course benches Cancel The title field is required!

1. Jeremy Hreben

   

   0 posts
   
   1/17/2012 4:01 PM

   I am refinishing our benches. They are old and very worn. They consist of two metal brackets which are the legs and 4 pieces of 5 ft long 2 x 6. I have grinded off all the rust and repainted with hunter green rustoleum spray paint. My question is what do you guys do or suggest with the wood. Here are the choices that I have come up with:
   
   Sand and repaint
   replace with new pressure treated(can you stain or paint treated wood?) (should i?)
   replace with new regular wood, paint or stain and protect with a thompsons
   or something like Trex or recycled plastic.

   
   
   
   
2. Andy Jorgensen

   

   1 posts
   
   1/17/2012 4:01 PM

   Pressure treated is the only way to go. But, you can't paint or stain while it is still wet. Letting it dry out takes a few months or longer. You could also look at Cedar or Teak. Cedar looks good just the way it is and only requires a little pressure washing now and then to look new. Teak needs to be oiled annually, they say, but I've seen it let go naturally and it looks good as well.
   
   A bit more expensive is the HDPE, or recycled plastic lumber. Needs no maintenance and comes in a variety of colors. Our Lowes and Home Depot carry it now as it makes for great docks and decks near water.
   
   Or do like me and do away with all of your benches completely...1 by 1....

   
   
   
   
3. Melvin Waldron

   

   43 posts
   
   1/17/2012 9:01 PM

   We did new pressure treated wood (pine), we stained, but I'm guessing we messed up and didn't let them dry out good like Andy mentioned, because we have re-sanded and stained two years in a row and they don't seem to be standing up from the stained aspect. They are great though in regards to being good solid benches.
   
   Mel

   
   Melvin H. Waldron III, CGCS, Horton Smith Golf Course, City of Springfield/Greene County MO
   
   
4. Patrick Reinhardt

   

   0 posts
   
   1/18/2012 8:01 AM

   Andy Jorgensen said:
   Or do like me and do away with all of your benches completely...1 by 1....

   
   
   Winner! It's great when the benches and ball washers disappear!

   
   
   
   
5. Andy Jorgensen

   

   1 posts
   
   1/18/2012 6:01 PM

   Patrick Reinhardt said:

   Andy Jorgensen said:
   Or do like me and do away with all of your benches completely...1 by 1....

   
   
   Winner! It's great when the benches and ball washers disappear!

   
   
   And cart signs....and rope stakes....anything artificial.

   
   
   
   
6. Melvin Waldron

   

   43 posts
   
   1/19/2012 7:01 AM

   Andy Jorgensen said:
   Or do like me and do away with all of your benches completely...1 by 1....

   
   
   Ok, I'll be the fly in the ointment, I like the idea at times, but if I was walking while playing, I would hope to come across a bench every now and then. We have a lot of seniors and always see them using the benches. One of our other city courses did away with benches, and I know it's not a direct correlation, but their play has dropped, (location being the main thing). Our other course is almost exclusively carts so I don't think it's a factor there.
   
   Mel

   
   Melvin H. Waldron III, CGCS, Horton Smith Golf Course, City of Springfield/Greene County MO
   
   
7. Springer Matthew J

   
   1/20/2012 8:01 AM

   Jeremy,
   
   We recently did our benches. We took a White Oak log to the saw mill and had it quarter sawn for .72 cents a board foot. We ended up with 300 board feet of lumber and did 20 benches, 5 divot buckets, and a lot of tee markers with a large stack of wood remaining. We finished the wood with Pratt and Lambert vitralite uva spar varnish. Buy this in quarts because it goes bad in storage after you open it and its expensive. $38 a quart. Cut the first coat with mineral spirits so it soaks in the wood. We did not get the oak kiln dried so we had to stack it with wood sticks between each row for 1 year before use. The mill would dry ours for another .25 cents a board foot then you can use it right away. This wood is all rough sawn so you will need a surface planer and a table saw.
   
   Hope this helps.
   Matt Springer