Common Softwoods And Hardwoods

Hough us forest products laboratory characteristics and availability of commercially important wood from the wood handbook pdf 916k.

Common softwoods and hardwoods. The wood from hardwood trees tends to be harder because the trees grow at a slower rate giving the wood its greater density. Hardwoods are sourced from broad leaved trees. Do note a wood s heartwood is harder than its sapwood. Softwood is usually wood from gymnosperm trees such as pines and spruces softwoods are not necessarily softer than hardwoods.

Also wood names can be misleading. Wood is generally categorized as either softwood or hardwood and it is a common misconception that softwood is soft and workable while hardwood is hard and durable. To help you in choosing the right wood for your construction project here are three of the most common types of softwood lumber and what they are used for. This type of wood is relatively soft 1 on a scale of 1 to 4 has a straight grain and has a slightly aromatic smell.

This happens to be generally true but there are exceptions such as in the cases of wood from yew trees a softwood that is relatively hard and wood from balsa trees a. Following is a list of common softwood varieties and their characteristics. Here is a list of common hardwoods and softwoods used in the crafting of furniture. Pine lumber since pine is one of the most abundant sources of lumber it may not be as expensive as other types of lumber and is mostly used in construction and furniture.

In both groups there is an enormous variation in actual wood hardness the range of density in hardwoods completely including that of softwoods. Exhibited by actual specimens and with copious explanatory text by romeyn b. Classifying wood as either a hardwood or softwood comes down to its physical structure and makeup and so it is overly simple to think of hardwoods as being hard and durable compared to soft and workable softwoods. However this is not what qualifies a piece of wood as either soft or hard.

Some common types of hardwoods include oak teak iroko and meranti. The most common type of cedar is the western red variety. For example swietena mahagony south american mahogany and african mahogany are all marketed as mahogany but their. Hardwoods are also stronger and more durable due to their more condensed and complex structure.

Most common hardwoods unlike the conifers or softwood firs spruce and pines hardwood trees have evolved into a broad array of common species. Common hardwoods and softwoods for furniture. Typically they grow slower and are thicker than softwoods.