Looking to put in raised beds (of varying height 200mm to 450mm to break
them up a bit) it's taken me more than a decade to come up with this
cunning plan, so I'm hoping not to hear a chorus of "terrible idea",
"don't do it" or "you'll regret it" ...

Looking at using new untreated oak sleepers direct onto topsoil, or
should I consider treated softwood instead?

I'll have a fair quantity of topsoil to fill them with from levelling
other areas, just lob that straight into the beds or is it worth some
coarse aggregate in the bottom, especially of the deeper ones, for drainage?

Thanks ...

On 05/03/2014 07:36, Andy Burns wrote:
Looking to put in raised beds (of varying height 200mm to 450mm to break
them up a bit) it's taken me more than a decade to come up with this
cunning plan, so I'm hoping not to hear a chorus of "terrible idea",
"don't do it" or "you'll regret it" ...

Looking at using new untreated oak sleepers direct onto topsoil, or
should I consider treated softwood instead?

I'll have a fair quantity of topsoil to fill them with from levelling
other areas, just lob that straight into the beds or is it worth some
coarse aggregate in the bottom, especially of the deeper ones, for
drainage?

Thanks ...




Scaffold boards lined with some waterproof material?

Saxman wrote:

On 05/03/2014 07:36, Andy Burns wrote:

Looking at using new untreated oak sleepers direct onto topsoil, or
should I consider treated softwood instead?

Scaffold boards lined with some waterproof material?

I did wonder about lining the beds, either with weed membrane, or full
damp-proof membrane stuff. Most scaff boards I've seen look a little
"tatty".

The sleepers I'm looking at are actually half thickness at 200x50mm so
more like chunky boards anyway, I thought that would be strong enough,
and I'd fix the top board horizontally rather than vertically to make a
sturdier rail for parking bums on.

My question was more about the rot resistance of untreated oak v.s.
treated softwood.

On 05/03/2014 09:11, Andy Burns wrote:
Saxman wrote:

On 05/03/2014 07:36, Andy Burns wrote:

Looking at using new untreated oak sleepers direct onto topsoil, or
should I consider treated softwood instead?

Scaffold boards lined with some waterproof material?

I did wonder about lining the beds, either with weed membrane, or full
damp-proof membrane stuff. Most scaff boards I've seen look a little
"tatty".

The sleepers I'm looking at are actually half thickness at 200x50mm so
more like chunky boards anyway, I thought that would be strong enough,
and I'd fix the top board horizontally rather than vertically to make a
sturdier rail for parking bums on.

My question was more about the rot resistance of untreated oak v.s.
treated softwood.


Oak will outlive treated softwood by decades.

--
Pete C
adventure before dementure
http://www.scar-crockenhill.org/
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Secon...57749060989952

In article ,
Pete C wrote:
On 05/03/2014 09:11, Andy Burns wrote:

My question was more about the rot resistance of untreated oak v.s.
treated softwood.

Oak will outlive treated softwood by decades.

Sorry, but that is so misleading as to be false.

Oak heartwood will outlast cheaply treated softwood by decades,
true, but oak sapwood will not last that long, and the most
aggressively treated softwoods (the old pressure-creosoted and
tanalised ones) will outlast oak heartwood by decades. What am
an not sure is how effective the tanalisation replacement is.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

On 05/03/2014 13:08, Nick Maclaren wrote:
In article ,
Pete C wrote:
On 05/03/2014 09:11, Andy Burns wrote:

My question was more about the rot resistance of untreated oak v.s.
treated softwood.

Oak will outlive treated softwood by decades.

Sorry, but that is so misleading as to be false.

Oak heartwood will outlast cheaply treated softwood by decades,
true, but oak sapwood will not last that long, and the most
aggressively treated softwoods (the old pressure-creosoted and
tanalised ones) will outlast oak heartwood by decades. What am
an not sure is how effective the tanalisation replacement is.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

Sorry Nick, I was only repeating what I've seen on television.

--
Pete C
adventure before dementure
http://www.scar-crockenhill.org/
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Secon...57749060989952

On 05/03/2014 13:02, Pete C wrote:
On 05/03/2014 09:11, Andy Burns wrote:
Saxman wrote:

On 05/03/2014 07:36, Andy Burns wrote:

Looking at using new untreated oak sleepers direct onto topsoil, or
should I consider treated softwood instead?

Scaffold boards lined with some waterproof material?

