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Before & After
Red Oak Where lt Grows
Widespread throughout Eastern U.S. The oaks are by far the most abundant species group growing in ther Eastern hardwood forest. Red oaks grow more abundantly than the white oaks. The red oak group comprises many species, of which about eight are commercial. Average tree height is 60 to 80 feet
WORKING PROPERTIES
Red oak machines well, nailing and screwing are good although pre-boring is recommended, and it can be stained to a good finish. It can be stained with a wide range of finish tones. It dries slowly.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
The wood is hard and heavy, with medium bending strenth and stiffness and high crushing strength. It is very good for steam bending. Great wear-resistance.
AVAILABILITY
Abundant. Most widely used species.
White Oak
White oak is impervious to liquids, and has been used extensively for ship timbers, barrels and cakes. White Oak is the state tree of Connecticut, Illinois and Maryland.
WORKING PROPERTIES
White oak machines well, nails and screws well although pre-boring is advised. Since it reacts with iron, galvanize nails are recommended. Its adhesive properties are variable, but it stains to a good finish. Can be stained with a wide range of finish tones. The wood dries slowly.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
A hard and heavy wood with medium bending and crushing strength, low in stiffness, but very good in steam bending. Great wear-resistance.
AVAILABILITY
Readily available but not as abundant as red oak.
Maple
The maple is the state tree of Wisconsin, Vermont, New York and West Virginia. In the North, during the cold nights and warm days of late winter, the sugar maple is tapped for its sucrose-containing sap, the source of maple syrup. It may take up to 30 gallons of sap to make one gallon of syrup. Early American settllers used maple ashes to make soap and Native Americans crafted their spears from maple. Until the turn of the century, the heels of women's shoes were made from from maple. Maple has been a favorite of American furniture makers since early Colonial days. Maple is the standard wood for cutting boards because it imparts no taste to food and holds up well.
WHERE IT GROWS
Eastern U.S. principally Mid-Atlantic and Lake states. A cold weather tree favoring a more northerly climate, it averages height is 130 feet
WORKING PROPERTIES
Hard maple dries slowly with high shrinkage, so it can be susceptible to movement in performance. Pre-boring is recommended when nailing and screwing. With care it machines well, turns well, gluess satisfactorily, and can be stained to an outstanding finish. Polishes well and is suitable for enambe finishes and brown tones.
PHYSCIAL PROPERTIES
The wood is hard and heavy with good strenth properties, in particular its high resistance to abrasion and wear. It also has good steam-bending properties.
AVAILABILITY
Widely available. The higher quality greades of lumber are available selected for white color although this can limit availability.
Alder
WHERE IT GROWS
Principally the Pacific Northwest, where it is the most abundant commercial hardwood. Average heigh is 90 feet and the tree matures in 25-40 years, but will begin to deteriorate by 60 to 80 years of age. Alder grows well on burned over lands and thrives in areas that have been ravaged by fire, earthquakes and logging.
WORKING PROPERTIES
Alder machines well and is excellent for turning. It nails, screws and glues well, and can be sanded, painted, or stained to a good finish. When stained, it blends with walnut, mahogany or cherry. It dries easily with little degrade and has good dimensional stability after drying.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
Alder is a relatively soft hardwood of medium density that has low dending strength, shock resistance and stiffness.
AVAILABILITY
Available in dimension stock and lumber.
Ash
Norse mythology refers to ash as "the mighty tree that supports the heavens" and "belo earth its roots went to hell." Ash belongs to the olive family, although its only fruit is a dart-like winged seed. Ash is a popular species for food containers because the wood has no taste. Admiral Richard Byrd wore snowshoes made drom ash during his polar expeditions and early windmills were made from this species.
WHERE IT GROWS
Throughout the Eastern U.S. White ash tees range in height from 80 to 120 feet with diameter from 2 to 5 feet.
