.

I also think you are doing right by using SS hardware.

[Dar Lounsbury]

Here is a site that seems to cover this question.

http://www.woodweb.com/knowledge_base/Wood_species_for_outdoor_furniture.html

[Alan Turner]

I will offer another 2 cents. I did a series of 5 garden benches, and used spanish cedar. I now have a commission coming for 2 more, and am not sure that I will use that wood again. Its smell is delightful as part of the cigar mystique, but milling it -- it is a very strong and annoying odor.
Taking tips from a FWW article of about 1999, I used epoxy, West System, and coated the bottom of the 3x3 legs; they have held up well.
I also did the fastening of the seat slats with hand hammered copper rivets, which was quite easy, and presents a bit of a unique look. These I would recommend, as opposed to stainless screws. I think I used 20d nails, and the corresponding roves, all from Jamestown Distributors, in Rhode Island. At the end of the project, for a buck, my step son gave me a piece of steel or iron, 4" diameter bar, about 4" long. It makes a great buck. That, a drill, and an 8 oz. ballpeen hammer, is all that you need. They have oxodized nicely. I will definitely use the rivets on the current job. And the epoxy. I am just not sure on the spanish cedar.
Here is a pix. But now, 2 years later, they are quite gray in color.

[chris toomey]

i made a few humidors out of spanish cedar....it was horrible to work with. i coughed and hacked ....was aweful on mouth and throat. perhaps i was allergic to something in it. i haven't had experience with any other wood....course i don't work much with exotics

[Dr. Zack Jennings]

I second the Epoxy on the end grains where they contact the ground.
The Supplier in Tuckerman, near Hatfields shop, may have Kiln Dried Cypress..... at a good price. He probabl;y won't beat $1.49.

Talk to Bobby..

[Howard Acheson]

I think the bottom line is that Cypress, White Oak or Cedar would all make long lasting chairs. All these woods are excellent in an outdoor environment.

The best thing you can do to help them last is to put the leg bottoms in a large coffee can of highly thinned varnish. I used about a 10:1 ratio. Let the mixture wick up into the end grain. Most wood begins to discolor and deteriorate because of moisture wicking up throught the leg bottoms.