What are the advantages and disadvantages of maple wood?
Maple wood advantages. Maple wood certainly has real advantages. It is considered to be beautiful and it is a great type of wood to build cabinets with as well as to use for hardwood flooring. Maple wood provides an appearance that is clean and smooth due to having less grain in comparison to other types of wood.
Is maple wood considered a hardwood?
Wood from broad leaved deciduous trees is hardwood. Wood from trees with needles or scales is softwood. Maple comes in many varieties rock, silver ,sugar, hard, soft etc. All of which are hardwoods because maple trees have leaves. Full answer is here.
What are the characteristics of maple wood?
- More durable than oak, birch, or pine and highly suitable for cabinetwork
- Maple cabinet doors stand up to daily use while resisting dings and dents.
- Incredibly versatile hardwood. It's the perfect canvas for a variety of paints or finishes.
- Maple cabinets are easy to obtain in many styles to suit any budget or kitchen design.
What country does maple wood come from?
The type species of the genus is the sycamore maple, Acer pseudoplatanus, the most common maple species in Europe. The maples usually have easily recognizable palmate leaves ( Acer negundo is an exception) and distinctive winged fruits. The closest relatives of the maples are the horse chestnuts.
Is maple a hard or soft wood?
While maple can be described as both hard and soft, it's not about the wood's durability. Softwoods come from gymnosperm trees such as conifers — trees such as fir, pine, or cedar. Hardwoods include cherry, oak, and maple.
Is maple wood a strong wood?
As you may have guessed by now, maple wood is strong! In fact, maple wood is second in hardness only to hickory wood. This makes it a natural choice for many, many different types of flooring. Maple is the second most popular choice for hardwood floors in the United States, just behind Oak.
What is maple wood made of?
Both hard maple and soft maple are harvested from dicot trees, so both types are technically hardwoods. Hard maple, or sugar maple, is the most durable of the maple species with a janka value of 1,450, which makes it one of the hardest domestic woods used in furniture making.
Is maple wood good quality?
Durability. Hard maple is a strong wood, one of the hardest domestic woods, and it's denser, heavier and harder than brown maple, making it ideal for furniture that gets heavy use. It absorbs shock and resists wear. Hard maple makes great butcher blocks, pool cue shafts and wooden baseball bats.
Is maple stronger than oak?
Maple is among the harder wood species, with a 1450 rating on the Janka wood hardness chart. As one of the densest wood species, Maple is ideal for high-traffic areas. Oak is slightly less hard – White Oak has a 1360 rating and Red Oak a 1290 rating.
Which is better oak or maple?
Overall, white oak is the best choice for projects that call for water-resistant, decay resistant wood. Oak offers more options as far as grain pattern, and will provide a richer look when used as cabinetry or flooring. Maple is lighter, more affordable, and works well in contemporary spaces and for indoor projects.
Why is maple wood so strong?
Soft Maple has a 950 lbf (4,226 N) hardness rating Maple wood is hard and heavy with great strength properties. Maple wood has a diffused porous structure with small pores. The diameter of pores is so small and therefore the number of fiber units in a unit volume is high.
Why is maple wood so expensive?
Ash, Maple, and Cherry are more abundant as they grow larger but have highly sought after aesthetics in the grain which make them less expensive than Walnut but more expensive than some hardwoods. Birch is slightly cheaper than all of these because the natural tones in the wood grain are not as even.
Is maple water resistant?
Water-resistant Woods Maple, oak and birch flooring expands and contracts due to moisture in the air. Even cedar, which is considered very water resistant, will warp in moist areas if not properly treated.
What wood is strongest?
Generally acknowledged as the hardest wood, lignum vitae (Guaiacum sanctum and Guaiacum officinale) measures in at 4,500 pounds-force (lbf) on the Janka scale.
How can you tell if wood is maple?
4:1715:17Wood Identification How to Identify Lumber Wood By Wright 2 - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipVery common maple most the time when you have a soft maple it is there maple Don this one isMoreVery common maple most the time when you have a soft maple it is there maple Don this one is actually somewhere around 900 Janka hardness. So it's harder than the boxelder.
What is maple wood used for?
American hard maple produces timber with good strength properties and an attractive appearance. Its most common applications are flooring, cabinet making, furniture and interior joinery.
What is Maple Wood?
Maple trees are loved by many people for their sentimental value. These gorgeous giants of the forest remind us of cozy springtime and brilliant autumn days when leaves change colors on their branches like some kind of amazing artwork in motion! Maple wood is also a favorite of furniture makers for its ability to make fine furniture.
What Color is Maple Wood?
Maple wood types tend to be a pale white that darkens with age. In fact, the maple wood types can appear nearly black after 60 years of aging. The heartwood of the tree is a brownish-red wood that can sometimes be quite dark. As it ages, this color will naturally mellow to an earthier tone!
What Does the Grain Pattern of Maple Wood Look Like?
Maple types of wood have a fine, uniform texture with straight grain that is often highly figured. Birdseye maple types, for example, is a highly sought-after pattern due to its’ beauty and rarity. Maple types of wood are prized by craftsmen who work in small series or one-of-a-kind pieces.
Types of Maple Wood
Sugar maple is a species of maple wood native to most of Canada, throughout New England, the Great Lakes region, and upstate New York. Sugar maples are one of the more popular types of maple trees used for making furniture. Sugar maple wood is prized by furniture makers for its hardness, toughness, and color.
Conclusion
Maple wood types are an important factor to consider when looking for the right type of furniture or another wooden item. The characteristics and uses help make it easier to decide which maple you should choose for your project.
