How can you identify a tree in winter?
Many trees can be recognized by the fruits and remains of inflorescences that are preserved on the branches. On the alder in winter, male catkins and last year’s female “bumps” are visible. Some shrubs, such as mountain ash, viburnum, hawthorn, and elderberry, retain berries in winter. Another reliable way to distinguish trees in winter is by buds.
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What is an edged board?
The most common lumber is dry edged board. It is used mainly during the laying of the foundation, in the construction of the roof, for the installation of partitions, fences, roofs and floors. Indispensable in repair and finishing work. It is made by cutting a log from several sides, in accordance with current standards. The finished timber is dried to maintain a moisture level of 8-10%.
Lumber is considered a durable option. They are manufactured in different qualities according to the purpose of application, including:
- Low quality options are suitable for rough work. They are practical and durable, but have small defects that do not interfere with the task.
- The highest grade is intended for decorating visible parts of buildings. Possessing practicality and aesthetic qualities.
Edged board - characteristics
The demand for edged boards is explained by their performance properties. Among them are:
- Ease of installation
. This is done using carpentry fasteners. No special tools are required for installation. - Ease of storage and transportation
. It fits compactly and does not require special storage conditions, the main thing is to avoid moisture. - Public availability
. It has a low cost, the material is available in any area. - Dimensions
. Edged boards are used, the sizes of which are 50, 40, 30, 25 ml thick.
Edged boards are produced according to GOST standards. Deciduous wood material has three quality categories, coniferous wood has five. Selected grade lumber is considered the best and is marked “O”. The remaining varieties are named 1-4 depending on quality. The mark is made on the worst side of the material or on the edge. The criteria are regulated by GOST 24454-80. Used for the following purposes:
- The first
grade in the manufacture of window frames, doors, stairs, floor finishing. - The second
grade is suitable for decking, load-bearing structures, and sheathing. - The third
grade is designed for load-bearing structures. - The fourth
goes to containers and small products.
Story
In many cultures, the oak tree was considered a sacred tree due to its powerful appearance and benefits. And the spreading crown, and valuable wood, and bark, and oak fruits, acorns, have been used since ancient times for protective, domestic and economic purposes.
Interesting fact. At a time when agriculture was not yet developed, the oak acted as a “bread tree”, because after washing and drying its acorns, flour was made and bread was baked.
Today, oak is still valued for its unique properties. The southern species of this tree have sweet fruits that are edible. Oak bark contains tannins, which are used in medicine and industry. But the most important value is oak wood - strong and elastic - which is used for the production of construction and finishing materials, furniture and other joinery products.
Larch
The density of Siberian larch is 620-725 kg/m3 with a humidity of up to 12%.
Larch is a genus of woody plants of the pine family, one of the most common species of coniferous trees. This is the only genus of conifers whose needles fall off in the winter.
Larch wood is characterized by increased strength compared to oak. In addition to special strength and resistance to external influences, it is characterized by good color and structure.
Possessing high physical and mechanical properties, at the same time it requires a certain technological approach when processing it. Saw blades become heavily oiled when sawing. It is difficult to process with ordinary tools, but can be sanded and painted well. Prolonged exposure to water leads to a noticeable increase in hardness.
The cost of products or structures made from larch is higher than from pine, but the products are much more durable.
Oak parquet
When it comes to block parquet or parquet boards, the first thing that comes to mind is oak wood. Indeed, the volume of parquet made from oak significantly exceeds the volume of products made from any other type of wood. At the same time, the cost per meter of oak flooring varies greatly from widely available to luxury.
For example, in our store, oak parquet boards cost from 1,269 (Natur Oak from GreenLine) to 10,089 (Smoky Oak from Meister) rubles per sq. m. meter.
Properties
The density of oak wood depends on its growing conditions and varies in the range of 700-800 kg/m3. Brinell hardness of oak is 3.8 on average. This indicator is often taken as a standard when assessing the hardness of other rocks. According to the Janka scale, the hardness of oak is 1360.
Oak is a durable and rot-resistant species, stable under conditions of changes in humidity and temperature and resistant to abrasion. Oak parquet is one of the most durable. Proof of this is the fact that many apartments and houses still have old oak parquet laid at the beginning or middle of the last century.