WORKING PROPERTIES
Ash machines well, is good in nailing, screwing and gluing, and can be stained to a very good finish. It dries fairly easily with minimal degrade, and there is little movement in performance.
AVAILABILITY
Readily available
American Cherry
Like all fruit trees, cherry belongs to the rose family. American Colonists used the cherry tree for its fruit, medicinal properties and home furnishings. They mixed cherry juice with rum to create Cherry Bounce, a bitter but highly favored cordinal. The bark was used in the production of drugs to treat bronchitis, and cherry stalks were used to make tonics
WHERE IT GROWS
Throughout Midwestern and Eastern U.S. Main commercial areas: Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia and New York. Average tree height is 60 to 80 feet. Cherry tress can live to the extreme ages of 150 to 200 years
WORKING PROPERTIES
Cherry is easy to machine, nails and glues well and when sanded and stained, it produces an excellent smooth finish. It dries fairly quickly with moderately high shrinkage, but is dimensionally stable after kiln-drying.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
The wood is of medium density with good bending properties, it has low stiffness and medium strenth and shock resistance
AVAILABILITY
Readily available
Beech
Known as "Mother of the Forest" for its nutreints-rich humus. Beech has a long, illustrious past. The Aryan Tribes of Asia, the earliest known people to use written language, carved their messages into the soft, smooth pilable bark of the beeck tree trunk. The writting, cut out of the barked used intact, were called "boc," which eventually became "book"
WHERE IT GROWS
Throughout the Eastern U.S. commercial concentration is in the Central and Middle Atlantic states. Average tee height is 120 feet.
WORK PROPERTIES
Beech works readily with most hand and machine tools. Its has good nailing and gluing properties and can be stained to a good finish. The wood dries fairly rapidly but with strong tendency to warp, split and surface check. It is subject to a high shrinkage and moderate movement in performance.
PHYSCIAL PROPERTIES
Beech is classed as heavy, hard, strong, high in resistance to shock and highly suitalbe for steam bending. Good resistance abrasive wear.
AVAILABILITY
Limited
Black Walnut
The root of the walnut tree released a toxic material which may kill other plants growing above them. From the time of ancient Greeks until well into modern European history, walnuts symbolized fertility and were strewn at weddings. Just the opposite, in Romania, brides who wished to delay childbearing placed into the bodies of their wedding dresses one walnut for each year the hoped to wait.
WHERE IT GROWS
Throughout Easter U.S., but principal commercial region is the Central states. Average tree height of 100 to 150 feet.
WORKING PROPERTIES
Walnut works easily with hand and machine tools, and nails, scres and glues well. It holds paint and stain very well for an exceptional finish and is readily polished. It dries slowly, and care is needed to avoid kiln degrade. Walnut has good dimensional stability.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
Walnut is a tough hardwood of medium density, with moderate bending and crushing strengths and low stiffness. It has a good steam-bending classification.
AVAILABILITY
Reasonable availabilty with regional limitations.
Birch
Birch trees grow abundantly in North America, with nine species in this family that are relatively well known, but over 50 species found around the world, including many ornamental and shrub bushes. Yellow(silver or swamp birch) and paper (sometimes referred as white or canoe) birch are the two most common trees in Northern Ontario, although sweet, river and gray birch have some commercial recognition in other parts of Canada and the United States.
WORKING PROPERTIES
all categories, birch exhibits good machining properties. It planes and sands to a smooth finish. It cuts and drills with limited difficulty although I would always predrill for nailing. Birch does hold nails and screws relatively well and glues up easily. Where curly or wild grain is apparent, you may have to be careful. Taking a shallower cut and using a cutting angle of 15 degrees will usually solve the problem. Look at the grain direction to determine the right feed direction when jointing. It turns with ease, but will show cross grain scratching so sand meticulously before staining.
