by Professor Gene Wengert

Q.
I am going to slice 6/4 green northern red-oak (quercus rubra) to make flooring wear layers for a Swedish laminated flooring company to a thickness of .189" x 8-3/4" in width, and then dry these wear layers to 12-14% or so.

My question is, with a rather gentle forced-air kiln at a temperature of approx 95 degrees F, how much shrinkage should I allow for radially and tangentialy as well?

Also, as we are in Idaho, we use a lot of white spruce stickers. This should hopefully not stain the wood. Would spruce be the desired sticker-material?

A.
The standard shrinkage values for northern red oak from green to 12% are averages (so half the pieces will shrink slightly more) and also vary for each species of red oak. To be 100% safe, I would expect 9% tangential and 4.5% radial. This means that all pieces will actually be too wide, so you may wish to save a little wood and make them 4% and 7.5% larger, which means that once in a while you will have a narrow piece, but not very often.

No problem with the spruce sticks if they are dry.

Professor Gene Wengert is Extension Specialist in Wood Processing at the Department of Forestry, University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Click on Wood Doctor Archives to peruse past answers.

If you would like to obtain a copy of "The Wood Doctor's Rx", visit the Wood Education and Resource Center Web site for more information.

Have you reviewed the related Knowledge Base areas below?

KnowledgeBase: Architectural Millwork: Flooring

KnowledgeBase: Laminates & Solid Surfacing: Materials

KnowledgeBase: Primary Processing: Kiln Operation

KnowledgeBase: Knowledge Base



Would you like to add information to this article? ... Click Here

If you have a question regarding a Knowledge Base article, your best chance at uncovering an answer is to search the entire Knowledge Base for related articles or to post your question at the appropriate WOODWEB Forum. Before posting your message, be sure to review our Forum Guidelines.

Questions entered in the Knowledge Base Article comment form will not generate responses! A list of WOODWEB Forums can be found at WOODWEB's Site Map.

When you post your question at the Forum, be sure to include references to the Knowledge Base article that inspired your question. The more information you provide with your question, the better your chances are of receiving responses.

Return to beginning of article.

Refer a Friend || Read This Important Information || Site Map || Privacy Policy Letters, questions or comments? E-Mail us and let us know what you think. Be sure to review our Frequently Asked Questions page. Contact us to discuss advertising or to report problems with this site. To report a problem, send an e-mail to our Webmaster Copyright © 1996-2008 - WOODWEB ® Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any manner without permission of the Editor. Review WOODWEB's Copyright Policy. The editors, writers, and staff at WOODWEB try to promote safe practices. What is safe for one woodworker under certain conditions may not be safe for others in different circumstances. Readers should undertake the use of materials and methods discussed at WOODWEB after considerate evaluation, and at their own risk. WOODWEB, Inc. RR4 Box 265A Montrose, PA 18801 Contact WOODWEB