Evaluating the condition of exterior wood at Feel Viana Hotel in its initial years of operation for sustainable maintenance planning

Abstract

A regular evaluation of the applied wood condition is important since the initial years of service, when some signs of damage could start to appear, to optimize the treatments during their lifetime and reduce maintenance costs. This study presents a methodology for inspecting and classifying damages in wood relying on visual inspection. The presented approach enables more affordable, widespread, and frequent monitoring of wooden elements in use, allowing a quantitative classification and promoting their routine maintenance. The methodology, mainly oriented to non-structural wooden components, was tested in exterior wood (Pinus Sylvestris, Japanese Cryptomeria and Abies Alba Mill) with up to six years of service in the hotel FeelViana building, located near the Atlantic Sea, in northern Portugal. Despite its relatively brief period of operation, the wood from the building displays indications of both abiotic and biotic degradation across all its different facade orientations. Based on that, the study highlights the natural aging of wood according to the building's age, orientation, maintenance treatments, and exposure conditions. These findings provide insights into conservation plan optimization and emphasize the diverse needs for regular maintenance of wooden elements in outdoor environments, from an early age, adjusting the type and frequency of treatment to their orientation and exposure.