What is maple wood used for?
It brings to mind cozy times of maple syrup and brilliant fall foliage. Maple wood also one of the most popular types of wood used in the making of fine furniture. There are more than 120 species of maple trees, most of which grow in Europe and Asia. However, here the ever-popular Sugar ...
What instruments use maple wood?
It’s used in many different musical instruments such as violins, violas, cellos and bases . A lot of high-end guitars use maple to fashion the necks and tops of their instruments, and some wind instruments, such as bassoons and recorders, also use this type of wood. So, as you can see, Maple wood has many, many uses.
Why are maple cabinets so popular?
There are several reasons that maple wood is an excellent option for kitchen cabinets. Cabinets undergo a lot of wear and tear. Think about it – they’re open and shut constantly, bumped into, scraped against, and even scratched and chewed on by your furry friends! You definitely want a wood that has the wherewithal to handle that type of daily abuse. Unlike other woods that can warp or even crack, maple can handle changes in temperature and humidity. It’s also beautiful to look at. The appearance of your cabinets can define the look of your entire kitchen. You have so many choices when it comes to the finish of maple cabinets. The possibilities are endless. Maple is also more affordable than other types of hardwood like cherry or walnut. In the end, you can expect maple wood cabinets to last you 30 years or more with minimal upkeep on your part.
How long do maple cabinets last?
Maple is also more affordable than other types of hardwood like cherry or walnut. In the end, you can expect maple wood cabinets to last you 30 years or more with minimal upkeep on your part.
What kind of wood is used for dining tables?
If you want a piece of real wood furniture that you can hand down from generation to generation, this is a great option. Because it’s so strong, maple is one of the most popular types of wood for dining tables and desks. Both tend to get lots of heavy use and this type of wood is well up to the task. Maple’s ability to take to a variety of ...
What is butcher block made of?
Butcher Block is also made from maple. Originally used primarily in butcher shops (hence the name) this style of manufactured wood quickly gained popularity for use inside the home. Butcher Block is a fantastic surface for prep and knife work.
Where can I find maple trees?
There are more than 120 species of maple trees, most of which grow in Europe and Asia. However, here the ever-popular Sugar Maple, also known as the Rock Maple, is the tree of choice. Sugar Maples love cold weather and are most usually found above the 42 nd parallel in the northern United States and Canada. Maple is a very popular hardwood ...
What is the maple tree called?
There are many different species of maple trees spread across the globe but in the US, the variety used by woodworkers is hard maple ( Acer saccharum), also called sugar maple. It grows abundantly throughout the US and Canada and is the national symbol of Canada, featuring in their national flag.
What is the difference between Sycamore Maple and Heartwood?
The sapwood is extremely light to reddish-brown and the heartwood is a darker shade of brown. The grain patterns of this wood can be quilted or curly, with a mostly straight grain.
What is poplar veneer used for?
Then, because of its durability and the straightness of the lumber, we use it for making studs, posts and rails on outdoor decks.
What is poplar wood?
Poplar. When poplar is bleached and stained it can be made to resemble maple. Otherwise, this wood is rarely used for its appearance except for rainbow poplar. We consider poplar as a utility wood and it makes crates, pallets, and frames for upholstered furniture.
Can you split birch plywood?
Usually, woodworkers use yellow birch ( Betula alleghaniensis ). You will find it difficult to split birch but you can profile, carve, peel and cut it easily. The easy peeling property of birch makes it popular for making into plywood, and Baltic birch plywood is an internationally renowned category of plywood.
Can you use sycamore maple wood outdoors?
Sycamore maple has low durability and is susceptible to decay. It is easy to work with and we cannot use this wood outdoors. Sycamore maple also tends to burn when you use high-speed cutters to cut it. We use this wood for making veneer, paper, and packing boxes and pallets.
Is maple wood durable?
Maple has a smooth grain pattern and has a light, creamy coloration. It is one of the more durable types of wood ...
What is figured maple used for?
Figured maple is commonly used in custom furniture, musical instruments, cabinetry, kitchen utensils, and more. The most frequent uses of figured maple depend on the type of figuring. We discuss this in more detail below.
What is curly maple?
Curly maple, also referred to as tiger, striped, or flame maple, denotes a specific type of figured maple which presents with unusual waves or markings like a tiger’s stripes. There are multiple causes of curly maple.
What causes a maple tree to have a rainbow of colors?
Spalting occurs when white-rot decay fungi takes up residence in a tree. As the fungi spreads out and meets with other patches of fungi, the unique “zone lines” form. Spalted maple may have a rainbow of colors through it because of this, though black, gray, and pink are the most common.
Why is maple wood quilted?
Experts believe the pattern is caused by a mixture of genetics and growing conditions. More specifically, it’s seen only in parts of the tree which grew at an angle.
Why is my maple tree curly?
It will occur on almost any maple tree when the branches form a “Y” shape and the tree continues to grow in diminished space, compressing the rings of the branches at the “Y.”. A similar effect is seen where the trunk meets the roots in some trees.
What is Ambrosia Maple?
Ambrosia maple, sometimes referred to as wormy maple, is oddly not caused by worms at all. The name pays homage to the worm-like patterns throughout the wood which are caused by a whole different critter—the Ambrosia#N#Beetle. She prefers Red Maple and Sugar Maple trees, but will go for just about anything in a pinch.
Why is milled lumber called figured wood?
When milled lumber exhibits characteristics that aren’t expected from normal wood, those boards get set aside and labeled as some type of figured wood. Disease, strain, and injury are common causes of these types of irregular grain patterns.
