Suitable wood posts for porch Kitchens, doors, rails, stud, tables, chairs, stair cases, garden furniture etc... Find answers and ask questions here!

[Pat Sinclair]

Can anyone advise me on which woods would be
suitable for upright posts supporting a small
porch (or veranda), which will be exposed to the
weather?
My builder, who is organising my house renovations, is pushing to use oak - He has been told the budget is getting tight and I'm not inclined
to spend more where I don't need to, but I don't
know whether he's actually right about the posts needing to be oak...
What would be wrong with tanalised softwood if set properly
in concrete (?) in the ground.
The posts will support a roof mainly along one side of the house, at mid-height, and be about one metre from front to back (depth). The roof
will have wood shingles.
Thanks

[dennis graham]

hi, oak posts are expensive, and there is nothing wrong with decent tanalised timber, make sure any timber going into the ground is well treated, its the end grain that soaks up the water, so, paint the end and up to where it sits in the ground with a bitumin paint, like the stuff you would use to repair a felt roof. this will last as long as his oak post anyday!