Cherry for barn siding?

[buzywoodliff]

I have an abundance of cherry logs, if properly sealed would that make durable siding?

[Dan_Shade]

please say you're joking about using cherry for barnboards!

[Magicman]

I used Cherry for porch decking because I had an abundance of it.  It looked good, but only lasted about 5 years.  I would suggest a better use for the Cherry and look for something more suitable for your siding.

[mrector]

I used wild cherry for my timber framed mailbox post. Has held up nice. But only reason I used it is because I was cutting a cherry log and found some shake, boxed around it and made a couple 6x6". Perfect for post in my opinion.
That being said, you could probably mill the cherry sell it and buy siding boards and have $$ left over.  But to each his own, thier your logs mill em and nail em.. but havta have pics!
Mikey

[sealark37]

Everyone has their own sense of utility.  A friend of mine under-penned his house trailer with clear walnut.  Your cherry will be fine for siding if you install it properly and seal it with some sort of finish product.  There are people around you who will pay good money for 4/4 and 8/4 cherry.    Regards, Clark

[buzywoodliff]

It's beautiful lumber and it'll be painful...  But I had a couple buyers give me a bid and it was about firewood price.  I have a little oak around, but not nearly as much as I have cherry, and a BIG pile of walnut.   

[NMFP]

Cherry will last a long time, especially if you only use the heart wood.  The extractive content is very high and actually is a natural preservative.

I have used cherry for lots of outdoor projects and it lasts a long time, but you must use heart wood.

A friend of mines dad made a deck 100% out of cherry and if you use HEARTWOOD, it will last a long time!

Take it from a  person hat owns their own business, numerous degrees in wood science and teaches forestry and wood products!

[drobertson]

I would say yes, you might consider a splash guard on the bottom.  I have some strip stacked, they are still solid after a few years, you could consider sawing out and trading for something you would rather use.

[Magicman]

Here is the deck that I built completely out of heart Cherry.


 


 
Thankfully I used treated lumber for the joist, etc. so after about 5 years, I only had to replace the decking.

[Jemclimber]

@Magicman       

Did you have to replace that cherry deck because the boards were rotting and falling apart or just because of aesthetics?   Did you use any kind of preservative on it when you installed it? 

[Magicman]

Did you have to replace that cherry deck because the boards were rotting and falling apart

Yes, There were several rotted holes and weak spots and the underside was worse than the top.  Moisture was retained where the deck boards crossed the joist.  I washed the deck each year with a preservative/sealer from Ace Hdw, but I do not recall the actual product name.  All of the rails will have to be replaced soon, I guess with ERC.

I used the Cherry for the same reason that the OP stated.  I had more available Cherry than I had $$$.

[buzywoodliff]

Thanks for responding everyone.... I think I'll try some and maybe drop some dead ash for some of the siding.

[WoodenHead]

I have an abundance of cherry logs, if properly sealed would that make durable siding?

If you were closer by I would gladly trade you some white pine for your cherry (and walnut).  The pine makes good siding.

[Knute]

I used aspen for garage siding 13 years ago and it held up well. I air dried it and soaked the bottom ends in a mixture of paint thinner and linseed oil before installing. I would not be afraid to use cheery using the same method.

[NMFP]

Knute:

Did you paint the siding after it was up?  If so, did you use oil based or water based paint?  I am curious as to using linseed oil as the mixture portion.  Interesting you used linseed oil. 

How long did you allow it to absorb into the wood?
Thanks,

NMFP

[Banjo picker]

Siding will fare better than decking. Banjo

[Knute]

I mixed it one part linseed oil and 3 parts paint thinner. Don't remember exactly how long it soaked, probably not long. If its dry it will soak quite fast. I used an oil stain for the finish.

[NMFP]

Sounds great.  A few years ago, I had a customer that wanted aspen bevel siding for a garage.  I sawed it out and he too used linseed oil.  On the back side of the garage, the wood actually touches the ground there and he has had little problem with rot due to the linseed oil.  He used a discarded piece of spouting and laid each piece that was against the ground in the trough and waited till it soaked about 50% of the linseed oil up.

I am not sure but I am guessing that his garage siding will hold up longer than most people that have used hemlock.

You can also use #10 machine oil, only problem is that it will eventually attract all kinds of dust and dirt.

[kevin19343]

FWIW, the local woodpeckers seem to find that the cherry trees on the farm are the most bug-filled . I'm wondering if bugs would be still attracted to the wood if its used as siding.

[NMFP]

Shouldn't.  The bugs are only in there because there is a moist food source.  After the wood dries down to below FSP (30 % mc), the risk of beetle or bug damage is greatly reduced.

If you want something to last a very long time, use some eco-prem lumber that's heat treated.  The sugars are crystalized and therefore, microorganisms cannot effectively eat and live.