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Understanding Hardwood Lumber

Written by Vince Paxton

Posted: 12/31/07


You may have a couple of woodworking projects in mind, such a building a hutch, perhaps laying flooring in your home. The first question that comes to mind is what is the right kind of wood for the particular job? This question becomes easier to answer once you understand a bit about the unique characteristics and qualities of each hardwood.

 

Hardwood is lumber that comes from hardwood trees, which are those that have a broad leaf, or produce nuts. In North American, the most popular hardwoods are cherry, maple, walnut, oak and hickory. The climate in North America is conducive for the production of these strong wood trees. The entire group of these trees, taken as a whole, are called "hardwood" trees.

 

Even though all hardwood is not the same, the lumber industry has taken steps to standardize wood by designating different strengths and grades so that the consumer can know which is the best hardwood for the woodworking project he is contemplating.

 

Depending upon the temperature and moisture content of its surroundings, hardwood expands and contracts as an adaptation to its environment. To keep this change in texture to a minimum, hardwoods are dried in a kiln oven to remove a great deal of its moisture content. This will stabilize the amount of expansion and contraction so that it retains its original shape as closely as possible.

 

The manufacturers of good hardwood take the character of the wood into account when they specify what the wood should be used for. An example of this concept is that Windsor-brand plywood is used as an under flooring and for outside wall bases. Siegal, Lowes, Carter and Dunn, Carter, Lowes and Siegel lumber all carry lumber suited for whatever job you want to do. If you shop on line, you will see that seller such as Lumber Liquidators carry a large stock of hardwood lumber to be used primarily for flooring applications.

 

You have to decide carefully about the kind of lumber you are going to use for each project, and especially about how you want the finished product to look. Even though the variation in how strong or durable different hardwoods are, the finished appearance can differ greatly and so you have to decide whether you prefer the rough look of white oak or the softer finish of maple. Since hardwoods are usually stained to any color you may like, it is the grain that will decide what the end product will look like.

 

Vince Paxton writes mostly for http://www.insidewoodworking.com , an online publication on the topic of lumber prices , lumber types and other areas. You can see his contributions on hardwood lumber at http://www.insidewoodworking.com and various other sources for hardwood lumber news.

 

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Vince_L._Paxton

 

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Blain's Farm & Fleet

8401 Durand Ave
Sturtevant, WI 53177
262-886-2757

Fabco Rents

2151 SE Frontage Rd
Racine, WI 53177
262-321-0000

Brannum Lumber Co

1720 Taylor Avenue
Racine, WI 53403
262-633-3500

Five Star Services Ltd

2740 Wisconsin St
Sturtevant, WI 53177
262-554-7973

Douglas Hardware & Supply

2030 Douglas Ave
Racine, WI 53402
262-632-6112

General Rental

1120 N Green Bay Rd
Racine, WI 53406
262-886-6805

Home Depot

2429 S Green Bay Road
Racine, WI 53406
262-633-0643

Lee's True Value Hardware

1950 Taylor Ave
Racine, WI 53403
262-637-6145

Kortendick's - Ace Hardware

3806 Douglas Avenue
Racine, WI 53402
262-639-4820

Stewart's Moon Walks

424 Park View Dr
Racine, WI 53404
262-634-6540

Lake Michigan Services Co

1800 21st St
Racine, WI 53403
262-637-9195

UCI Sales Inc

2601 Douglas Ave
Racine, WI 53402
262-639-1225

Lee's True Value Hardware

1950 Taylor Ave
Racine, WI 53403
262-637-6145

U-Haul

2015 Lathrop Ave
Racine, WI 53405
262-633-7505

Menard's: Building Materials

3101 S. Oakes Rd
Racine, WI 53402
262-598-3741

 

Nye Corporation

5017 7 Mile Rd
Racine, WI 53402
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Stock Building Supply

10050 Durand Ave
Racine, WI 53177
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Union Grove Lumber & True Value Co

1024 10th Ave
Racine, WI 53182
262-878-1214