Month: September 2021

American elm (Ulmus americana) and slippery elm (U. rubra), two of six species of elms found in North America, are known together as soft elms. Rock, winged, cedar and September elm are known as hard elms. Hard elms are 25 percent heavier, and stronger and stiffer, than the soft elms.

American elm is certainly known for the wonderful shade trees of years past. It would not be unusual to have these trees rapidly grow to 100 feet tall and spread out to shade a 60-foot radius in the cities. I can remember elm streets that appeared like a dark tunnel when the elms on both sides of the street touched. In the spring, the little propeller-like seeds would spin down. I remember the neighborhood kids splitting the seed open lengthwise about ½ inch and then sticking the propeller on our noses, so we had a nose longer than Pinnochio! I also remember parking under an elm tree and sappy drips all over the car. What a mess!

Then came the Dutch elm disease, actually a fungus, that essentially destroyed all these beautiful city elms, as well as the forested American elms as well. The good news is that some fungal-resistant trees seem to be located and could be used for breeding. Time will tell.

To hockey fans, elm is their favorite wood, as most hockey sticks are made of elm. Why use elm for these sticks? The wood is very tough and has extensive interlocked grain. Interlocked grain means that the lengthwise grain from year to year goes in different directions instead of being perfectly vertical in the tree, basically intertwining. As a result, it is very difficult to split the wood; a characteristic obviously desired for hockey sticks — the wood has high shock resistance. Likewise, interlocked grain means splitting elm for firewood can be nearly impossible.

When used above ground, the wood is resistant to decay even when permanently wet. In fact, hollowed trunks were widely used as water pipes during the medieval period in Europe.

The heavy ring pattern (ring porous grain like oak) combined with interlocked grain results in a very bold appearance or character to the wood, which is why it finds widespread use in paneling. I am surprised that more furniture and cabinetry makers don’t use elm; it certainly has a nice appearance. The elms are also excellent bending species as they are quite easy to bend, due to the interlocked grain, without breaking or cracking. However, this interlocked grain also means that warp is likely when drying if drying isn’t perfect, and machining requires special care.

Processing suggestions and characteristics

Density
Soft elms weigh about 34 pounds per cubic foot, which is roughly 3 pounds per board foot, 1 inch thick.

Drying
Soft elms are moderately hard to dry. Mild drying schedules result in slightly more warp, so stacking must be perfect. Weights on the tops of piles are strongly encouraged for flat lumber.

Gluing and Machining
Elms glue without much difficulty. Interlocked grain results in machining defects if the feed is too rapid, knives are dull, or angles are poor.

Stability
Soft elms change size by 1 percent if the moisture changes approximately 3 percent MC.

Strength
American elm has a strength (MOR) of 11,800 psi. The bendability (MOE) is 1.4 million psi. Hardness is 830 pounds.

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Hard maple is a wonderful, expensive, nearly white wood used for almost every application imaginable both today and even prior to the colonization of the U.S. Uses include cabinets, furniture, bowls, bowling alleys, bowling pins, flooring, piano frames, dulcimers, spinning wheels, cutting boards, tool handles, veneer, pallets, particleboard, paper, firewood, and even railroad ties. What is this ubiquitous wood that we call maple?

Hard maple lumber, which is also called sugar maple, sweet maple, black maple and rock maple, comes from two species. Most lumber comes from sugar maple (Acer saccharum) and a small amount from black maple (Acer nigrum). Once hard maple lumber is manufactured, it is impossible, even under magnification, to separate the lumber into the two individual species. The name “hard” actually means that the lumber is substantially harder than the other maples, including the grouping called soft maple.

What person hasn’t had pancakes topped with wonderful, sweet maple syrup? Sugar maple is the tree that produces maple syrup. A grove of producing sugar maple trees is called the sugar bush. Also, did you know that it takes about 40 gallons of sap to make a gallon of syrup?

Processing suggestions and characteristics

Density
After drying to 7 percent MC and planing to 13/16 inch, maple weighs 3-1/3 pounds per board foot.

Drying
Maple is subject to blue staining and also chemical staining if not dried promptly and aggressively. Chemical staining occurs when the starches and sugars oxidize to pink or gray colors. For whitest color, maple must be stacked promptly after sawing using dry stickers. Maple is not exceptionally stable. Moisture content when the lumber leaves the kiln must be very close to the in-use moisture content. For most uses, 6.5 percent MC is the ideal final target, with almost all pieces being within + or – 1 percent MC.