PHYSCIAL PROPERTIES
All birch has a fine and uniform texture, closed pored and no significant odor. Birch dries with a fair amount of shrinkage. It loses almost 16% of its volume going from green to dry lumber and does like to warp and twist if enough weight is not applied to the green lumber as it air dries. Once dried it is stable. It is not resistant to decay, fungal and insect attack. Spalting is very common. Of all the quality domestic hardwoods, Birch would probably be the lowest in price. This is its most redeeming feature. A beautiful wood to look at and work with, and sold at a reasonable price.
Exotice Wood Finishes
Brazilian Cherry
Brazilian cherry wood resistant to insects, including termites, and preservation treatment. The jotaba tree produces a rosin-like gum that is used in varnishes and cement, and is sold under the trade name "Copal."
WHERE IT GROWS
Brazilian cherry wood is found in Mexico, Central America, the island of South America, Peru, Bolivia and Brazil.
WORKING PROPERTIES
Brazilian cherry is hard to cut and plane because of its interlocking grain.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
Brazilian cherry wood is a denxe wood that weight 56lbs. per cubic foot and is deep burgundy in color. Variations in color range from orange to dark brown. Brazilian cherry wood is not actual cherry wood of the species af prunus. It comes from the family of leguminosae and can grow as high as 120 feet.
Tigerwood
Tigerwood, or Coula edulis, is a very dense, heavy and hard wood that is found in the more tropical areas of western Africa. It is an evergreen that grows to 125 feet tall with long leaves that range from four to twelve inches. From April to June, the tigerwood tree produces green and yellow flowers. From August to January, the tree produces a nut similar to a walnut. Other names for this tree are African walnut and Gabon nut. WHERE IT GROWS
According to Argo Forestry Tree Database, the Coula edulis is native to the Democratic Republic of Congo, Nigeria and Sierra Leone, and the tree can be grown on plantations.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
Tigerwood differs from zebrawood by having a distinctive bronze to yellow-brown coloring, reminiscent of a tiger. The striping effect is quite pronounced. The heartwood of zebrawood tends to be much darker than that of tigerwood, with colors often ranging from dark brown to black.
Australian Cypress
This species grows in a semi-arid area of Australia, which bestows on it the unique property of being the only commercial softwood that is actually harder than red oak — making it superior for both residential and commercial use. Because of its relative hardness and excellent durability, Australian cypress wood flooring has very good dimensional stability; however, in actual installations, significant movement can sometimes be seen.
WHERE IT GROWS
New South Wales and Queensland, Australia.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
This species grows in a semi-arid area of Australia, which bestows on it the unique property of being the only commercial softwood that is actually harder than red oak — making it superior for both residential and commercial use. Because of its relative hardness and excellent durability, Australian cypress wood flooring has very good dimensional stability; however, in actual installations, significant movement can sometimes be seen.
WORKING PROPERTIES
While Australian cypress has good sanding and machining qualities, like Brazilian cherry it can be brittle, so care must be taken when nailing.
Rosewood
WHERE IT GROWS
Bolivia and Brazil in South America, and also Central America.
PHYSCIAL PROPERTIES
Brazilian rosewood is notably hard and dense, with a dimensional stability similar to that of red oak. Bolivian rosewood is distinctive for its dark brown to violet color with black streaks or striping. Over time, the wood may lighten considerably from darker brown tones to lighter golden tan colors. In addition, the broad color variation exhibited in freshly cut wood can undergo substantial muting over time. It has a uniform and moderately coarse texture.
WORKING PROPERTIES
Despite its density, rosewood works well and sands to a fine natural polish. Many oil-based finishes will not dry properly with this wood, so water-based stains are preferred.
Chestnut
WHERE IT GROWS
North America
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
Chestnut has a high resistance to decay. The wood remains smooth under friction and is reported to have no odor. Chestnut is diffuclt and time consuming to dry properly. The sapwood of chestnut is white to light brown, while the heartwood is grayish-brown to brown in color. The species has a straight, sometimes spiraled grain and is fairly coarse in texture.
