Wood rack

[nmaho]

Going to be building a wood rack this weekend, was wondering if it should be pressure treated or not? It will be on a covered porch but exposed to the air. It will be around for a while what do you think?

 

[Applesister]

No on the pressure treated. I use the Rutland Brackets and cheap cheap pine. But I paint the wood with an expensive oil based flat black paint.
I cant afford the beautiful wrought iron racks so I do the cheap version.
Pressure treated is heavy to move around. Its honky and you cant paint it.
You could paint the rack to match your trim or house siding. White or cedar...

 

[Bobbin]

Pressure treated lumber is expensive and it lasts (lots of nasty chemicals used to treat it!). I wouldn't use it for sides on our raised vegetable beds but it would seem to be the perfect option for supporting green wood and weathering any incoming inclemency. Any time we build anything that is expected to endure moisture/weather and stand the test of time we use PT. (don't get me wrong, it's "nasty -hit", wear gloves, a mask, and wash your hands when you're finished!)

 

[bigbarf48]

Probably should but I build all my racks our of normal pine 2x's and they've held up fine

Mine are out in the yard so under a covered deck normal boards will likely be fine and last as long as you care to have the rack there

 

[bigbarf48]

It takes a loooong time for a 2x4 to weather to the point of uselessness if its out of the dirt so I don't think the price increase for PT is justified

 

[Bobbin]

Good points. Consider the time frame you have in mind!

But why buy expensive paint and put in the labor ($/hr.?) to sidestep the price of PT to "buy time"? From my perspective, we're not getting any younger and the notion of RE-building something that's succumbed to rot in our "golden years" (read: when our income is really "fixed") is not very appealing.

 

[BEConklin]

I'd think that since it will be on a covered porch, and out of the rain and direct sun - I would not use PT lumber - especially not newly purchased PT lumber.
First - you don't need PT since the rack will be kept reasonably dry and out of contact with the soil
Second - PT can be gawdawfull ugly stuff and is often sold very wet. This means that as it dries it will often shrink, check and warp and you're likely to end up looking at an ugly, checked and twisted wood rack on your porch.
I'd use kiln dried Douglas fir dimensional lumber - it's strong, stands up reasonably well to the elements, weathers nicely without finishes, looks good and is far more dimensionally stable than PT.

 

[firefighterjake]

My woodshed doesn't have a lick of pressure treated wood in it . . . but it does get plenty of ventilation and the wood is not in contact with the ground . . . I also opted to use hemlock for the bottom stringers.

 

[teutonicking]

No on the pressure treated. I use the Rutland Brackets and cheap cheap pine. But I paint the wood with an expensive oil based flat black paint.
I cant afford the beautiful wrought iron racks so I do the cheap version.
Pressure treated is heavy to move around. Its honky and you cant paint it.
You could paint the rack to match your trim or house siding. White or cedar...

According to this site, you can paint it:

http://www.yellawood.com/resources/pressure-treated-faq.aspx

When can I paint or stain my project?

Perform the following test to determine if your project is ready to paint or stain: Place a few drops of water on the area to be coated. If it beads up, it is too wet to coat, and you'll need to wait. If it absorbs the water readily, it is ready to coat. If you want to paint your project, use an oil-based primer and a high quality acrylic (latex) paint. If you want a stained look, a high quality oil-based stain is recommended. Always check with the manufacturer before applying and follow their instructions. Get more info on sealing, painting and staining.

 

[BEConklin]

It takes a loooong time for a 2x4 to weather to the point of uselessness if its out of the dirt so I don't think the price increase for PT is justified

I can attest to that... the house we're in now - the owner built a complete wrap around deck in 1980 using Doug fir 2x4s for railings simply butt jointing the boards together. They were completely exposed - but finished with an opaque deck seal. in 2102 we replaced the entire deck. On maybe 5 or 6 of the 2x4s the ends were rotted - but they were still holding nails and attached to the posts.

 

[CenterTree]

We paint PT all the time. Actually, technically, we use opaque deck or fence stain. Lasts as long as regular wood painted. Wood needs to be dry first, then proceed as normal.

SO I guess in order to build a wood shed to season your firewood, you first have to let the PT lumber season B4 painting it.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

So the wood rack will be on a covered porch? You could use either. Although hard to see in the pictures, I put together a very simple wood rack using 8 foot 2 x 4's. I knew the following summer I'd be putting stain on things so did not do anything that first year. Then when I was staining, I also did the wood rack. I fully expect that thing will outlast me. btw, we put a sheet of galvanized roofing on the top of the wood rack. Also, excuse the junk my wife had piled on the floor...

 

[Applesister]

Okay I'll rephrase the statement. You CAN paint pressure treated wood. EVENTUALLY.
But its still Honky.