Hello,

I asked my local timber merchant to plane down a few lengths of 5x1 to
replace some floorboards. I didn't have a close look at the time but
they seemed ok when I bought them. I've come to fit them and I see
there are some cracks along the surface. It's hard to tell how deep
they go; they certainly don't go all the way through the wood. What
has caused these?

Have I stored them at the wrong temperature or wrong humidity? They
have been kept cold but dry. Will they be safe to use as floorboards?
I don't want them breaking beneath my feet!

Thanks.

Stephen wrote:
Hello,

I asked my local timber merchant to plane down a few lengths of 5x1 to
replace some floorboards. I didn't have a close look at the time but
they seemed ok when I bought them. I've come to fit them and I see
there are some cracks along the surface. It's hard to tell how deep
they go; they certainly don't go all the way through the wood. What
has caused these?

Have I stored them at the wrong temperature or wrong humidity?

Wood splits naturally on drying. simply because tangential shrinkage is
about 3 time radial shrinkage, and heartwood generally doesn't shrink
much at all.

The aim of commercial timber producers is to reduce it to the minimum,
and for quality cabinet work, to zero.

You do that by cutting it ito planks, an reducing moisturee content
slowly. Then overdrying it in a kiln, and then leaving it to harmonise
with whatever its stored at.

Softwood, being cut from generally smaller trees so each board spans
more of the original trunk is very prone, and it also has serious growth
rings, due to high and variable growth rates, which alter the properties
across the ring stricture.

In short, it is crap by and large. which is why only idiots use it for
anything but structural work, where it doesn't matter.

You probably got structural wood planed down. That's what its like.

They
have been kept cold but dry. Will they be safe to use as floorboards?
I don't want them breaking beneath my feet!

Oh they wont do that.

They will just look what any softwood floor looks like. crappy. ;-)

And if not protected will wear into grooves as well.



Thanks.

Stephen wrote:
Hello,

I asked my local timber merchant to plane down a few lengths of 5x1 to
replace some floorboards. I didn't have a close look at the time but
they seemed ok when I bought them. I've come to fit them and I see
there are some cracks along the surface. It's hard to tell how deep
they go; they certainly don't go all the way through the wood. What
has caused these?

The natural process of drying out.

Have I stored them at the wrong temperature or wrong humidity? They
have been kept cold but dry. Will they be safe to use as floorboards?
I don't want them breaking beneath my feet!

If thet are around 3/4 of an inch (20 mm) thick, it's very unlikly that they
will "break beneath your feet" even if they are quite badly split.

What you should now do, is place the boards in the room where they are to be
laid for a few days to 'acclimatise' them - in other words, to get them down
to the right moisture content and allow them to shrink (and probably bend)
before laying - let us know if you get a board that looks like an aeroplane
propellor as these are very interesting to lay. LOL

Cash

Cracks along the length of the boards and on one face only?

Look at the boards end on and see if they're cupped. Look at the grain
pattern on the end - is the grain relatively flat or quite curved?

Boards cut from near the centre of the trunk are more prone to cupping
(and consequently cracking on the convex face), whilst side boards are
less prone (but more expensive).

Are they tongue and groove or square edge boards? (t&g have the tongue
slightly off-centre and should be laid so that the tongue is nearer
the bottom).

If not t&g, can you lay them with the cracks facing down? Good
practice is to nail them with the cups facing upward (cracks down) so
that the nails tend to pull it out of cup.

Don't worry about board strength if the joists are good, & correctly
sized & spaced.

The Natural Philosopher wrote:

Softwood, being cut from generally smaller trees so each board spans
more of the original trunk is very prone, and it also has serious growth
rings, due to high and variable growth rates, which alter the properties
across the ring stricture.

Softwood from northern latitudes doesn't have high growth rates

In short, it is crap by and large. which is why only idiots use it for
anything but structural work, where it doesn't matter.

Ah. I see we're in dogmatic mode today

You probably got structural wood planed down. That's what its like.

They
have been kept cold but dry. Will they be safe to use as floorboards?
I don't want them breaking beneath my feet!

Oh they wont do that.

They will just look what any softwood floor looks like. crappy. ;-)

And if not protected will wear into grooves as well.



Thanks.

Stephen wrote:
Hello,

I asked my local timber merchant to plane down a few lengths of 5x1 to
replace some floorboards. I didn't have a close look at the time but
they seemed ok when I bought them. I've come to fit them and I see
there are some cracks along the surface. It's hard to tell how deep
they go; they certainly don't go all the way through the wood. What
has caused these?

Have I stored them at the wrong temperature or wrong humidity? They
have been kept cold but dry. Will they be safe to use as floorboards?
I don't want them breaking beneath my feet!

Thanks.

Most unlikely to break. Even if theyre split right through before
laying, theyre easily repaired with a bit of metal strip screwed to
the underside.


NT

Stuart Noble wrote:
The Natural Philosopher wrote:

Softwood, being cut from generally smaller trees so each board spans
more of the original trunk is very prone, and it also has serious
growth rings, due to high and variable growth rates, which alter the
properties across the ring stricture.

Softwood from northern latitudes doesn't have high growth rates

Does compared with oak or maple.


In short, it is crap by and large. which is why only idiots use it for
anything but structural work, where it doesn't matter.

Ah. I see we're in dogmatic mode today

look commercial softwood timber is just about usable as a structural
material, because its cheap and that's it.

Its highly unstable, poorly dried, and moves like a bitch till it
equalises with the humidity. It also has a prominent ugly grain,and
tends to weer unevenly.

Apart from a small area of T & G which my wife wanted 'beacuse its
cheap' I don't have any showing *anywhere*.


