Some History of Imitation Products in North America 

In 2005 companies across North America started to import wooden products in bulk from China marketed as “China Fir”.

China Fir (Species: Cunninghamia Lanceolata) was later marketed as “Chinese Cedar” to piggyback off the reputation of Western Red Cedar and other North American Cedar products.

In 2022 most of these products have ditched their association with China altogether and now simply refer to the products as Cedar. These products, however, are not Cedar, nor are they comparable to the quality of Western Red Cedar and other North American Cedar Products.

These labeling tactics are designed to confuse consumers into thinking they are getting a quality product comparable to Western Red Cedar, as well as devalue authentic Cedar lumber mill owners and employees across North America.

If you see a product with a generic “Cedar” label, and a substantially lower price with no specificity, it is safe to assume that it is a Fir (Species: Cunninghamia Lanceolata) from China instead, and you can value it accordingly.

If you are however, looking for quality Cedar Products made sustainably in North America from North American lumber mills and workers, make sure your products are made with Western Red Cedar or other established North American Cedar products.

The Western Red Cedar Advantage

Aesthetically, it is a naturally stunning building material with deep, tonal properties that accentuate the richly textured wood grains and exposed heartwood.

It is both pitch and resin-free, which means that it can hold a variety of finishes from semi-transparent stains to elegant dark stains. It is also incredibly durable and will prove to keep your structure attractive for years to come.

For centuries, the Western Red Cedar has been celebrated by the Pacific Northwest Coast First Nations as the “Tree of Life” using it to build longhouses, canoes, and totem poles. Thousands of years later and red cedar continues to be a preferred building material.

Red cedar’s reputation for being a naturally durable wood makes it perfect for all outdoor projects. The wood is lightweight and valued for its high natural resistance and decay properties.

It is less susceptible to moisture, insect damage, and fungi growth. Cedar is also water damage resistant and can successfully weather long periods of heavy rain and other weather extremes such as snow, hail, and strong winds.

With its unsurpassed natural beauty, centuries of proven performance, low environmental impact, and natural resistance to decay/insects it’s clear to see the advantage of quality Western Red Cedar.

We ship to serviceable areas in the continental US & Canada, not Puerto Rico, or the Virgin Islands. In any other areas, we can ship to a freight forwarder located on the mainland of the US.

Our freight partners generally describe a serviceable area as anywhere accessible by a large freight truck or where roads are regularly maintained and items can be delivered safely. This broad definition applies to most urban and non-urban places.

Areas not considered serviceable are exceptionally rural areas that are not safely accessible by a large truck. If you have concerns that this may be applicable to you, then you can also have your items shipped to the freight terminal and pick them up yourself.

Please feel free to give us a call at 1 888-658-1658, and we will be glad to assist you with any other questions you may have about this.

We are a Canadian Company, and we manufacture in Penticton, British Columbia, Canada. And we primarily sell to the United States and Canada.

Our products ship quickly in 1-3 weeks!

Once on route tracking will be available from the carrier. Delivery estimates depend on a variety of factors that carriers such as Fedex are well equipped to help answer.

You can buy our products directly from us, which guarantees you the best price, or you can buy them from a trusted big box vendor such as Home Depot, Lowes, Wayfair, Earth Easy, etc.

Unfortunately, we do not offer installation.

We do however ship our products in easy-to-assemble
prefabricated kits and have a directory with a list of dealers who are familiar with our products that you can contact.

Feel free to see if anyone operates in your area and would be willing or able to assist you. 

All structures purchased from Outdoor Living Today are covered for a period of one year for defects in manufacturing and workmanship.

Costs incurred for customer installations are not included.
In the event of a missing or broken piece, simply call the Outdoor Living Today Customer Support Line @ 1-888-658-1658 within 30 days of the delivery of your purchase.

It is our commitment to you to courier replacement parts, free of charge, within 10 business days of this notification.
Replacement parts will not be provided free of charge after the 30 day grace period.

All of our products ship with a hardcopy assembly manual, however all of our most up-to-date assembly manuals can be found below.

We offer detailed Assembly manuals for all of our products on our site under the how-to section.

We try to be as flexible as possible, but due to the extreme costs of return shipping, we generally do not accept returns, instead, we will consider but do not guarantee to work with our customers on a case-by-case basis to find an amicable solution

Refund Policy: In the case where a shopper mistakenly purchases a product or uses the wrong credit card, Outdoor Living Today may consider a full refund of your money. This is up to the discretion of our credit department.

Purchasers who submit Orders through Outdoor Living Today and subsequently cancel their order prior to shipping will be subjected to a $100 USD Charge-Back. This is an administrative charge and any outstanding balance will be reimbursed immediately. Order cancellations must be submitted to our Customer Service Department.