Timber as a feature material is an architectural trend that shows no signs of abating. Left in its raw state, the use of weathered timber for façades is on the rise, due to its attractive silver-grey patina.
Weathered timber blends harmoniously with the windswept surrounds of coastal residences, creates a warm and tactile environment for institutional buildings, provides striking profiles for commercial applications, and gives the illusion that buildings are older than they first appear. With Australia’s harsh environment, weathered timber forms an immediate relationship with the local terrain, providing buildings with an inherent sense of belonging.
Weathered timber is increasingly being recognised for its practicality. Specified using Western Red Cedar, it’s low maintenance, resilient, and eco-friendly. Western Red Cedar is also known for its stability, ease of use, sound control and natural insulation, making it an all-round popular choice with architects, builders and clients.
The natural, weathered look that holds so much architectural appeal also takes time. When the chosen palette is raw materials (think concrete, exposed steel, rustic bricks and the like), timber may initially jar with its surrounds until the natural ageing process takes hold.
Increasingly, clients are looking for ways to bypass this wait, without losing any of the inherent properties that timber holds. A new timber finish from Cedar Sales now achieves a decade of ageing in only 30 days. The Década finish uses sunlight and all-natural processes to speed up nature, without any toxic chemical treatments. It’s typically used to clad modern, architecturally-designed buildings, such as wrap-around cladding, vertical cladding to emphasise height, and horizontal applications for longitudinal aspects.
The finish comes as standard on three of Cedar Sales’ profiles, but can also be applied to any of the supplier’s Western Red cladding and screening products. No coatings are required, as clear timber oil is sufficient, and matching end sealer is available.
Importantly, these timber products have strong environmental credentials. They are PEFC Chain of Custody Certified, and hold the GreenTagCertTM GreenRate Level A Certification and are GreenTagCertTM Certified Platinum.
While modern architecture is responsive to fashion, weathered timber has proven it’s here to stay for the long haul. From warm and rustic to clean and contemporary, it’s flexible in looks and hardy in nature. And now it’s possible to circumvent the only downside – the wait for weathering.
To find out more about the Década finish from Cedar Sales, visit http://www.cedarsales.com.au/cp_product/decada/
