Outdoor wood questions

[Nick Mazzino]

I am wanting to make a bird feeder out of cherry. I recently made a lap table with cherry and finished it with tung oil and I loved the look.

Might be a newbie question, but can you put an outdoor water sealant over wood that has already been treated with tung oil or polyurethane?
Also, would it not be recommended to use a hardwood such as cherry or oak for outdoor applications? Most things I am seeing are using cedar or pine. Is that because of the anti bug properties of cedar? I have heard cedar is hard to work with because of how soft it is.

Thanks,
Nick

[Yonak Hawkins]

Nick, anything made of wood that will be outside in the elements will fail sooner or later. What fails sooner and what fails later seems to depend on the material it's made of more than how it's finished however, that said, things that are painted regularly with a good grade of outdoor paint will last longer than otherwise.

Look for woods that are rated for outdoor use such as cedar, mahogany, white oak, ipe, treated pine, to name a few of several. Another good choice may be a composite decking material, that's not wood at all. Then look for fasteners that will hold up to moisture, find a way to keep it up off the ground and provide some kind of cover .. for furniture it may be a porch or a tarp ; for a birdhouse it would be a good and wide roof.

I can't say for sure but, I would think putting finish on a bird feeder may be harmful to the birds. I've never put a finish on a birdhouse or a bird feeder but, then again, they're not normally made to last a very long time.

[Lee Schierer]

Years ago, the Boy Scouts were building bluebird houses from a bin of cut offs from a production wood business. One of the ones my son made was out of cherry. It was unfinished and has been outside for 15+ years and even though it is gray it is still going strong. The only piece that has failed is the roof. I made a new roof out of some composite deck fascia material.

[Marc Rochkind]

Perhaps white oak needs to be better known. It's not at all like the much more common red oak. White oak is very dense, and doesn't even need to finished for outdoor use.

[John K Jordan]

Osage orange will last nearly forever outdoors. Black locust is almost as good. Both are heavy and quite hard but not impossible to work. Eastern Red cedar (the red part, not the white sapwood) will last a long time outdoors and it is very light in weight as well, nice for something that hangs. I use it for siding on farm buildings. Redwood is pretty good - I once had a deck of redwood.

White oak is pretty good - I think it lasts longer than many species because it has pores filled with tyloses, easily visible with a 10x lens - these prevent water from being readily absorbed and causing the wood to deteriorate as quickly. (Osage and locust also have tyloses.) Like almost any wood, cherry and pine included, white oak will eventually rot if left out in the rain. I cut outdoor steps from thick white oak slabs - those on the front of the house need to be replaced now after maybe 12 years.

I think a lot depends on the exposure. Wooden things kept out of direct sun and rain will last longer. I would expect a bird feeder mounted under the eves to last much longer than one out on a pole.

To address the OP question, I wouldn't put outdoor water sealant over some other finish. I think it needs to soak into the wood to work. Even then, in my experience sealers like Thompsons do not seem to work very well regardless of how they are applied. Boiled Linseed Oil soaked into wood seems to work a lot better - I use it on wheelbarrow and tool handles and wooden trailers. I don't know if it would chase off the birds but I don't think so, at least after it cured and the smell was gone. It would probably help preserve cherry but I haven't tested that. You might try putting some on cherry and see if you like the look. (Be advised the wood will eventually turn grey regardless of what you put on it.)

JKJ

[Nick Mazzino]

Thanks everyone for the input. I didn't realize white oak was an option. I have some white oak already in my shop, I think will use that.

Thanks,
Nick

[Tom Bender]

I have a feeder made of white oak and painted that has been outside since 1987. It's not in good shape but is still functional. However the food goes in a plastic tray. A wooden food tray will rot pretty quick due to moisture. We are in Michigan. If you are in a desert, wood will last much longer with no finish.

[Ole Anderson]

The foundation for the Brooklyn Bridge is made from white oak. Good stuff. But my dad built a dock from red oak, not a good choice.