# Type of wood for a painted Adirondack Chair?



## StevenPortland (Aug 19, 2012)

I live in Portland, Oregon, which is a wet and rainy place. I'm planning to build two of these Adirondack chairs for our front porch. I will be painting them a bright color, similar to these chairs. 
What type of lumber should I consider using? Do I need something like cedar since the chairs will be outdoors? Or because they will be painted (sealed from the weather) can I use just standard lumber?


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## AandCstyle (Mar 21, 2012)

My preference would be white oak, but cypress, black locust (maybe the best if you can find it) and redwood will be good choices. Water will migrate up from the feet and eventually "standard" lumber will rot.


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## cmaxnavy (Dec 23, 2007)

Redwood or cypress


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## roman (Sep 28, 2007)

pressure treated decking

inexpensive, readily available and longevity assured ?


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## eric122 (Feb 27, 2010)

you could use hemlock or western larch or ipe mohogony or tiger wood
check out advantage timber out of buffalo ny they have a online store


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## stonedlion (Jan 12, 2011)

I used pressure treated "1 x" and painted mine. I leave them outside year round. They have been through two Minnesota winters and about to go through a third and are still holding up very well. The paint is starting to flake in places, but that is not unexpected.


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## Purrmaster (Sep 1, 2012)

Ah, a fellow Oregonian.

You might want to check out Woodcrafters (*not* the same as Woodcraft in Beaverton) in Portland. They have a good lumber selection and the folks there know their stuff.


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## Momcanfixit (Sep 19, 2012)

Hi - differing opinion here. If you have never built an Adirondack chair before, you may want to go with pine for your first go. I built my first one with very little woodworking experience and learned a LOT along the way. What that translated into was a very expensive chair. I had to recut some of the pieces several times, bought tools as I needed them, more wood, more tools….

If you use a good primer/sealer and then paint, they won't last forever, but they'll look good for at least a few years.
We leave ours outside for three seasons, bring them into the garage only in the winter. I'm in Eastern Canada, so we get a lot of rain in the Spring and Fall.

You could build your first out of pine, and then look at some of the other wood types.

Just my two cents worth. If you check out my projects, I have a yellow chair that's a bit on the 'too bright' side.

Have fun, be safe, and ask away.


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## Madwood (Jan 17, 2010)

Building a prototype from pine is an excellent idea! I've built literally hundreds of Norm's Adk chair and 90% of them from pine. I did a couple in cypress a number of yrs ago and they still sit on my deck. The above suggestions are all good chojces and my overall choice would be white oak. Strong and weather=resistant, it would last for a long time, especially painted. Prime first however, or you'll be painting ever yr or so. Stain would be a good choice of finish as well. 
HTH, John


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## mojapitt (Dec 31, 2011)

If you are going to paint it, I would go with PT pine. Handles the climate well and painted is as good as any without the cost.


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## RussellAP (Feb 21, 2012)

Spar and then paint and you can use any wood.


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