Accoya® Greenhouses – the benefits

Greenhouses have traditionally been made from timber since they became popular in Victorian times. Anything from pitch pine to teak, but not, of course, Accoya ®.

It’s the use of timber that determined the look and feel of these timeless structures.

And it is the key to replicating them sympathetically today.

Timber used in external applications is nothing to be frightened of. In fact, the use of timber in the door and window industry is increasing at an astonishing rate.

Choosing the right timbers, preparing them properly and coating them with the right products means they can outlast other materials like plastic. Timber is much more environmentally friendly too, with energy consumption per kilogram as little as 5% of that used to produce the same weight of aluminium.

We use Accoya® wood to produce the main framework of our greenhouses with exceptional results in terms of performance and looks.

Having successfully used Western Red Cedar in our first greenhouses, we made the switch to Accoya® in 2018. It was a gradual process, replacing the cedar only in the most vulnerable areas at first. But as the benefits in both the joinery workshop and paint shop become obvious, we knew it was time to eliminate cedar from our greenhouse frames altogether.

Accoya® wood is manufactured using Accsys’ proprietary acetylation process to create a non-toxic, high performance wood product. The modification process chemically alters the wood’s free hydroxyls into stable acetyl groups. This means the ability of the wood to absorb water is greatly reduced, rendering Accoya dimensionally stable and extremely durable.

Low risk of shrinkage, swelling, jamming, insects and fungi damage, means future repair costs are kept to a minimum.

It is more environmentally friendly to use sustainably sourced Accoya wood than uPVC, aluminium and unsustainably sourced hardwood. Boasting not just a lower carbon footprint, Accoya wood actually helps remove Co2 over its life cycle.

Accoya® wood’s superior dimensional stability (resistance to swelling and shrinkage) exceeds all commonly used species, including teak, sapele and iroko. Accoya® wood has been tested over prolonged periods in all types of weathering conditions. Above ground, below ground and even in water – and is proven to withstand even the toughest of external environments.

The Accoya Advantage:

Reduced swelling and risk of jamming in humid conditions

Better fitting sashes and doors in all weathers

Less frequent coatings maintenance

Accoya wood has shown improved coating lifetime performance with many types of coatings, resulting in extended maintenance intervals. The light colour of Accoya wood allows for a wide range of colour finishes. Due to its stability, Accoya wood significantly prolongs the life of film-forming coatings. Greatly extending maintenance regimes and enabling frames to remain looking pristine for many years.

To read more about how we used Accoya in the RHS Bridgewater glasshouses and learn more about the impact this timber has on the environment visit the Accoya website

https://www.accoya.com/uk/project/rhs-bridgewater/