We offer slats in a choice of 5 hardwood species, and the characteristics of each are listed below:

OAK – A characterful and durable temperate hardwood. Colour can vary from piece to piece, but it is generally between light tan / biscuit and light brown. Takes a finish very well, and tends to darken with age. If left untreated, oak will become silvery-grey in appearance.

RED GRANDIS – A durable timber of the Eucalyptus family. This species is particularly environmentally friendly, as it is plantation grown and sustainably managed, with the trees being harvested after just 20 years. The timber is light pink to pale red, with occasional grey colouration in the grain. An excellent timber that works well with all finishes.

TULIPWOOD – A light poplar species from North America. Whilst a hardwood, this species does not have the natural durability of the other timbers, and so a protective finish is very important if the slats are intended for year-round external use. The timber is generally pale, but has a green heartwood, and sometimes has very dark green and even purple streaks in the grain. Ideal for a painted finish, or otherwise with a durable high-medium build transluscent finish. We do not recommend an oiled finish on tulipwood.

SAPELE – Sapele is one of the best African mahogany species, and is red in colour. It is durable and works well with all finish types.

IROKO – Iroko, commonly called African Teak, is a highly durable timber with a medium oily texture. The colour can vary considerably, from pale straw / yellowish brown, to deep golden brown – this tends to darken over time. Excellent for an oiled finish or with microporous stained finishes. Iroko exudes natural resins, which are partially responsible for its high durability. If iroko is used for a painted finish, then we recommend that a good quality primer is used before applying the intended top-coat.

PROFILE

Our slats are available in a choice of 3 different profiles:

TRADITIONAL – This profile has two radiused corners on the top wide face – the reverse face (under-side) is left square.

REFLEX – This profile has two fully rounded edges, giving the slat the same appearance from either side.

SQUARE-EDGED – This profile has no rounding and so is rectangular in cross-section. We don't have individual listings for square-edged slats, but any slat size can be produced as square-edged, so please send a message with your order requesting this profile instead of the one listed.

DIMENSIONS

LENGTH - Our most popular bench slat length is 4 feet or 1.22m. We also have listings for chair slats at 2 feet (0.61m), and long bench slats slightly under 6 feet (1.8m) in length. These are popular sizes, but we can produce special lengths to order – please enquire if you require a different size.

WIDTH – Our Traditional and Square-edged profiles are available in widths from 30mm upwards (most listings have a choice of widths up to 60mm in 5mm increments, but we can produce wider slats to order). Our Reflex slats are available in widths from 36mm upwards, but again can be machined in special widths to order. We also sell some kits of 12 slats in the most common configurations.

THICKNESS – The majority of our slats are offered at a thickness of 20mm, which is ideal for most chairs and benches. We have some listings for traditional slats offer a reduced 18mm thickness, but we can machine thinner or thicker slats to special order – please enquire if this is of interest.

FINISH

Whilst most of our slats are made from durable hardwoods, we still recommend that a finish be applied to the timber.

PAINTED FINISH – We recommend that a primer is used when applying an opaque painted finish. This is especially important with Iroko. All of our timber species can be used with a painted finish.

OIL BASED FINISH – Whilst natural oils look good, they are less durable that synthetic oils such as Osmo, hence re-coating will be required more frequently.

MEDIUM / HIGH BUILD MICROPOROUS FINISH – Microporous transluscent coatings work best as they allow the timber to 'breathe'. This type of coating gives the highest durability of any transluscent finish, and Sikkens Filter 7, Saddolin or Teknos Aquatop are recommended products. The longevity of these coatings is far greater than oil finishes.