Frame Materials:
Woods

Hardwoods 

The main merit of the hardwoods we use is durability. The outer parts of a hardwood tree are mostly well figured, say, as is desirable for an oak door or furniture. It will take a good stain and give a nice finish, but some say that one should never paint hardwood as it does not 'take' properly.

Oak
For most purposes I would suggest American white oak as the most suitable for windows/doors, as it is less knotty, is kiln-dried and will last hundreds of years - and don't worry about whether it is heartwood or not. This wood costs about double the price of the conventional mahogany used in our industry. The wood comes from several other countries, notably America and Japan, but generally speaking English oak is regarded as the best, being heavy, very strong and hard, although it is more knotty and is generally air-dried. Oak has a range of colours and shades, the English being a pale brown and with a virile grain. Oak must be particularly well seasoned before being used as it has a tendency to shrink and split along the grain. As the wood corrodes metal, iron and steel should not be fastened to it and that includes bright zinc plating, but wood that is sherardised (coated with zinc) is, I think, OK. Left to its own devices outside, oak will take on an unwell-looking greyish colour.

Mahogany
It is interesting to note that although we now regard mahogany as a quality wood, the sorry fact is that when it first arrived in the British Isles and was used to make furniture, it was as driftwood from packing cases used to ship other goods from the tropics or from ballast. Another point of interest is that some of the nicest mahogany can still be seen 'up the pub' as a great many bars were fitted out in Sapele, an African mahogany and a superb wood. Sapele-faced interior doors were very fashionable at one time and I have to say I still like them. They are easily identifiable by the visible stripe to the grain.

Other woods of interest, but not generally used in our industry
Beech
This is a common wood, white or pale brown in colour, quite hard and with a close grain. It will give a good finish if it is thoroughly seasoned and is mainly used for interior items such as chairs and chair frames, bread boards, table lamps and handles, etc.

Ash
This is a tough, elastic wood and is best used wherever flexibility is required. It is brownish-white in colour with orange-brown streaks along the grain. Can be used to 'imitate' oak, although it can give itself away if a too well-figured piece is selected.

Elm
A beautifully figured reddish-brown wood of fine texture, which takes a finish well. It has a tendency to warp with changes of temperature and is not usually used thin because of this.

Walnut
This is a beautiful and expensive wood, brown in colour with a purpled shading. The rich veining shows up delightfully under polish and is to be admired as a showpiece on items of cabinet furniture, mostly as a veneer.

Maple
A warm yellow wood mostly imported from Canada (ever had maple syrup?). Being close-grained and hard, it withstands great wear and does not warp to any appreciable degree, and for this reason is well suited for use as panelling and flooring.

Teak (Iroko)
From Burma, etc. Now we are talking! This is a very superior and expensive wood. If you have ever machined any amount of it you will know what I am talking about when I say that knives last no time at all in the joinery shop! It has a distinctive and not unpleasant odour, is red-brown in colour with an open grain, very heavy indeed, very strong, and can be used for any purpose in which you want it to last forever. Someone once said to me that you could drop a piece of teak in a pond, fish it out 20 years later and it would still be as good as new. There is a lot of natural oil in it and so it will not take a stain well, but its quality lends itself to just about any use.

More specific information about:
Softwoods
Wooden Windows
Go to Woods main page