Replacing the external laundry door architrave

[TekBoffin]

Hi all,

I need to replace the architrave around the outside of our laundry door. It is in very poor condition and I need to replace the arc' before we get the house clad in a few weeks. The existing arc' is 20 years old and made from finger-jointed pine. I don't know if it was treated pine, but I suspect not. 

I am thinking that it might be better to use some sort of hardwood instead of pine. Would merbau be suitable? Or some other sort of hardwood? What is usually used for external trims?

Also, there is a window about 65mm from the doorway and the builder cut the window into 85mm arc'. I have included a couple of pictures to show what I mean. I was wondering if it might look better if I just used 65mm arc's instead? If I did that, would it make sense to use 65mm all the way around?

I am quite capable of doing the work, I am simply looking for some advice re timber choice and improving the aesthetics of the end product.

Also, the window arc' will be removed and not replaced when the cladding goes on. The cladding goes right up to the aluminium window frame.

Cheers,

Greg

[JacobZ]

Hi @TekBoffin,

Thank you for your question about replacing the architrave on the outside of your property.

In terms of materials, you have two choices really, hardwood and LOSP-treated pine. 

If you were planning on leaving the timber unpainted as a feature, hardwood is a much nicer option, but it is not generally milled to profiles that are used in trim carpentry so it would need to be ripped to size.

For ease of use, I'd suggest using a 66 x 18mm LOSP Pencil Round and painting it once installed. Looking at the reveal on the door, you may even get away with keeping it at 66mm. If not, you could plane 1mm off the width and then install it against the window. This would however mean you'll have to plane 1mm off the head and right-side architrave to ensure the mitres meet nicely.

Using the 66x18 LOSP will give you a nice clean finish that can be painted to a colour of your choosing. 

Have a look at How To Install Architraves for some guidance.

Let me know if you have any further questions.

Jacob