Wood

1. Wood

2. Maple Danish: Ahorn or Ær English: (Sycamore) maple German: Bergahorn French:Érable de montagne Weight and hardness: Hardwood, kilndriedapprox. 680 kg./m³ Average hardness approx. 670 janka. Shrinkage: Volume shrinkage 14.7%. Radial shrinkage 3.0% and tangential shrinkage 8.0%. A bad condition t/r-shrinkage which shows that the wood becomes severely distorted during drying. Colour: European maple is almost white, fine-pored and hard. The North American maple has a more ”cloudy” colour. Lacquered maple, in particular, yellows in the light. Light fastness is considered good. The colour of maple, according to the NCS hue circle, is (Y). Surfacetreatment: Smoothness is achieved without difficulty. Generally speaking maple has a nice finish, on treatment with standard surface treatments. Maple is well-suited to woodstains, and suitable for being made to look like other wood species.

3. Ash Danish: Asketræ English: Ash German: Esche French: Frene Weight and hardness: Hardwood, kiln dried approx. 650 kg./m³ Average hardness approx. 760 janka. Shrinkage: Volume shrinkage 13.2%. Radial shrinkage 4.5% and tangential shrinkage 8.2%. Colour: Off-white to greyish yellow, ring-pored wood with relatively coarse pores. Strong, tough, hard wood species which is well-suited to furniture. American ash is somewhat darker. Light fastness is considered good, but it yellows in direct light. The colour of ash, according to the NCS hue circle, is (G80Y). Surface treatment: Ash can be surface treated with lacquer for light wood species and does not generally give rise to problems.

4. Birch Danish: Birketræ English: Birch Silver/White German: Hange-, Haarbirke French:Bouleau Weight and hardness: Hardwood, kiln-driedapprox. 620 kg./m³ Average hardness approx. 490 janka. Shrinkage: Volume shrinkage 13.7%. Radial shrinkage 5.3% and tangentialshrinkage 7.8%. Colour: Off-white to yellowishwood species with diffuse fine pores and often with slantedgrain due to small trunk diameter. The colour of birch, according to the NCS hue circle, is (Y). Lacqueredbirchyellowseasily. Surfacetreatments: Birch is well-suited to woodstaining and imitation of fancy woods. Whenpolished an outstandingsurface finish is obtained.

5. Beech Danish: Bøg, rødbøg English: Beech, European beech German: Buche, rotbuche France: Hetre Weight and hardness: Hardwood, kiln-driedapprox. 680 kg./m³ Average hardness ca. 780 janka. Shrinkage: Volume shrinkage 17.9%. Radial shrinkage 5.8% and tangentialshrinkage 11.8%. Colour: When the tree is freshlyfelled the wood has a yellowywhitecolour, but when it is stored it becomes more reddish. There is nogreat difference between the sapwood and heartwood and the pithraysare visible as small commas. Light fastness is consideredgood. The colour of beech, according to the NCS hue circle, is (Y10R). Surfacetreatment: Beechcanbesoap-treated, oil-treated or lacquered and the closegrain gives goodresults with standard surfacetreatments. Steam-treatedbeech has a reddishcolour.

6. Oak Danish: Eg, stilk eg English: European Oak German: Eiche, Stieleiche France: Chênerouvre, C. pédunculé Weight and hardness: Hardwood, kiln-driedapprox. 650 kg./m³ Average hardness approx. 650 janka. Shrinkage: Volume shrinkage 12.2%. Radial shrinkage 4.0% and tangentialshrinkage 7.0%. Colour: The sapwood of oak is narrow with a light greyishyellowcolour, and the heartwooddiffers from the sapwood in that the rawwood is greyishyellowwhich, afterfurtherexposure to light, changes to a grey-browncolour. Light fastness is consideredgood. The colour of oak, according to the NCS hue circle, is (G70Y). Surfacetreatment: Oak is surfacetreated with wax, oil and soap, and thesetreatments do not give rise to anyparticular problems. There is, however, the risk of the blistering of paint over the pores with heat drying. As with all otherwoods, oakturnsgrey over the course of a fewyears due to the detrimentalphotochemicaleffect of the sun.

7. Pine Danish: Fyrretræ English:Scots pine, redwood German: Kiefer, Föhre French: Pin sylvestre Weight and hardness: Hardwood, kiln-driedapprox. 450kg./m³ Average hardness approx. 300 janka. Shrinkage: Volume shrinkage 12.1%. Radial shrinkage 4.0% and tangentialshrinkage 7.7%. Colour: Off-white to yellowyspring wood and reddishbrownautumnwood. The woodchangescolour in the light. Light fastness is lessgood. The colour of pine, according to the NCS hue circle, is (Y20R). Surface finish: Pine canbestained, soap-treated, oil-treated and lacquered. Standard surfacetreatments do not give rise to problems. Duringkiln-drying the drying temperature needs to bekeptlowifsapexudation is to beavoided. The staining of woodaffected by bacteria gives a ”flamed” appearance. As with all otherwoods, forest pine turnsgrey over the course of a fewyears due to the detrimentalphotochemicaleffect of the sun. See alsosurfacetreatment of wood.

8. Mahogany Danish: Mahogni English: American- , BrazilianMahogany German: Echtes- Tabasco-mahagoni France: AcajouAmérique Weight and hardness: Hardwood, kiln-driedapprox. 550 kg./m³ Average hardness approx. 650 janka. Shrinkage: Volume shrinkage 8.6%. Radial shrinkage 3.2% and tangentialshrinkage 5.1%. Colour: Greyish to reddish, thereareconsiderable differences in colour from the African (greyish) to the more exoticreddish from Central and South America. Light fastness is consideredgood. The colour of teak, according to the NCS hue circle, is (Y70R). Surfacetreatment: Mahogany is oftenthought to be a dark red wood species but this is attributable to the woodstainthat the wood has beentreated with. The wood is lacquered with an opaquelacquer.

9. Teak Dansk: Teak English: Teak German: Teakholz France: Teck Weight and hardness: Hardwood, kiln-driedapprox. 630 kg./m³ Average hardness approx. 450 janka. Shrinkage: Volume shrinkage 9.4%. Radial shrinkage 2.5% and tangentialshrinkage 4.7%. Colour: Brown wood species often with darkerveins, patina and discolourmentwhicheven out in the light. Light fastnessconsideredgood. The colour of teak, according to the NCS hue circle, is (Y50R). Surfacetreatment: The heartwood of teak is particularlyweather-resilient and resistant to the weatherconditions in Northern Europe. When teak furniture stands outside it willturn a silverygrey in the light and look rotten. A clean with woodcleaner and a treatment of woodoilwillsoon give back the furnitureits old finish, and the wood has not beendamaged.

10. Walnut Danish: Valnøddetræ English: American Black Walnut, Eastern B.W or Gunwood German: Schwarznuss, Amerikanische Nuss French: Noyer noir d´Ámeririque, Noyer noir. Weight and hardness: Hardwood, kiln-dried approx. 560 kg./m³ Average hardness approx. 420 janka. Shrinkage: Volume shrinkage 12.7%. Radial shrinkage 5.0% and tangential shrinkage 7.5%. Colour: American walnut is brownish with a tinge of purple. European walnut, which is rarely used, is greyish to brownish with darker stripes. Light fastness is good. The colour of walnut, according to the NCS hue circle, is (B40G). Surface treatment: Normally gives a fine and uniform finish but, due to a rather open grain, a fair amount of filling of irregularities is required. The sapwood is difficult to dye to get it to look like heartwood, but otherwise wood staining, oil treatment and lacquering are normally problem-free.