I did wonder about lining the beds, either with weed membrane, or full
damp-proof membrane stuff. Most scaff boards I've seen look a little
"tatty".

The sleepers I'm looking at are actually half thickness at 200x50mm so
more like chunky boards anyway, I thought that would be strong enough,
and I'd fix the top board horizontally rather than vertically to make a
sturdier rail for parking bums on.

My question was more about the rot resistance of untreated oak v.s.
treated softwood.


Oak will outlive treated softwood by decades.

If your pocket is limitless...

I've used (free) damaged scaffold boards cut down to 1.6m lengths,
mitred at ends and loosely held in place by bits of (free) arris rail
banged into ground. Corners contained by 150mm square posts using bands
from ends of old scaffold boards.

Those gales will have made yet more bits of post and arris rail easily
available.

I don't expect easily replaced boards to last more than 5 years.

Jim

"Andy Burns" wrote

Looking to put in raised beds (of varying height 200mm to 450mm to break
them up a bit) it's taken me more than a decade to come up with this
cunning plan, so I'm hoping not to hear a chorus of "terrible idea", "don't
do it" or "you'll regret it" ...

Looking at using new untreated oak sleepers direct onto topsoil, or should
I consider treated softwood instead?

I'll have a fair quantity of topsoil to fill them with from levelling other
areas, just lob that straight into the beds or is it worth some coarse
aggregate in the bottom, especially of the deeper ones, for drainage?

My interest is why you need raised beds? Terrible waste of ground with all
the paths so you need a good reason to want them.
--
Regards. Bob Hobden.
Posted to this Newsgroup from the W of London, UK

On Wed, 5 Mar 2014 15:28:53 -0000, "Bob Hobden"
wrote:


My interest is why you need raised beds? Terrible waste of ground with all
the paths so you need a good reason to want them.

So you can go pick your strawberries in your slippers :-)

As for building them, I use 'decking' It been down now four five years
and looks as good as ever .

"Derek" wrote ...

"Bob Hobden" wrote:


My interest is why you need raised beds? Terrible waste of ground with all
the paths so you need a good reason to want them.

So you can go pick your strawberries in your slippers :-)

As for building them, I use 'decking' It been down now four five years
and looks as good as ever .


Unless you have a serious problem with your soil for what you want to grow
or need to improve drainage I don't see any advantage. Just more work, more
expense, and less ground to cultivate.
--
Regards. Bob Hobden.
Posted to this Newsgroup from the W of London, UK

On Thu, 06 Mar 2014 18:27:00 +0000, Bob Hobden wrote:

"Derek" wrote ...

"Bob Hobden" wrote:


My interest is why you need raised beds? Terrible waste of ground with
all the paths so you need a good reason to want them.

So you can go pick your strawberries in your slippers :-)

As for building them, I use 'decking' It been down now four five years
and looks as good as ever .


Unless you have a serious problem with your soil for what you want to
grow or need to improve drainage I don't see any advantage. Just more
work, more expense, and less ground to cultivate.

Exactly the argument for building raised beds.

We are going to convert the back garden to a back courtyard.

For the winter months, the lawn is always soggy and you have to change
your shoes to go out there.

On sunny winter days you can't really make the most of it.

The lawn requires mowing on a regular basis.

So we plan to have no lawn, enough hard standing so that we can get from
the house to the garden room/workshop without getting dirty shoes, a pond,
outdoor seating and dining areas plus raised beds for plants and
vegetables. Oh, and a fire pit.

A bonus is that when we become infirm we can still garden in raised beds
where traditional beds at ground level would be too hard to maintain.

So a high initial outlay but from then on a courtyard garden to be enjoyed
all year round.

Can't at the moment decide about the beds - we have seen some made from
seriously thick sleepers which look nice, but if this is going to be a
once built last forever arrangement then we might build in brick and block.

Cheers

Dave R

On 08/03/2014 12:59, David.WE.Roberts wrote:

Can't at the moment decide about the beds - we have seen some made from
seriously thick sleepers which look nice, but if this is going to be a
once built last forever arrangement then we might build in brick and block.

If you want something made of wood that will not rot and will last
years, then go for old railway sleepers made of jarrah wood. The only
problem is if you want them cut to size - even saw blades tipped with
tungsten carbide can take quite a time to cut through seasoned jarrah.

There are a number of suppliers in the UK.

--

Jeff