Extending the life of timber cladding

While timber cladding used to be primarily found on agricultural buildings, in the past few decades it has become the covering of choice for a huge range of high-end residential and commercial projects. And at the heart of this process in New Zealand sits Dryden WoodOil, New Zealand made specifically for our unique and exposed conditions.

Jon Pearson, director of the company, says that choosing the right oil for timber cladding is one of the most important parts of the process.
“It’s particularly essential if people use cedar board and batten timbers – we see a lot of this in our work.”

Some of the more prominent examples of work that Dryden has done includes the Devonport Library, Karapiro Rowing Club, and the Cancer Society’s Lions Lodge in Hamilton. So what is it that makes using WoodOil so important for commercial and home design?

Keeping it clean
Pearson says that normally, wood stains and oils that come in a 10-litre can will have about six litres of solvent in it, with four litres of solids, which can damage the environment and leaves product that can crack and peel. But Dryden WoodOil is more than 90% solids; this soaks into the timber to protect it.

Dryden also don’t change their proven formula – this happens in

the industry more often than you might think.

“A lot of the time, companies will change their formulas, meaning people don’t always get the product they expected,” Pearson says. “We don’t do that – we’ve had the same product for a long time and will continue to. We just changed our packaging, but it’s still the same proven product on the inside.”

Making wood last for the long term
Another important benefit of using products like WoodOil is the long life it gives to timber cladding. “It’s important that the oil actually get into the wood, and not just dry on the surface,” Pearson says. “It extends the service life and prevents cupping, warping or splitting.”

So with new timber products pre-coated in WoodOil, how long can you expect them to last?

“With normal site-specific maintenance, indefinitely,” he adds.
Not all of the work they do is for new builds; WoodOil is also used to spruce up older wood, breathing new life into it and giving it many more years of use. Pearson says that about 60% of their work is for new wood, while 40% is restoration and maintenance.

Customise for best results
Pearson notes that with a huge range of available colours (including customisable colour tones), people can use these products for cladding with any purpose. He says there is normally an even split in people using their products: half are architects and specifiers that understand the high quality that WoodOil provides, and the other half are people who might not understand the product, but have fallen in love with how it looks, with a flat, natural finish.

If your cladding needs to go the extra mile and look better than everything else on the block, you know where to go.