I spent over 2 weeks sanding, knotting, priming and undercoating and
painting that lot, and its all shrunk to buggery and looks crap.

You can strip pine if you want. Some people polish turds as well. If I
want show wood, its *hardwood*.

The Natural Philosopher wrote:
Stuart Noble wrote:
The Natural Philosopher wrote:

Softwood, being cut from generally smaller trees so each board spans
more of the original trunk is very prone, and it also has serious
growth rings, due to high and variable growth rates, which alter the
properties across the ring stricture.

Softwood from northern latitudes doesn't have high growth rates

Does compared with oak or maple.


In short, it is crap by and large. which is why only idiots use it
for anything but structural work, where it doesn't matter.

Ah. I see we're in dogmatic mode today

look commercial softwood timber is just about usable as a structural
material, because its cheap and that's it.

Its highly unstable, poorly dried, and moves like a bitch till it
equalises with the humidity. It also has a prominent ugly grain,and
tends to weer unevenly.

Apart from a small area of T & G which my wife wanted 'beacuse its
cheap' I don't have any showing *anywhere*.


I spent over 2 weeks sanding, knotting, priming and undercoating and
painting that lot, and its all shrunk to buggery and looks crap.

You can strip pine if you want. Some people polish turds as well. If I
want show wood, its *hardwood*.

What? Balsa?


--
Dave - The Medway Handyman
www.medwayhandyman.co.uk

The Natural Philosopher wrote:
Stuart Noble wrote:
The Natural Philosopher wrote:

Softwood, being cut from generally smaller trees so each board spans
more of the original trunk is very prone, and it also has serious
growth rings, due to high and variable growth rates, which alter the
properties across the ring stricture.

Softwood from northern latitudes doesn't have high growth rates

Does compared with oak or maple.


In short, it is crap by and large. which is why only idiots use it
for anything but structural work, where it doesn't matter.

Ah. I see we're in dogmatic mode today

look commercial softwood timber is just about usable as a structural
material, because its cheap and that's it.

Its highly unstable, poorly dried, and moves like a bitch till it
equalises with the humidity. It also has a prominent ugly grain,and
tends to weer unevenly.

Apart from a small area of T & G which my wife wanted 'beacuse its
cheap' I don't have any showing *anywhere*.


I spent over 2 weeks sanding, knotting, priming and undercoating and
painting that lot, and its all shrunk to buggery and looks crap.

You can strip pine if you want. Some people polish turds as well. If I
want show wood, its *hardwood*.



Just because you've never seen decent softwood doesn't mean it doesn't
exist. The formwork for Clifton Cathedral is Russian pine.
European Redwood from Siberia and Finland isn't cheap, whereas the same
species from Wales is used to make pallets. You really can't lump all
pine together, let alone all softwoods.

The Medway Handyman wrote:
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
Stuart Noble wrote:
The Natural Philosopher wrote:
Softwood, being cut from generally smaller trees so each board spans
more of the original trunk is very prone, and it also has serious
growth rings, due to high and variable growth rates, which alter the
properties across the ring stricture.
Softwood from northern latitudes doesn't have high growth rates
Does compared with oak or maple.

In short, it is crap by and large. which is why only idiots use it
for anything but structural work, where it doesn't matter.
Ah. I see we're in dogmatic mode today
look commercial softwood timber is just about usable as a structural
material, because its cheap and that's it.

Its highly unstable, poorly dried, and moves like a bitch till it
equalises with the humidity. It also has a prominent ugly grain,and
tends to weer unevenly.

Apart from a small area of T & G which my wife wanted 'beacuse its
cheap' I don't have any showing *anywhere*.


I spent over 2 weeks sanding, knotting, priming and undercoating and
painting that lot, and its all shrunk to buggery and looks crap.

You can strip pine if you want. Some people polish turds as well. If I
want show wood, its *hardwood*.

What? Balsa?


Well yes, I do a LOT of work in balsa as well.

But not for the house ;-[)

On Thu, 29 Jan 2009 06:01:46 -0800 (PST), "
wrote:

Cracks along the length of the boards and on one face only?

Yes

Look at the boards end on and see if they're cupped. Look at the grain
pattern on the end - is the grain relatively flat or quite curved?

I'm not sure not you mean by cupped. Do you mean that the wood is
curved? It's not curved but of course, it went through their planer.
The grain is quite curved at the end.

Boards cut from near the centre of the trunk are more prone to cupping
(and consequently cracking on the convex face), whilst side boards are
less prone (but more expensive).

Are they tongue and groove or square edge boards? (t&g have the tongue
slightly off-centre and should be laid so that the tongue is nearer
the bottom).

Square edge just to replace one section of one board I lifted out.

Sorry for the late reply and thanks for all the reassurance. I guess
it dried out too quickly once I bought it inside.

Stephen wrote:
On Thu, 29 Jan 2009 06:01:46 -0800 (PST), "
wrote:

Cracks along the length of the boards and on one face only?

Yes

Look at the boards end on and see if they're cupped. Look at the grain
pattern on the end - is the grain relatively flat or quite curved?

I'm not sure not you mean by cupped. Do you mean that the wood is
curved? It's not curved but of course, it went through their planer.
The grain is quite curved at the end.

Boards cut from near the centre of the trunk are more prone to cupping
(and consequently cracking on the convex face), whilst side boards are
less prone (but more expensive).

Are they tongue and groove or square edge boards? (t&g have the tongue
slightly off-centre and should be laid so that the tongue is nearer
the bottom).

Square edge just to replace one section of one board I lifted out.

Sorry for the late reply and thanks for all the reassurance. I guess
it dried out too quickly once I bought it inside.

Don't blame yourself. It was rubbish timber. Good stuff should shrink
without twisting