
Oakwood has always been a highly utilized wood throughout the centuries. The Viking longships, for example, used oak planking. Besides, in the Middle Ages buildings, Oak wood had been used for interior paneling, like in the prestigious buildings of the House of Commons and the Roman Catholic church of L’église Saint-Girons. So, if you want to build excellent wood projects, Oak would be a perfect choice. But is Oak a hardwood?
Of course, Oak is a hardwood belonging to the genus Quercus, the Latin Name of the Oak tree. It has a 0.75-gram density per cubic centimeter, which gives it remarkable hardness and strength. It also has high tannin content, making it resistant to fungal and insect attacks. Moreover, its grain markings are very pleasant to look at.
Understanding the Oak Wood Further
Oak, as a hardwood, is prized for its uniformity, strength, and beautiful grain. It is also valued for its high resistance to insect and fungal attacks. There are around 600 oak species, though white oak and red oak are the ones most suited for woodworking projects. Because of the abovementioned sterling characteristics of oak wood, many preferred it for making furniture, cabinets, and flooring materials.
Oak wood’s color depends on the oak species. White Oak’s color, for example, ranges from brown to grey. Red Oak’s color, on the other hand, ranges from brown to pink.
Oakwood exhibits open pores, which lets it accept stains easily and bring out its sterling color variations. You can likewise utilize Oak for veneer, allowing cabinetmakers to produce beautiful, affordable cabinets.
As a hardwood, White Oak has a Janka Hardness Rating of 1,360, while Red Oak has 1,290. Despite being less hard than other hardwood, Oak is still considered hard and robust and is dent and scratch resistant.
White Oak, however, is more resistant to rot and decay compared to the red Oak. As such, it gets more often utilized in boatbuilding and outdoor projects.
Advantages of Using Oak in Your Wood Projects
Aside from knowing the remarkable properties of oak wood, it will also help if you are familiar with the following known advantages of the use of oak wood:
Excellent Appearance
The oak grain comes with great natural patterns that make it ideal for use in furniture and other woodworking projects. Oakwood offers a wide array of colors and excellent texture, making it a perfect wood for adding accent and complementing other wood pieces.
Allows for Ease of Maintenance
Oak is not difficult to maintain and clean. You can sweep and mop it regularly, which would suffice to keep it beautiful for centuries. If you want to smoothen scratches and dents, you can provide oak wood with a quick sanding and refinishing to bring back its old beauty.
As floorings, oak wood is comfortable to walk on. It also exhibits natural insulation properties because of its many tiny air chambers that can keep heat inside. Thus, you will feel warm as you step on oak flooring.
Flexibility
Oak trees can grow up to thirty meters high, meaning you will get a significant amount of timber per cut tree. Besides, the timber’s length makes it perfect for exterior cladding and flooring. Moreover, oakwood’s attractive appearance and remarkable strength make it ideal for many applications and purposes.
Oakwood also exhibits uniformity of grain and color that allows for a consistent finish for every large-scale job sans the need for staining or treatment. Yet, the critical thing to note is that you can make a wide array of wood projects using oak wood.
Durability
When choosing wood for projects, you want to select something durable. Yet, regarding durability, oak wood is undoubtedly durable. As mentioned above, it is highly resistant to insect and termite attacks. It is also resistant to water and damage due to the vicissitudes of weather.
Oak, of course, grows slowly. Its cellular makeup exhibits high density. For this reason, it is more durable and stronger than softwood. Hence, it is a preferred wood by many woodworkers looking for durability and strength.
Resistant to Moisture or Water
Oak exhibits a high level of resistance to water and moisture. It features a non-porous texture that resists the absorption of moisture and water. Thus, it is perfect for exterior applications even if you don’t waterproof the wood. For this reason, many still use oak barrels. Besides, you can still reuse oak barrels again and again without them exhibiting damage from alcohol or water.
Oak also shows high resistance to shrinkage. Thus, it is ideal for making window frames and doors. Besides, it doesn’t quickly warp.
Disadvantages of Using Oak
Aside from knowing the advantages of using oak, it will also help to be cognizant of the following disadvantages if you intend to use oak for your wood projects:
Oak is Quite Heavy
Oak wood is quite heavy because it is dense. So, you will find it hard to lift this wood, especially the long planks of oak. It might not be a disadvantage because its dense feature is also advantageous, giving this wood enough durability and strength. But when it comes to lifting it, it might be a disadvantage.
Reacts to Oily Finish
There are instances when oak wood reacts negatively to oily finishes, especially if these finishes have high tannin content or moisture content. So, if you leave oak wood outdoor for a long time, it might exhibit this problem, especially if exposed to cold or moisture for a long time.
Costly
Oakwood is not cheap. It is expensive because of its sterling qualities. It is on the expensive end of the price continuum, considering it is hardwood. Oak, however, belongs to the less expensive hardwoods. It ranges in price from $1,500 to $2,500/cubic meter. However, this price range still excludes VAT. Besides, this price range doesn’t imply it is kiln-dried.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can quickly decide about using Oak wood after learning the pros and cons of using Oak. Yet, it will also help if you are familiar with the following FAQs about Oak wood because they might also be the questions you have in mind:
Why is Oak Wood Expensive?
Hardwoods, like oak wood, are expensive because they do not grow fast. An oak wood, for example, may take up to 55 years to fully mature and bear acorns. Upon reaching this stage, the tree grows slowly and is suitable for harvesting.
This growth rate is considered longer compared to other wood types. Besides, oak trees don’t grow to their full large sizes. Moreover, Oak is not easy to cut because it is dense. Thus, you will need more time and sharper tools to cut down an oak tree.
Oak carries high tannin content, making it more resistant to fungal and pest attacks. Thus, many woodworkers love to use Oak, meaning this wood is in high demand in the market today.
What Oak Type is Ideal for Floors?
Almost all types of oak trees are excellent for flooring. Nevertheless, Red and White ones are the most popularly used for flooring. Red Oak, however, is the most popular wood for flooring, and it is very much available. Besides, it is durable, perfect for flooring, and exhibits attractive grain that receives stains and finishes nicely.
White Oak, on the other hand, is a very durable wood. It is also tough and sports a subtle color when furnished with a lighter stain. It provides not only stunning flooring but also a very durable one. You might also be surprised that white Oak looks darker than red Oak and comes with a smoother grain than Red Oak. It also looks more contemporary and modern.
Conclusion
After reading through this post, you will discover that oak wood is ideal for many wood projects. It is both beautiful and durable. In the past, wars got waged because of the desire to secure the continuous supply of Oak for shipbuilding and military purposes. Oak is already a sustainable wood because it gets farmed nowadays.
If your house is under construction and you’re considering using Oak, you should not think twice about using it for flooring and other applications, given its abovementioned sterling qualities. Oak is stable and reliable, and choosing it is a sure-shot way of achieving perfect flooring. Moreover, you can opt for red or white Oak if you ever decide to use Oak for your house flooring, and you will never be disappointed with your choice of Oak.