Introduction And Question On Rot Resistant Wood

dmartin · September 08, 2009, 09:03:57 PM

Hello, I have been reading the posts on the Forestry Forum for serveral months now and want to say thank you for all the good information I have gotten here, Thanks. I live in Lancaster County PA and have a cabin with 92 acres of woodland in Montour County PA. The Hemlock trees at the cabin are dying due to the Wooly Adelgid so I decided to use them to build an impliment shed instead of buying the lumber for it. I bought a used Timberking B20 sawmill this Spring and and have been enjoying milling the needed lumber. I sold some Hemlock barn siding but until I complete another bigger building to house the sawmill I wont be selling any lumber, it is a hobby. The woodland is mostly hardwoods (Oak and Ash) but there is a fair amount of Hemlock that is dying so I plan to use that up maybe selling it as barn siding. I bought the treated posts and bottom nailer for the shed but the rest of the lumber for the shed is Hemlock that was milled onsite. The next small project that I have planned is to build two guardrails on both sides of the 3' dia culvert that is at the entrance to the cabin lane. I plan to install two 8" square posts on each side and top them with a heavy Hemlock beam with smaller Hemlock boards bolted near the bottom. My question is what kind of wood should I use for the posts? From what I have read so far I was planning to use Chestnut (Rock) Oak as I have plenty of it but I also have Black Walnut and Hickory, I don't have Locust which I hear would be the best choice. I will attach pictures of the shed and mill if I can figure out how to do it.

jerry-m · September 08, 2009, 09:12:58 PM

Welcome D Miller,

Looking good on the building... Like the pictures...

Thanks for posting, Jerry

Don K · September 08, 2009, 09:28:00 PM

Welcome to the forum. Good job on the pic posting. We get excited about pictures. Nice shed. I see a log getter on the back of the tractor. I would love to have one of those. If you get a chance sometimes post some pictures of your place . i love to see the country up north. Ya'll have some beautiful forests.

If you have some cherry, the heartwood is pretty rot resistant. it would be good for the posts.

Don

Magicman · September 08, 2009, 10:09:17 PM

Welcome to FF. Nice shed. I understand your wanting to salvage timber that is dying. I did the same thing and learned (the hard way) a lot about log setup and sawing.

There is a lot of black locust North of you, so you might could work up a trade. Sawed hemlock, etc. for locust.

Banjo picker · September 08, 2009, 10:49:11 PM

Can't help with which wood to use....But welcome to the FF ...I think I might be jealous of your picture posting ability... ;D Tim

Ron Wenrich · September 09, 2009, 05:44:34 AM

I've used white oak for posts in the past. Rock oak or chestnut oak is considered a white oak. Although they are rot resistant, that doesn't make them rot proof. My posts only lasted about 5-10 years and I creosoted the ends.

Your best options are to go to someplace like Tractor Supply and buy a large, treated round post. Or you can buy a sawn locust post if you want one that's square. I have a pile of locust logs on hand, and I'm probably right on your way up to Montour county. Located in western Berks county.

Another option is old utility poles. Sometimes you can get them from the utility company in the area.

jdtuttle · September 09, 2009, 06:14:33 AM

Welcome to the forum. Used RR ties will last awhile.

bandmiller2 · September 09, 2009, 06:31:16 AM

Dmartin as Ron suggested utility poles would work well.Power co's now are nervous about giving out poles fearing some sort of liability.Their are subcontractors that do pole work for utilities their not so fussy as pole disposal is money out of their pockets.Or make em out of what you have put the worst stuff you can find on the soil part and figure after 10 years, replace.Frank C.

mike_van · September 09, 2009, 06:49:01 AM

locust, locust, locust - 8) Nice shed too!

backwoods sawyer · September 09, 2009, 08:15:57 PM

I am not a big fan of them pressure treated poles that they sell down at the farm stores. The pine and fir poles are still green when they are treated so the treatment is only minimal, and they do not seem to have all that great of a life span. Not to mention that it is hard to find a semi straight one in a bundle. I know we do not have the same type of trees available out here but generally, something from the cedar family will give you a good life span.

dmartin · September 09, 2009, 09:30:59 PM

After reading the replies I think that I'll try to get some black locust posts. I do know that I cut one down a few years ago near the cabin but I don't rember seeing any more up there. It may be that there are a few more there if I go looking for them. Ron if I can't find any I may contact you about buying enough for 4 posts if that's OK. Thanks for the information, I'll post here if I find any growing at the cabin.