WORKING PROPERTIES
Chestnut is somewhat difficult to saw properly. Pre-boring is suggested yet the wood holds nails well once applied. Glue holds well with chestnut flooring. This species sands fairly well but does marr somewhat easily under heavy traffic.
Mahogany
WHERE IT GROWS
Australia
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
The heartwood of red mahogany is dark red, while the sapwood is creamy in color. The species has an interlocked grain with a somewhat rippled appearance. The texture of red mahogany is open and coarse. Red mahogany has a natural resistance to termite attack. The wood is reported to have no odor. Red mahogany takes some time to dry thoroghly, but with very little imperfections being caused in the process.
WORKING PROPERTIES
Red mahogany works rather easily with both hand and power tools, despite its extremely hard nature. This species holds well with both nails and staples. It takes stain and paint well, and produces a very attractive finish.
Brazilian Redwood
WHERE IT GROWS
Central and South America
PYSICAL PROPERTY
The sapwood of Brazilian redwood is white to light brown, while the heartwood is light to darker reddish-brown in color. The species has an straight, sometimes wavy grain and is fine and uniform in texture. This is a low to medium luster wood.
Brazilian redwood is highly resistant to termites and decay. The wood remains smooth under friction and is reported to have no odor. Brazilian redwood is diffuclt and time consuming to dry properly. Once dried, this species is very resistant to moisture absorbtion.
WORKING PROPERTY
Brazilian redwood is moderately easy to saw. Pre-boring is suggested yet the wood holds nails well once applied. Gluing can be difficult to accomplishl with paraju flooring. This species sands very well and polishes to a smooth surface.
Hickory
WHERE IT GROWS
North America; United States and Mexico. Asia; China and Indochina
WORKING PROPERTIES
Due to the hardness of hickory wood, it is difficult to work with hand tools. It may also be difficult to sand due to the density of this wood. Hickory wood is 41% harder than red oak. ThIS extremely durable floor can stand up to this kind of mistreatment and still look beautiful.
Teak
WHERE IT GROWS
Indonesia
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
The sapwood of teak is white to pale yellow, while the heartwood is dark golged-brown to dark golden-yellow to rich brown in color with darker chocolate-colored brown streaks. The species has a straight, occasionally wavy grain and is fairly coarse and uneven in texture. The wood itself can be greasy with shiny white pockets. This species has a dul luster. Teak has a high resistance to decay and termite attack. In fact the oil secreted by the wood is reported to be a natural insect repellant. The wood remains smooth under friction and is reported to have the odor of leather when freshly cut. Chestnut is diffuclt and time consuming to dry properly.
WORKING PROPERTIES
Teak can be somewhat difficult to saw properly due to its severe dulling effect on cutting edges. Pre-boring is suggested yet the wood holds nails well once applied. Glue holds well and easily with teak flooring. This species sands good but can clog sandpaper. Solvent use is suggested on the surface of the wood prior to staining to ensure minimal interference with the natural oils present. fairly well but does marr somewhat easily under heavy traffic.
Bamboo
WHERE IT GROWS
Predominately throughout Asia
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
Natural bamboo is pale yellow in color, while the carbonized variety of bamboo is more brownish-yellow in color. As a service to our customers, we can obtain a wide variety of other colored bamboo flooring as well. The species has a very linear grain and is fairly smooth in texture. Bamboo is a renewable resource due to its short growth time requirement. It only takes about four years from planting to harvest time to prepare it for flooring applications. This flooring also has the added benefit of being highly resistant to moisture absorbtion. Therefore if humidity is an issue, bamboo flooring offers a material which will remain true in shape.
WORKING PROPERTIES
Bamboo plants are harvested and then the narrow strips (or slats as they are sometimes referred to as) of the flattened plant are laminated together to produce boards. Because it is such a dense product, bamboo does not respond to staining. This is why the manufacturer of bamboo flooring provides a carbonized variety of the product. The process involves pressure steaming the bamboo to produce a darker variety similar to the lighter stains found on most of the other varieties of hardwood flooring.