Oak wood has a beautiful, noble color, the shades of which can vary - from light gray and golden to reddish and even dark brown. And although artificial tinting methods are widely used today, the popularity of oak parquet in “natural” colors is consistently high.
During the times of Peter the Great and Catherine the Great, oak parquet was used to decorate the floors of the royal chambers and houses of wealthy nobles. And in merchant and peasant houses, oak boards were not at all considered a luxury item.
And today oak flooring can be found both in European castles and in the houses of poor farmers and villages. Oak is used in the production of all types of parquet, including artistic and sports.
Larch
Dry larch boards are significantly superior in quality to lumber from other coniferous species. Note that it is also heavier than the more widely used pine or spruce (density 550-590 kg/m3). The material is durable and tough. Another advantage is low shrinkage and low susceptibility to warping.
Its Brinell hardness is 3.1, which is almost twice that of pine and is close to oak, so larch boards are excellent for flooring. Just like oak, the material does not lose its properties in contact with water and high humidity. Larch is excellent for constructing hydraulic structures.
Today you can find many buildings that have been based on pile structures made of this wood for more than 600 years and still do not need repair. The board does not need to be painted or treated with protective compounds, especially since the wood has a pleasant texture and a light yellow color with a hint of red. There is lumber from the so-called “bloody” larch with a predominance of red. A feature of the tree structure is the presence of multiple ingrown resin knots, but this does not affect the strength. By the way, these knots make it easy to distinguish larch from other conifers.
When choosing a board, you should pay attention to another feature of sawing wood of this species. The tree has a thick layer of sapwood, which is lighter in color and has poorer characteristics. Only the darker core is used to make boards. Sapwood wood can be used for decorative purposes.
Basic properties
The material is resistant to the effects of biological organisms; mold and mildew do not grow on it. Oak is not damaged by various insects. The strongest part of the wood is the one closest to the root system.
It is worth noting natural possible defects. Thus, material from trees grown in temperate climates may develop cracks in the presence of severe frosts. Carpentry practice shows that specimens growing in the foothills of the Caucasus, in the Krasnodar Territory, are characterized by positive strength properties. This type of wood most often has light brown shades.
Availability of a tap
It is advisable to buy barrels with a small capacity tap - up to 20-25 liters (optimally 3-10 liters). The tap is a weak point; its presence is especially undesirable when closing the barrel for a long time.
For example, if a drink is left in a barrel for 2-3 years, then during this time the tap will only be needed once to drain the finished alcohol into bottles. However, for 3-5 liter barrels, having a tap is advisable, since the alcohol is drained every few months, and the pressure inside is not enough to push through a well-made tap.
Ash
The density of wood is 690 kg/m3.
Ash is a genus of deciduous plants of the olive family, which has about 70 species. Ash grows singly or in groups in mixed forests, often together with oak, less often with conifers.
This is a modest neighbor of the oak tree, which for some reason has not become so famous, although it deserves all sorts of praise. Not inferior to it in strength and hardness, richness of texture, it is significantly superior to it in long-term resistance to deformation and impact strength. Therefore, it is ideal for the manufacture of stairs, flooring and other interior details. Currently, ash is increasingly becoming fashionable among furniture makers and parquet manufacturers. Regarding consumer qualities, we can say that ash, with standard care, lasts a long time and does not present any surprises. The cost of products made from it is close to the cost of products made from oak and beech.
Ash wood, which has high physical and mechanical properties, is widely used. It is used to make veneer, bent and carved furniture, railings and parquet, paneling, window frames and sofas, hunting and combat bows, and sports equipment.
Density 660 kg/m3.
Beech is the second most common and valuable genus of the beech family after oak. These are deciduous trees, slender, columnar, 45-50 m high, with a trunk diameter of up to 2 m. Beeches grow up to 350 years, most intensively at the age of 40-100 years. Life expectancy is over 500 years.
Beech wood is white with a yellowish or reddish tint. The annual layers are clearly visible. Old trees sometimes have red-brown colored mature wood. This does not affect the quality; on the contrary, such trees are especially valued by cabinetmakers, but they are quite rare. The color range of beech wood is quite diverse - from pink to white. To remove this variety of colors and give the wood a more uniform shade, as well as make it more stable, beech requires preliminary steaming. If this is not done, the texture of the wood will be very variegated. This procedure takes about three days.
