Wood for shower stall

[rogeracoleman]

I have a tiny bathroom (5' 6" X almost 6') and it is  presently cement block from floor up 3' then painted plywood to the ceiling.  I'd like to replace the plywood with cedar or cyprus or some othe type of wood and am open to suggestion.

[Shelley]

Actually wood in the stall?

Also mahogany or teak.

Probably cyprus or teak the best.

[glenn kangiser]

I am not familiar with the qualities of cypress but cedar and redwood are naturally moisture resistant.  I put 30 lb felt behind my home built shower upper cement board to make moisture drain over the shower liner below.

The Log Home Store has a product called Defy which stops over 90 percent of moisture from entering logs or boards yet allows them to breathe if moisture does get in.  It can be used on wet logs with no damage and does not promote fungal or mold growth as some finishes do.  It could be finished over on the inside with your favorite clear coat but the back side left with Defy only to allow breathing.  It is available in very light tints which don't change color much.  Tints are necessary to prevent UV damage.  I think there is a clear for indoor use.  I have no connection with the dealer but have been satisfied with their products and service.

http://www.suncountrylogworks.com/finish.shtml

[rogeracoleman]

Yes, I've seen wooden shower stall on the NC beach that seem to last and last and look better with age.  Minimal upkeep, etc.

[glenn kangiser]

Another note-- I read an article about bacteria levels being lower on wood cutting boards than on plastic cutting boards - the wood does not seem to support the bacteria as well - seems it would be similar in showers.

[DavidLeBlanc]

Redwood heartwood is fairly waterproof and rot resistant - the rest quite a bit less so! OF course, when it comes to heartwood, gold might be cheaper

Cypress sounds poifect! Of course, with clear Cypress, gold might be quite a bit cheaper!

[Amanda_931]

Not as important in the walls of a shower stall, but in things that are supposed to actually hold water, e.g. ice cream makers, one needs to keep them wet  so that the wood doesn't shrink and leak like mad.

[Daddymem]

Just saw a show on HGTV where they used bamboo in a shower installation.  They said it is excellent for high humidty uses.

[glenn kangiser]

Interesting-- I wish it was more common around here- I'd like to try a few building things with some of it.

[DavidLeBlanc]

It grew well enough at Ft. Huachuacha of all places!

There are 40+ species of bamboo in agriculture and it's range is quite surprising, ranging from deep tropical to near-arctic. Some species are banned for importation into the US because there are no known environtmental constraints known against them in the US.

Tall bamboo in windy conditions can be a real PITA - it's VERY noisy!

[Daddymem]

Interesting-- I wish it was more common around here- I'd like to try a few building things with some of it.

Here's an online supplier of it: http://www.lumberliquidators.com/cart/index.php?p=productsList&iCategory=4

We want to use it on all our floors if we ever get to building that is  

[glenn kangiser]

I tried to start some in my frog pond on the roof, but I probably left it in there too long or forgot about it.

I never considered bamboo as a hardwood before.  I thought it was a grass.  :-/

[Amanda_931]

It IS a grass.   What grows up (it's called a culm) in the spring (with the sorts I'm used to, others are other seasons) is as big around as it gets, but over a couple of years the walls get thicker and more solid.   At somewhere between three and seven years old they are suitable for building purposes.  There was a bamboo grove where I grew up in North Carolina.  I loved it.  My mother blanched and froze the shoots for stir-fries.  The gardeners for that little park mowed unwanted culms if my mother didn't get them, and the pine woods on three sides didn't seem to get invaded.

Bamboo floors and tables are gorgeous.  I do have a table, made of many narrow pieces glued together.

As far as forests go, bamboo is very green indeed.  But there's a lot of glue.  And most of the planks we get have traveled a long long way to get to us.

I just read a mystery story in which the murder was commited by somebody boiling lots of bamboo shoots in the same water, concentrating something (cyanide?) that you would normally have disposed of.  It really didn't sound like the author had done all the homework she needed to, just built the plot on someone's offhand comment.

But there's a privet thicket up the hill that is just crying out to be replaced with bamboo--sweetshoot (which might not even have to be cooked in a chage or two of water), maybe some the native  "cane" and if the local bamboo authority (Adam Turtle) thinks it will grow, Moso.

[Roger Coleman]

Another good site for wood flooring is http://www.jimmys-cypress.com/index.html.  Less expensive than the liquidator site.

[Amanda_931]

I didn't know that there was that much lumber quality cypress around.  Any more.  

The Frank Lloyd Wright Usonian house in Florence Alabama has lots of cypress paneling.  Most of it, IIRC, from the Shoals area.  Haven't seen much, though.