Magicman · September 09, 2009, 10:16:08 PM

You MUST let it dry, cure, season, whatever you want to call it, for about a year, before you put it in the ground. Put it down green and it will rot.....big time.

We always just stacked post outside and used them the next year. The bark will fall off and the outside of the post will turn black.

Your option will be to find dead trees to square up into cants on the sawmill.

chestnut · September 09, 2009, 10:38:07 PM

First choice locust. Second stone pillar

Banjo picker · September 09, 2009, 10:45:54 PM

You got any bodock up there? Tim

dmartin · September 10, 2009, 12:40:22 AM

Magicman, I probably won't find any trees that are down so if I want to do it this year I guess I should plan on using somthing else. Banjo I never heard of bodock, what is that?

bandmiller2 · September 10, 2009, 05:48:09 AM

DMartin,how old a man are you?cut your oak big for the posts, slap the worst stuff you can find on with crushed stone around the top at ground level.Let the next taxpayer worry about replacing them.Frank C.

Rooster · September 10, 2009, 07:00:05 AM

How about sawing posts out of used SYP utility poles...I've used them on a couple of different lean-to addition projects, and they are already treated.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.

Rooster

solidwoods · September 10, 2009, 09:45:47 AM

I use treated 6x6 pine.
I cut 8' in half.
Mill a tenon on the end 3' long.
Cut the tenon side boards off with a skill saw.
I laminate the post with pine or other wood 2xs.
I set the post below frost line with no concern for elevation of the post.
I mark an elevation line on each post and cut the lamination lumbers length to make the top elevation that I need.
This also allows me to end the top of the post with a tenon so now I can laminate my header and allow it to sit on the shoulders of the tenoned top.
A laminated header tenoned through the post is much stronger against racking then headers cut to the length of the post to post centers.
And this method allows you to make very long posts.
And no worry about which wood to put into the ground.
jim

Dodgy Loner · September 10, 2009, 10:18:55 AM

Quote from: dmartin on September 10, 2009, 12:40:22 AM
Banjo I never heard of bodock, what is that?

Bodock is known as osage-orange to most folks outside of Mississippi ;). Other names include hedge-apple and bois d'arc (French for bow-wood, since the wood was used to make bows). Bodock is a distortion of bois d'arc. Osage-orange is every bit as rot-resistant as black locust, although it usually doesn't grow as straight.

KyTreeFarmer · September 10, 2009, 11:24:30 AM

Welcome to the forum, looks like you already have a pile of advice, all of which is good!!
Great looking shed. Good job on pic posting also.

Banjo picker · September 10, 2009, 08:09:29 PM

D L is right on about it not being as straight as you would like. But it will out last most of the people that put it in the ground. Tim

dmartin · September 10, 2009, 09:07:54 PM

Thanks for the good information, as I mentioned at the begining of the thread I have learned alot on this site. I'm not sure what I'll use for the posts but I'll let you guys know when I put them in the ground.

DanG · September 10, 2009, 09:56:38 PM

Welcome to the Forum, dmartin.

Don't overlook the fact that you can have lumber and posts pressure treated to your specs. It just takes a little networking to locate somebody who does it in your area. ;)

js2743 · September 11, 2009, 05:48:22 PM

locust or mulberry would work from my area. never had a green locust to rot and have always used them green, so if you find any still alive i wouldnt hesitate to use them asap.

Magicman · September 11, 2009, 06:17:00 PM

Quote from: js2743 on September 11, 2009, 05:48:22 PM
never had a green locust to rot and have always used them green, so if you find any still alive i wouldnt hesitate to use them asap.

I'm a little older than you. I can show you "seasoned" black locust post that I placed in the 1950's. If you skin the bark and sapwood off of a green one, you can get 5-10 years. Stack them out for a year and you can get 50+....