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I built some house shutters 5 years ago using white pine for the frames and MDO for the solid panels. After 5 years they are badly rotted. I never would have expected that. I used primer and SW's Emerald exerior paint, yet the water got in and did it's work. So now I have to replace them.
I've been thinking about using AZEK for both the frames and panels, but am concerned about warpage of the frames in the hot sun. This is WNY, but it still gets really hot in the afternoon when facing west, which these shutters do. Then I thought about Utile, Spanish cedar, and northern white cedar. I can get 5/4 Utile locally. Not sure about the Spanish cedar or northern white cedar though. Has anyone used AZEK or any of these woods for exterior shutters? I'm planning to use 1/2" PVC sheet for the panels, no matter what the frames are made of.
John
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Cypress?? Back in the day, it was used for soffits and facia on houses. My first house (built in 1910) used it, and I was surprised to find it was cypress when I did some repairs on them back in 1976; they weren't rotted, just had to renail them after over 60+ years.
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(03-24-2025, 06:14 PM)Admiral Wrote: Cypress?? Back in the day, it was used for soffits and facia on houses. My first house (built in 1910) used it, and I was surprised to find it was cypress when I did some repairs on them back in 1976; they weren't rotted, just had to renail them after over 60+ years.
I don't think cypress is available up here. I've heard cypress today isn't nearly as rot resistant as the stuff from 100 years ago, too, but I don't know if that's true or not. Anyway, I don't think it's an option. Thanks.
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Old growth cypress is significantly more rot resistant than faster grown wood.
Here is a chart from the USDA Wood as an Engineering Material:
Aside from that, Tulip-poplar takes paint really well. Narns with tulip -poplar siding have lasted decades if they are painted well and kept up.
It's not surprising white pine didn't last...
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About 6 or 7 years ago, I made a gate out of sassafras, for my daughter's deck. I applied an exterior stain to it and it's been re-stained once. It faces south, so it gets its share of UV and weather. SO far it has held up really well.
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It's probably a little pricey, but mahogany is very impervious to the weather. Doesn't warp or crack when exposed to extreme temps.
Doug
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Composite deck boards? It never rots. Not sure about whether they can be painted well.
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Allan Hill
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(Yesterday, 07:03 AM)JosephP Wrote: Old growth cypress is significantly more rot resistant than faster grown wood.
Here is a chart from the USDA Wood as an Engineering Material:
Aside from that, Tulip-poplar takes paint really well. Narns with tulip -poplar siding have lasted decades if they are painted well and kept up.
It's not surprising white pine didn't last...
Tulip poplar is in the least rot resistant category. If it lasts for decades as barn siding, then something is amiss with the chart. White pine is shown as more resistant on the list and has been used for exterior trim work for a really long time. I'm very surprised it didn't survive very long in this application.
John
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(Yesterday, 09:01 AM)Tapper Wrote: It's probably a little pricey, but mahogany is very impervious to the weather. Doesn't warp or crack when exposed to extreme temps.
Doug
Mahogany would be a fine choice if not for the price. Utile (also called Sipe) is a mahogany substitute at half the price, which is why I'm considering it. It's rated as moderately durable to durable at Wood Database.
Some folks at another forum have cautioned about AZEC sagging in the hot sun, so I'm leaning towards wood for the frames and using AZEK only for the panels.
Now I need to figure out a way to use frame and panel construction w/o getting degradation from infiltrated water. It would be easy to prefinish everything, including the dadoes in the stiles and rails, if not for having to then glue it together. I guess I could mask off the stiles and rails where the joints are to prevent paint from getting on those areas. I'm also considering making the panels using my CNC so they have integrated spacers (sort of like built in space balls), or maybe just use space balls, and then drilling weep holes on the back of the rails at the bottom of the dados to drain out the water that gets into the joints.
Another great recommendation was to use a lead or zinc cap on the top to keep water out of the top stile/rail joints. Those metals also leach ions that prevent mold, etc from growing, of which there was some on these shutters.
John
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