What can I use to make wooden structures durable?
I need to build some things on a farm such as a roof over the firewood storage area, some simple pieces of furniture, etc.. I need to make them durable and resistant to water, humidity, sunlight…and TERMITES. Is there any combination of substances that would do the job you know about, so to help me make this elixir?
suggestions as to what I can actually produce, rather than what I
can buy are much preferred.
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Wood is prone to dry rot, termites and drying from the Sun.
Redwood is a type of wood that is resistant to Termites. However, here is a web page for Hawaii wood construction and Termites.
Pressure Treated lumber does what you want. And for the hood for the firewood I would just use corrugated aluminum since it is a lot cheaper.
As to the firewood, the best thing you can do to protect it from rotting and termites is to lay it on well-drained stone, concrete or brick, so that none of it is in contact with the underlying soil. The good drainage will protect against rot, which is going to be the biggest destroyer of firewood. Then watch for termite tracks along the edges of the pad, and destroy them if and as they appear. No rot, no termites.
Frankly, I wouldn’t even bother covering the firewood. If you use it fairly frequently and don’t store a year’s worth at a time then the amount of moisture it picks up from (infrequent) rain storms and other weather exposure will be more than offset by the amount of (better) air drying and direct evaporation afforded by the sun. (I would make sure to have enough dried and drying wood in the house for use during times of bad weather, though, so that a single stretch of bad weather doesn’t leave you out of fuel.)
If you keep the bottom row of logs off the ground to allow airflow, you do not need to put a roof over your firewood. Throw a tarp over the top of the stack if you get frequent rains or snow.
When adding screws or nails, triangle or zigzag formations are much much more stable than straight lines. A straight line creates a pivot and is incredibly weak. Use corrugated fiberglass or aluminum as your roof, and pressure treated 4x stock for your frame.
Or you could just stick the wood on pallets to keep it off the ground and throw a tarp on the whole thing. It would work just as well, and save you a lot of time, effort, and money.
There are several water proofing liquids on the market that you simply paint on. They have to be renewed yearly or so.
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