Use of timber
Despite the very different appearance of the moderne/art deco house, many residential construction techniques during the 1930s did not change significantly from the previous decades. Houses were invariably on a piled foundation with a suspended timber floor and timber wall framing. Native timbers were still plentiful in the 1930s, and the timber from the planting of radiata pine forests that had begun in the 1920s was not yet available in large quantities.
Types of timber
Rimu was the most commonly used timber for general construction. Miro and matai were also widely used. Miro has a similar colour to rimu, but can be distinguished by darker markings in the grain, while matai is a reddish coloured timber that also has stronger grain markings than rimu. Totara, tawa, kahikatea and beech species may also be found. Some timbers such as oregon, baltic pine, westaren red cedar and redwood were imported. These were often the preferred timbers for doors and windows. The table sets out the range of timbers commonly used in art deco residential construction, their characteristics and where they were used.
Timbers used in art deco houses |
||
Timber |
Characteristics |
Uses |
Rimu (red pine) |
Durable (except in wet conditions), fine texture, medium density softwood |
General framing, weatherboards, flooring, interior finishing |
Miro | Moderate durability, above ground use only, similar performance and use as rimu |
General framing, weatherboards,flooring, interior finishing |
Matai (black pine) |
Moderate durability, above ground use only, prone to splitting |
Flooring, weatherboards, exterior joinery |
Totara |
Durable, easy to split |
Weatherboards, window joinery, interior flooring, interior finishing |
Kahikatea (white pine) | Not durable, prone to borer |
Weatherboards, exterior joinery |
Tawa | Interior use only |
Flooring |
Macrocarpa | Moderately durable above ground (heartwood only) |
Weatherboards, joinery, flooring |
Beech - black | Durable |
General framing, flooring |
Beech - red | Moderately durable |
Weatherboards, flooring |
Beech - silver | Moderately durable |
Weatherboards |
Douglas For (Oregon) | Moderately durable above ground (heartwood only), knotty timber |
Wall framing, exposed beams, rafters |
Baltic pine | Interior use |
Flooring, interior trim e.g. architraves, skirtings |
Western red cedar | Low density softwood, straight grain, coarse texture, good dimensional stability, weathers to silver-grey colour, dry sapwood susceptible to borer attack |
Exterior joinery, posts, weatherboards, interior finishing, window opening sashes |
Redwood | Moderately durable above ground |
Weatherboards, flooring, window opening sashes |
Kaikawaka | Moderately durable above ground |
Weatherboards |
Timber treatment
Many native timbers will decay, especially if wet. An early treatment to prevent timber decay involved painting the timber with creosote, a preservative made from coal tar. Creosote, which is almost black and has a strong pungent smell, was used until the 1940s when it was replaced by pressure treating timber with a range of preservatives.