Tips
for Cedar Lumber
It
is hard to not get carried away about cedar. Cedar is such a great
wood for so many different things—its hard not to be excited
about using it both indoors or out.
Lets talk briefly about some cedar applications and options.
Why
buy cedar?
As
should always be done lets think first about what we are trying to
accomplish with cedar. Is
the appearance of the cedar wood product the most important issue?
Are you buying cedar lumber for its strength and durability?
Cedar is incredibly resistant to rot and insects just don't like
cedar.
Is this
cedar project an outdoor project?
Do we want to leave the cedar wood in its natural state or do we
want to paint or stain the lumber? These are just of few of the questions that should be asked
before we start shopping for cedar lumber or any cedar wood
product.
Cedar
appearance
Lets
start by saying that the appearance of the cedar is our main
concern. That might usually mean that we want
our cedar to be the highest possible appearance with no knots and no other flaws.
Then we
might be wanting a Clear Heart grade of cedar. This is the highest grade of cedar lumber with only pieces of heartwood (the
darker colored wood found in the center of the tree). As the name further implies, this grade of cedar lumber will be either
completely clear or minor imperfections that do not detract from
their excellent appearance.
Quality
cedar lumber like this is pricey. But if it is the correct wood
for the job then lets not waste money on a lesser wood or a lesser
grade that fails to do what we need done.
Other
cedar grades of lumber
Now
lets fast forward through a number of various grades of cedar
lumber and end up at
the other end of the spectrum with a cedar project that doesn't
demand perfection in appearance from the cedar but one where the
cedar is chosen because of how durable cedar is.
In that case we
can save some money on our cedar lumber by looking at a Select Knotty or Architect
Knotty grade. Knotty
lumber is usually less expensive than clear cedar.
In a Select or Architect Knotty cedar grade, the knots are sound
and tight. The wood will be a mixture of heartwood cedar and sapwood
cedar. These
kinds of cedars can either be left natural, stained, or painted.
A
side benefit to working with some of these "lesser"
grades is that you end up with some wonderfully colorful and
spectacular combinations. If you want your cedar project to
say "WOW", every time you walk into the room, these
so-called "lesser" grades could just be the ticket.
Cedar…such
a glorious and wonderful wood.
In the higher grades it is totally classy, professional,
and warm. In the
knotty cedar grades it is natural, durable, and lovely.
What is your project and how can cedar help you enhance the
value of whatever you want to accomplish?
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