【Material Guide】Types of Wood for Renovation
Wood is one of the most important building and renovation materials. Whether it is Industrial style or Nordic style, and regardless of the type of interior design, wood is used for flooring and furniture. Wood comes in many different types, light and dark colors, and ranging from expensive to affordable. The wood used for each renovation style varies.
Our editor has divided this into two parts; this episode will teach you about the different types of wood, while the next will explain which woods are most suitable for different styles.
Common types of wood boards include solid wood boards, plywood, and fiberboard. To put it simply, solid wood boards are made by cutting logs and joining them together to form furniture; plywood is made by pressing several layers of wood veneers together with glue, where you can see the distinct layers from the cut surface; fiberboard is mainly made by pressing wood chips, resin, and binders under high temperature; log boards are made by directly slicing trees without adding other wood or adhesives, processed directly into furniture from the cut logs.
Generally, large-scale logs are rare and expensive, so few renovations use them today; most interior designs primarily use solid wood boards or plywood. In terms of wood prices, Pine, Fir, and Rubberwood are budget woods; Elm, Oak, Beech, and Ash are mid-range woods; Walnut, Cherry, and Teak are expensive woods.
Pine
Pine is a coniferous plant with a prominent wood grain, a color leaning toward white or pale yellow, and a unique pine fragrance. Because the wood is soft, it is easy to process. Combined with its fast growth and affordable price, it is widely used in furniture and renovation boards. Its disadvantages are that it deforms easily and is prone to pest problems; its load-bearing capacity is low, making it unsuitable for large furniture, otherwise it may break easily. It is typically used as auxiliary material for solid wood furniture, such as drawer boards or back panels.
Oak
There are as many as hundreds of species of Oak. In the construction industry, White Oak and Red Oak from North America are most common. The texture is fine and straight-grained, and its greatest advantage is good processability. Whether it is White, Yellow, or Red Oak, it is easy to color and can be dyed into various hues. It has high plasticity in renovation design and is deeply loved by designers.
Ash
There are many species of Ash, with North American Ash, Manchurian Ash (Shui-qu-liu), and European Ash being common on the market. Ash is usually pale yellow with straight grain, featuring mountain-shaped or water-ripple patterns. It is easy to color and is often used in dyeing processes to create different visual effects. The wood is hard and tough, frequently used in European and American furniture, as well as for making guitars and wooden baseball bats.
Rubberwood
Rubberwood is processed from trees that can no longer produce rubber, making it an eco-friendly wood. Due to its ivory-white color, it is also known as Ivory Wood. The texture is uniform and not easy to break, with strong plasticity. However, Rubberwood itself has natural spots and black dots, and the surface is relatively rough. The wood is soft, making it prone to scratches.
Fir
Primarily grown in China and Southeast Asia. There are many types of Fir, such as Spruce, Fir, and Taiwan Fir. Fir has a reddish color and straight grain. It does not easily deform or warp and is easy to paint and dye. Combined with its affordable price, it is heavily used in interior renovation.
Elm
Elm has straight and rugged grain with moderate hardness and strength. It is commonly used for openwork carving and relief. In early times, Elm furniture was often used for sacrificial purposes, so it is frequently seen in temple architecture.
Beech
Beech is a wood unique to the Jiangnan region. The wood is firm, impact-resistant, and easy to bend under steam for shaping. It has clear texture and soft tones, ranking in the upper-middle level on the wood hardness scale. It is suitable for wooden doors, flooring, and handicrafts.
Walnut
Walnut is divided into Black Walnut and Golden Walnut. It is mainly produced in North America, Europe, and Southeast Asia. The surface is lustrous, with rich and full colors, and the wood grain is parabolic and layered. Due to its long growth cycle, it takes decades or even a hundred years for Walnut to mature. Its characteristics—being hard, dense, rot-resistant, pest-resistant, and having unique patterns—make Walnut a high-end wood.
Cherry
Naturally contains brown heartwood spots and small gum pockets. The wood color is vibrant, and the texture is clear and fine. It is easy to saw, carve, bend, and dye. Due to its noble decorative effect and comfortable hand-feel, it is mostly used for high-end furniture and cabinetry.
Teak
Teak has a high oil content, and its surface has a unique, bright, and smooth texture. The wood grain is straight with dark streaks. The wood is hard and tough, easy to process, resistant to mold, and highly resistant to pests. Because its growth is slow and takes 50 years to mature, it is considered one of the high-priced woods and is even called a “National Treasure” in Myanmar and Indonesia.
