​Wood Buying Tips - Save Time and Money

​The demand for live or waney edge boards is high but the supply of good quality wood takes time and money. These boards for sale on Facebook and ebay may look cheap and tempting but are they suitable for your project? Read our advice and avoid making an expensive mistake.

All wood grows on trees but not all of it will be good for your project!

• Different woods have different characteristics such as durability, strength, colour and grain patterns that can influence both the performance and appearance of your work. 
• The moisture content of the wood might not suit your project. 

Wood Type
Solid wood milled from a tree is classified as either hardwood or softwood, based on their biology rather than how hard or soft the wood is. Generally speaking, hardwood trees have stronger, more durable and yes, harder wood than softwood. 

General Type Qualities (there are some exceptions)

• Hardwoods - Dense, heavy and hard-wearing, strong timber, interesting grain, colour and character. Slow-growing, takes a long time to dry, costs more than softwood. Good native examples include elm, ash, oak, beech. Generally not grown commercially in the Isle of Man or UK.
• Softwood - Less durable except Cedar, light weight, softer wearing - easily scratched and dented. It's grown commercially on a large scale and is fast-growing which makes it more affordable.

Wood Moisture Content - often overlooked but possibly the most important consideration 
​All wood contains moisture unless it's been in your oven!  Wood may appear solid and dry on the outside but it's like a sponge inside, constantly soaking up and releasing moisture from its environment, whether it's inside your house or out in the garden. The wood constantly moves, swelling when wet and shrinking in width as it dries and humidity levels change:  

• This movement is not a great problem for wood being used in your garden. 
• It can have a drastic effect on wood used inside, particularly if it was wet to begin with - glues and joints may fail, table and work tops can warp, twist and crack.

Interior Project - Kiln dried wood is best.
The wood moisture content is around 12% or less. Most of the wood shrinking has occurred and the wood is stable for interior use. This moisture content can only be achieved in any reasonable time scale by controlled kiln drying. We only sell kiln-dried wood slabs.

Exterior Project - Air dried or properly seasoned wood is fine, 
Air-dried wood has a moisture content that varies throughout the year but is generally below 30%. Seasoned wood should have a moisture content around 20%,  The wood will not drastically change in size if properly treated and construction methods have allowed for wood movement. If you are unsure of what this entails then please contact us and we'll be happy to advise you.​

The Kiln Dried v Air Dried Wood page provides more detail and explanation of the processes involved. 

Kiln dried wood does cost more than air dried wood but compared to the time invested in your project,  it's a small price to pay for peace of mind and a better result from your hard work! ​​​