# Outdoor Wood Enclosure?



## Zergy (Mar 18, 2012)

I bought some 2" thick10" high planks of board to make a 3' by 7' wall for an outdoor enclosure. This enclosure will be protected in a screened patio that has a roof, but should be able to handle rain. Sometimes it rains on the patio during high wind and heavy rainfall weather. Hurricane season especially. I will also install a sprinkler system to help keep the humidity up on days where it is less than ideal.

So, I bought my wood from Lowes. It is not pressure treated. I don't know what kind of wood it is. Do I need to treat it or can I use it as is and just have it screwed together to make an enclosure frame?

If it lasts just a year I will be happy. But if I have to spend more money to paint or seal it, it better last a few years.


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## Tom (Mar 18, 2012)

From what I have been told, wood will rot very quickly in FL with out some sort of treatment. Out here in my dry area of CA it would look unsightly, but last several years with no paint or treatment.


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## tortadise (Mar 18, 2012)

If its not pressure treated its Douglas fur that size of wood. I would use some exterior paint on it. Water based, or a water based stain and sealer would look nice also it would sal it. If it gets wet sometimes by rain shouldn't be too much of a problem. It's direct sunlight that ruins untreated wood real fast.


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## N2TORTS (Mar 18, 2012)

Its always best to use " green board" or treated lumber around wet areas....but most important, at any time no wood should not rest directly on the ground it will rot much faster( you can add bricks underneath to raise off the ground a bit) If you do use doug fir studs, and even plywood. thats ok , but what really will help is coating all areas top bottom and sides , with Thompson's water seal. Let dry and your ready to set up . It can be applied by rolling on , or brush and a very cheap simple fast method, one casn use a hudson garden sprayer. Use galvinized screws/stainless to prevent ugly rust stains as well. Dont use nails ...within a few wet and dry times , the nails will work themselfs out , thus causing warped and lose boards. If you want it to last "Screw it" 

HAppy Building

JD~

PS. For large base supports you can also use railroad ties, they will last a very very long time with no prep work needed.


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## Jacqui (Mar 18, 2012)

N2TORTS said:


> PS. For large base supports you can also use railroad ties, they will last a very very long time with no prep work needed.



Your talking base supports that the enclosure will sit upon only correct? It won't be a part of the actual enclosure?


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## EricIvins (Mar 18, 2012)

Do yourself a favor and go with pressure treated.........I have enclosures in direct contact with the ground and underground, and there are no issues, nor do I forsee any issues arising any time soon because of it.......


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## ALDABRAMAN (Mar 18, 2012)

*We are located in SW Florida also and we use non pressure treated wood for our hatchlings. It last for several years a with full exposure to all the elements, rain, sun, etc. Pressure treated last way longer.*


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## moswen (Mar 18, 2012)

You can get exterior grade, not pressure treated, that will last a little while longer than regular interior grade wood. Paint or stain and sealer/finisher is always a big help too though.


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## N2TORTS (Mar 18, 2012)

EricIvins said:


> Do yourself a favor and go with pressure treated.........I have enclosures in direct contact with the ground and underground, and there are no issues, nor do I forsee any issues arising any time soon because of it.......



Just a note ..... ALL WOOD will rot ... treated or not ....Being in the building industry myself for the last 35+ years , yes I have seen and used 100 year old timbers, but without getting into detail , your right pressure treated will have the most longevity. The best way is to pour a slab , use pressure treated plates and then go from there....but then again I dont think we're talking about such permanent structures.
JD~



Jacqui said:


> N2TORTS said:
> 
> 
> > PS. For large base supports you can also use railroad ties, they will last a very very long time with no prep work needed.
> ...



yes ..... instead of a slab , plus in frost cold areas , keeps enclosure up and off the ground . The torts have no problem going up and down slight inclined ramps.


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## Zergy (Mar 19, 2012)

Thanks everyone for their feedback. I guess I need to think a little more on it, but the majority seem to say I should seal it. I will check the store to see how much the paint is, but I was hoping to safe some money on the outdoor enclosure as well as time. It seemed easier to just screw the planks together than to paint/seal each plank and then screw them together.


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## GBtortoises (Mar 19, 2012)

EricIvins said:


> Do yourself a favor and go with pressure treated.........I have enclosures in direct contact with the ground and underground, and there are no issues, nor do I forsee any issues arising any time soon because of it.......



Ditto! All of my outdoor enclosures are made from 3/4" pressure treated plywood. Almost all of them have been in use, with 4" in the ground, for about 20-22 years now without any issues whatsoever.


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## iluvtorts (Mar 20, 2012)

Zergy said:


> Thanks everyone for their feedback. I guess I need to think a little more on it, but the majority seem to say I should seal it. I will check the store to see how much the paint is, but I was hoping to safe some money on the outdoor enclosure as well as time. It seemed easier to just screw the planks together than to paint/seal each plank and then screw them together.



If you arent picky about the color., check lowes or home depot for mis tinted paint it is usually only $5 per gallon nothing wrong with it just the wrong color. I use it often.


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## Zergy (Mar 20, 2012)

I wish it was just as simple as buying pressure treated wood and screwing them together... bam done. One of my problems is that it had to be visually appealing and not stick out like a sore thumb. Pressure treated wood was not nice enough. Which is why I asked if I could leave the wood as is. In the end, I bought some exterior decking paint and it is now all painted and drying. I just need it screwed together. I will post a picture as soon as it is done.


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## Ashliewood (Mar 20, 2012)

I was just at lowes and the Thompson water seal is fairly cheap and they sell it in a spray can


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## lynnedit (Mar 20, 2012)

sounds like it will look nice!


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## Zamric (Mar 21, 2012)

Zergy said:


> I wish it was just as simple as buying pressure treated wood and screwing them together... bam done. One of my problems is that it had to be visually appealing and not stick out like a sore thumb. Pressure treated wood was not nice enough. Which is why I asked if I could leave the wood as is. In the end, I bought some exterior decking paint and it is now all painted and drying. I just need it screwed together. I will post a picture as soon as it is done.



This is WalkinRocks Bunker. It is made from 2"x8" untreated wood and is just screwed together (Boards are notched to fit together). I made the door/roof out of a standard piece of 1/2 plywood and topped it with some leftover roof shingles from my house so it kinda matches the main building (do not use the heat domes! They proved to be expencive to run and did very little to heat that large space. The Mini Oil-Filled Radiator proved to do a MUCH better job!)


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