I have a situation that’s new to me. I’m working on an old barn and replacing oak posts which stand on concrete and hold up the king beams. Any ideas about lifting the posts off the concrete to prevent them from wicking water. Do you think something as simple as a snow and ice “bootie” would work? I could flash around it.
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The most common way to make your own parging mix is to use either Type S mortar for block or Type N for brick and add a concrete bonding additive.
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Any ideas...
how about putting a piece of treated on the concrete followed by a doubled piece of 30# felt, followed by your oak posts? - - I have just used 2-3 layers of 30# felt between posts and rock/concrete - that will stop wicking about 90% tho in the spring, temperature induced condensation has caused a small amount of discoloration around the periphery of the beam. I judge it to be inconsequential.
How about a piece of solid plastic deck planking? Or a piece of tropical hardwood.
Dip the end in paint.
Galvanized post base? Get the post up off the concrete where it can breathe.
Cast an epoxy foot onto the base of each post. There was a short feature in FWW once about a guy who did this with his patio furniture.
I also like the tropical hardwood idea. Doesn't even have to be tropical. Black locust is very decay resistant.
Edited 5/12/2004 11:05 am ET by Uncle Dunc
Note that if you coat the bottom of the post with something (presumably going up the side an inch or so), or if you wrap the bottom with metal, that will prevent "breathing" and allow moisture to be trapped in the wood -- not good. Putting it on a metal post base (that elevates the post a half inch or so without "wrapping" it) would be good, except that most such bases aren't designed for the type of load we could have here.
If you can't elevate it some way, I'd just put down a piece of sheet metal (copper, aluminum, or heavy galv steel) under the post, without any "wrap".
See http://www.strongtie.com for post bases. Dip the bottom end in Jasco's Termin-8 for good measure if you can stand the smell.
-- J.S.
Bird,
Take a look at this website. Very good wood connection details and info:
http://www.awc.org/HelpOutreach/eCourses/DES110/WSF2002Connections/ppframe.htm
PrairieKid
All good ideas. I like the idea of a block. My first idea was to "get it off the ground." I looked at the Simpson products but this is a lot of weight. Of course, the old timers put theirs in the ground and the concrete was poured around. Those lasted 100 years.
i use scraps of torch down roofing for stuff like this all the time.... set my ac units on it ect... don't know if it's good or bad... just seems right...