Beech has perhaps the highest bending ability, which was widely used in the production of bent furniture. The wood is well processed, perfectly finished, and accepts various paints and varnishes.
Due to its high wear resistance, beech is widely used for the manufacture of wooden stairs. The pleasant warm shade is the reason that it is often used for separate small items.
The light pinkish tint of beech evokes a feeling of warmth. The simple and noble structure of this coating is the perfect finishing touch to any interior.
The density of wood is 650 kg/m3.
Birch got its name from its white bark. This is a non-nuclear breed. The wood is white, with a yellowish or reddish tint. The annual layers are poorly visible. The medullary rays are visible only in strictly radial sections.
The distribution area of birch is very wide - 2/3 of the area of all deciduous forests in our country.
Birch is used for the manufacture of plywood and wood panels, furniture, equipment, fittings, turning products, and veneer. Birch wood is perfectly tinted, opening up almost unlimited design possibilities.
Defects in the shape of the barrel
Disadvantages of wood that can be determined by the appearance of the sawlog:
Convergence
Thinning of the trunk from the butt to the top is a natural phenomenon, but if the diameter decreases by more than 1 cm over 1 m, this is already tapered. This defect is typical for plants grown in sparse stands. When processing a tanned trunk, a high amount of waste is generated; wood from such logs is characterized by another disadvantage - the radial inclination of the fibers.
Trunk rootiness
A variation in camber, in which there is a significant increase in the diameter of the trunk at the butt (an increase of 20% or more in the diameter of the trunk at a distance of 1 m from the expansion).
Curvature
Curvature of the trunk is possible for a number of reasons: due to the loss of the top and its replacement by a side branch, due to changes in lighting, when growing on hills and mountain slopes, etc. The percentage of curvature is calculated as an indicator of the arrow deflection of the trunk at the point of curvature.
Ovality
If the shape of the end of the round timber is elliptical, it is likely that heel and tension wood will be found when cutting.
Growths
Local thickenings of the trunk, which are formed as a result of damage to the tree by fungi, bacteria, chemical and radiation reagents, and mechanical damage. The plant's growth processes are disrupted, which naturally affects the quality and structure of the wood: the annual layers bend, repeating the outlines of the growth.
This material is difficult to process, has high hardness and low elasticity. Wood from growths (burl, suvel) is valued as a raw material for artistic products and facing material (veneer).
Consequences of mechanical damage
Sprouting
Sprout is an overgrown wound containing dead wood. Recent damage can be easily detected by visual inspection of the side surface of the trunk of a growing tree. But when completely overgrown, only a gap filled with bark remains is visible.
Tree cancer
Tree cancer is the result of the activity of fungi and bacteria - an open or closed wound with abnormal thickenings and swellings near the affected areas. With this defect, the correct round shape of the log is disrupted, and in coniferous species it is accompanied by increased resin content.
Dry-sidedness
Dry sidedness is one-sided necrosis of a trunk that has been deprived of bark due to burns, abrasions, bruises, etc. The defect causes increased resinity, the formation of curls and sagging, disrupts the strength qualities of the wood and increases the amount of waste during processing.
Practical benefits of a walk in the forest
Professionals know how wood defects manifest themselves and are able to assess its quality using an individual inventory method even before cutting a tree. Such an assessment is needed for preliminary calculations on the following issues:
- what will be the yield of quality raw materials;
- at what height the trunk will be sawn into separate parts;
- sizes of individual cuts, their practical application, etc.
For example: a taxed pine trunk with a diameter of 28 cm at a height of 1 m from the ground has butt rot. At a height of 1-7.5 m there are no branches on the trunk, and the wood looks healthy. At a height of 9.5 m there is a pine sponge (fungal infection), from which stem rot spreads 0.5 m up and 1.5 m down the trunk. In the distance from 9.5 m to 15.5 m there are only dead outer branches, and the wood itself looks healthy.
Taxation results:
- a meter-long butt layer is used for firewood;
- 6.5 m – first-class sawlog;
- 2m – re-grade (it is unknown how deep the rot is);
- the last 6m can be used as an ore stand.
Application of edged boards
The material has a wide range of uses, but is mainly used in construction. It is often used to design decorative partitions, as a frame. Oak edged boards are sold in different qualities. Thanks to this, it is suitable for different stages of construction, which saves raw materials and money in work. For visible parts of the structure, it is recommended to use premium grade lumber.
