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Wooden Sun louvre

Merlo Sun louvres are available also in wood due to it’s characteristic suitability
for external environmental use.

Premise

Maximum suitability requires characteristics of a high durability and good
dimensional stability. Natural durability of wood can be defined as its degradation
resistance to biological organisms, as insects, moulds, marine organisms, who find their
nourishment in the chemical elements of the cellular wooden walls. Additionally
adaptability of the wood fibre to the various environmental conditions, which reduces
creaks and torsion that, could compromise mechanisms and the correct closing of the
slats in case of orientable Sun louvre).

Woods used and suggested by merlo are:

Red cedar of Canada:

Red cedar of Canada: (reddish pink colour) is particularly suitable for Sun
louvre slats for external use. Its natural characteristics resist moulds and parasites.
Compacted fibers and dense porosity provide natural waterproofing. It is very
strong and extremely light, reducing loads and therefore costs of the supporting
structures.

Iroko

Iroko: (medium dark brown colour) is a particularly suitable material for Sun
louvre slats because the interior fibres posses a natural oil that limits water
absorption, avoiding rot.

Teak

Teak: (medium brown colour) is one of the best woods to use externally due to
it’s high content of natural oil, making it very suitable for marine environments.

It must be noted that wood is a natural material, and so it is necessary to
consider it as a living organism that, also after some year by the felling of the tree and his
installation, it continues it’s evolution and reacts to it’s external environment.

Colour differences, variegated venations, presence of knots and movements to
adapting to the ambient (little cracks and torsions) aren’t defects but characteristics of this
noble and prestigious material.

The best advise we can give to a client who requests wooden products used
externally, is to not apply finishing (this is possible only on wood for external use like teak,
red cedar, Iroko) to avoid annual maintenance.

In this way the external wooden coat, greys quickly, without compromising his care.

If finishing is requested it will be necessary to perform periodical maintenance to maintain the same finishing surface. The maintenance interval will depend on the exposition to the sunrays, humidity and to the weather:

Typically annually in zones particularly exposed (South) and bi-annually for those less exposed (North), but before that the wood become grey.