AusBonsai

Thought Id share a bench I knocked up out of scrap timber I had laying around. I was running out of space, and needed something that wouldnt warp over time due to warping. Cheated and screwed it altogether with stainless screws, drains real well!

Needs cleaning up and staining. Any suggestions? A friend of mine reckons I should use Danish oil, though it seems to be only for interior use. I wanted to keep the nice timber grains (the slats are painted at the moment, but will be removed one by one and sanded before being stained) but Id also like some level of protection from the elements.



Regards

Very nice from leftovers.

Perhaps treat it with linseed oil? Mix 50:50 boiled linseed oil with turps & give it a few coats.

Cheers

Thanks Mark.

Danish oil is usually a mixture of tung or linseed oil with some other components. I love the smell, and the finish is lovely. Wasnt sure how hard wearing it would be. Im assuming I would need to recoat over time?

Or perhaps there is a way to seal it in once applied? A clear gloss perhaps?

Regards

You could always go for cabots decking oil?
Great looking bench-love all the screws it gives it an industrial feel.

Isitangus wrote:You could always go for cabots decking oil?
Great looking bench-love all the screws it gives it an industrial feel.

Lol. My wife hates the screws. She wants me to put some timber trim over them Me? Im like you, industrial strength. Function over aesthetics. Wont do too well in bonsai with that motto, so I'll keep that mentality to the woodwork!

Decking oil makes sense I guess. Its hard wood with decking screws on my deck....

Regards

I would use Sikkens Cetol HLS or Deck but it needs re application regularly before it peels and blisters. Depending on how much sun you get it could be every 6-12 months. Looks good

Great looking bench.

I would suggest Bondalls Monocell marine stain, which is sold at the big green shed. Timber treated with linseed oil can attract mildew.

Fiona

Thanks guys and girls.

Good to know the linseed may attract mildew. Last thing I need. Does get plenty of sun where it is though. Like the look of both the Sikkens and the Monocell, may even use both!

The monocell looks to be based on polyurethane resin, I used a similar product a few years ago to insulate the secondary of an Oliver Lodge coil ("Tesla coil") and it looked smick. Glossy and smooth, really made the copper shine. If its good enough to insulate against +200kV then it should hold up just fine in a thunderstorm

Not to mention its made for the marine environment.

Regards

Looks great from something you had lying around..great way to recycle..

Try a product called intergrain aqua deck .its a decking oil but is water based.use it on my merbau deck and it lasts..it's on par with the sikkins products just a little cheaper (not by much tho )

Yes, cost is one of the main factors here. Cant lie, most decking stuff is really expensive.

I have my single posts/benches to do too, the tops are made of plywood and are starting to warp from constant exposure to water. So I will redo the top in slats. Will be redoing all the hand railing soon, its old and not up to spec (too low).

Regards

Hi Ren, a couple of quick comments. First up, I have been steel using mesh benches for 7-8 years and have been blown away by how much better they are in comparison to my old hardwood deck benches that I used previously, particularly in regard to drainage, air circulation, pest and disease prevention and having anchor points to wire tall trees down to. However I really like the way that you have built your bench with the boards edge on, you get the beauty of timber, with a lot of the benefits mesh that I mentioned previously and superior strength. I really like your comment about function over aesthetics, I wish more people would take that into consideration. Secondly, oil not clear-coat.

The screws, love them, tell the missus they are meant to resemble the rivets in a drum pot and that she should stop stifling your artistic expression

Cheers,
Mojo

Mojo Moyogi wrote:Hi Ren, a couple of quick comments. First up, I have been steel using mesh benches for 7-8 years and have been blown away by how much better they are in comparison to my old hardwood deck benches that I used previously, particularly in regard to drainage, air circulation, pest and disease prevention and having anchor points to wire tall trees down to. However I really like the way that you have built your bench with the boards edge on, you get the beauty of timber, with a lot of the benefits mesh that I mentioned previously and superior strength. I really like your comment about function over aesthetics, I wish more people would take that into consideration. Secondly, oil not clear-coat.

The screws, love them, tell the missus they are meant to resemble the rivets in a drum pot and that she should stop stifling your artistic expression

Cheers,
Mojo

Many thanks for the kind words Mojo. You're right about the strength of the bench. I reckon it would take well over 100kg ontop easily, so solid.

Also glad to hear that others like the screws. Spent a little more and got stainless ones with square driver fittings as I wanted a nice looking, non phillips head finish.

Regards

Ren,

I did a series of veranda decks around the house with merbau and I used exactly the same screws; a pleasure to work with. I found that as the colour leached out of the timber it darkened off the sheen of the screws. Tell the Minister for Domestic Harmony she won't notice them after a little while.

deejay335 wrote:Ren,

I did a series of veranda decks around the house with merbau and I used exactly the same screws; a pleasure to work with. I found that as the colour leached out of the timber it darkened off the sheen of the screws. Tell the Minister for Domestic Harmony she won't notice them after a little while.

Interesting. Thanks for the heads up. Dunno about the domestic harmony thing, I was thinking more like Minister of war and finance

Knocked up another bench yesterday to tuck away in the shade. Am away for a few days and have someone house sitting. Really hoping they are all alive when I get back. Thought placing the delicate ones out of the sun and wind may increase my chances, thus the new bench. Still needs a couple more diagonals to stiffen it up.

Regards

deejay335 wrote:Ren,

I did a series of veranda decks around the house with merbau and I used exactly the same screws; a pleasure to work with. I found that as the colour leached out of the timber it darkened off the sheen of the screws. Tell the Minister for Domestic Harmony she won't notice them after a little while.

I second that one too.
I did the same around the pool and after a few months you could hardly notice them

Nice benches and table
Always a worry when you have friends baby sit trees, so hopeyours are ok.
I put them al in a single area with a lots of sprayeres on a timer just in case when i go on holidays

Ken