Working with green oak

Local furniture makers DF Timber have just finished building this green oak porch. It has been made to replace an old decaying cedar one and provide a better entrance to my showroom, which is just inside.

The whole structure has been built using locally sourced Cumbrian green oak and is constructed using traditional mortise and tenon techniques. All of the major joints have been pegged to ensure everything stays nice and tight as it slowly dries out.

We decided to opt for an overhanging roof, which adds greatly to the character. This is also an advantage, since the front door is protected from the rain and is less likely to expand. The curved struts are an added feature, but aren’t structural supports – at least I think!

One of the problems with green oak is its tendency to move and distort slightly during the drying process. This can cause difficulties with glazing and can often result in leaky windows, if traditional putty is used. A special sticky back rubber seal has been used for all of the windows. This can expand or be squashed depending on how the glass moves and is supposed to reduce any potential water leaks around the edges of each window pane – I guess only time will tell if it works!

All of the window beads have been fitted with brass panel pins and all necessary fixings are made from stainless steel. This is very important, since the tannin present in oak reacts with iron and can cause rather unsightly black stains.

Well, I guess the nice yellow will fade as winter kicks in (have we actually had a summer?) and will take on a silvery grey appearance over time. This is quite normal and one of the endearing characters of oak - I will post some more pictures in a couple of years from now!