GET CREATIVE WITH HARDWOOD TIMBER
28 Aug 2013
With the warmer months approaching, thoughts of long afternoons spent alfresco will entice many homeowners to spruce up their outdoor entertaining areas.
With the warmer months approaching, thoughts of long afternoons spent alfresco will entice many homeowners to spruce up their outdoor entertaining areas.
According to Clinton Skeoch, national market development manager with Boral Timber, home renovators can enhance their outdoor living spaces with value-adding timber design features. “Australian hardwood timber can be used not only for decking, but in many unique ways to add character to an outdoor area.
“Some homeowners choose to lay decking boards in an unusual pattern or create eye-catching features such as garden walls, screens, seating, fencing, pergolas or a children’s cubby house,” said Skeoch. "As well as providing privacy, timber screening and walls can add shade and a surface to hang outdoor artistic features or even potted plants, such as herbs. If existing walls and fences are unsightly, the application of timber decking, horizontally or vertically, is a smart makeover idea.”
When selecting timber, consideration should be given to its strength and how easily it complements other materials. Skeoch advises, “Boral Timber’s Australian hardwood timber species are ideal for a variety of exterior home improvements due to their density, colour spectrum, natural beauty and durability. Hardwoods are easy to stain and coordinate with an outdoor colour scheme or they can be left untreated for a naturally weathered look.”
Boral decking is available in a range of species including Blackbutt, Forest Reds, Grey Ironbark, Spotted Gum, Stringybark, River Reds and Tallowwood and offers a variety of options for colour and grain feature. Blackbutt is a bushfire resisting timber1 and also offers termite resistance qualities which are perfect for Australian conditions.
Boral has also achieved Australian Forestry Standard (AFS) chain of custody certification (AS 4707- 2006) for its timber products. This means that timber used to produce Boral Timber's hardwood flooring; decking and structural timber has been sourced from certified, legal and sustainably managed resources. The Australian Forestry Standard Scheme also has mutual recognition by the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification Scheme (PEFC) - the world's largest forest management certifier.