Gluing and Machining
Maple requires surfaces to be glued to be freshly prepared and perfectly flat. Small errors will result in low strength joints. Because the grain in maple swirls quite a bit, planing and other machining operations will frequently be planing against the grain. To avoid chip out and torn grain, knives must be very sharp. Avoid over-drying the lumber (under 5.5 percent MC is over-dried), as brittleness and poor machining will be increased.

Stability
Hard maple changes width and thickness when the RH changes…about 1 percent size change running parallel with the rings (tangentially) when there is a 3 percent MC change, and 1 percent change across the rings (radially) when there is a 6 percent MC change.

Strength
Sugar maple is a little (10 percent) stronger, stiffer and harder than black maple. The bending strength is 15,800 psi, stiffness 1.83 million psi and hardness is 1450 pounds.

Color and Grain
Maple is a wonderful, nearly white wood. Unfortunately, there is no definition of “how white is white” so different suppliers will have different whiteness. In addition to the standard grades, some markets will also ask for “No.1 white”, which means that both edges and faces must be all sapwood (no brown heart). “No.2 white” means that one face and both edges will be sapwood. Hard maples frequently develop small little burls or curls in the wood, which we call bird’s eye. Bird’s eye maple is attractive and valuable.

This post appeared first on http://www.woodworkingnetwork.com

Reading Time: 3 minutes

We’re excited to share our collaboration with YouTube star Freddy Cousin Brown. Freddy is in the process of renovating her London flat, and we are happy to have helped with the process of transforming her home. 

Let’s look at what flooring Freddy My Love loved and opted for in her kitchen and living room, and how you can get the ‘Freddy look’ in your home too. 

 

Farmhouse Chic With Freddy My Love

 

Where kitchen designs are concerned, Freddy My Love has a modern yet homely feel – Let’s go with farmhouse chic for this humbling interior. 

 

Initially she was looking to install solid wood due to the beauty of the organic features and authenticity of natural wood. However, because solid wood can expand and warp with the temperature and moisture fluctuations, we advise not installing this in a kitchen. 

 

“I got advised against solid wood in a kitchen, so I had to find another nice option”

 

And that she did! After browsing our fantastic range of laminates, she opted for one from our hyper realistic wood Vintage Narrow range. 

“It’s literally like wood, I can’t believe it. It’s not like laminate at all. It’s got a realistic grain and texture with knots in it like real wood has. I never thought laminate would be this nice.”

 

This range beautifully replicates real wood thanks to a high quality bevel and has a host of other amazing benefits to offer too:

 

• Highly durable
• Low maintenance 
• Scratch guard
• Stain-guard
• Slip resistance
• Impact resistance
• Underfloor heating 

 

The result is simply charming, and fits perfectly with her kitchen décor. 

 

“I’m beside myself, it looks so beautiful! I can’t believe how affordable it was either.”

 

Not only is this range stunning and excellently replicates wood flooring, but it is also a cheaper alternative to your typical real wood flooring options. So you can achieve that luxury feel without breaking the bank. 

 

Traditional meets Contemporary

 

Along with collaborating on her kitchen floor, we also helped Freddy My Love create her dream living room too. 

 

Choosing an elegant traditional style engineered wood flooring, she has completely transformed her living room into a perfectly balanced contemporary yet traditional space.

 

Our Avignon Natural Oak Versailles Tile Engineered Wood flooring, adds a magnificent statement piece to her large living room, creating a grand luxurious and inviting space. 

 

Just ask Freddy herself:

 

“It looks so elegant and so unique. I am just speechless. I can’t believe it. I think it looks absolutely incredible!”

 

This distinguished flooring not only provides a lavish conversation piece but offers a wide range of benefits for the space you lay it in. 

 

• Highly durable
• Easy to fit
• Can be refinished
• Looks just like solid wood 
• Great temperature resistance 
• Amazing warranties 

 

So if you’re looking to revamp your home and add a touch of luxury and elegance. This may be the flooring for you. 

 

If you like any of the flooring ranges from Freddy My Love and her collaboration, then you can order Free Samples today from our site. 

 

The post Freddy My Love X Direct Wood Flooring  appeared first on Direct Wood Flooring Blog.