Types of Wood
There is real wood, and then there is the rest:
- Plywood is thin sheets of wood glued together.
- Particle board is like wood chips glued together.
- Fiber board is like sawdust glued together.
These are typical materials in cheap furniture with petroleum-based glues and plastic finishes. Most of these will swell up when they get wet and end up in the trash.
Real Woods
Knotty woodpecker uses real, local woods. Real wood is natural, beautiful, solid, not full of glue, long lasting and a great renewable resource.
Also, hand tools don’t particularly like working with glued up materials. Some of the blades get upset, the dust is terrible, surfaces aren’t smooth without sandpaper, and I end up with extra sharpening and stubborn tool cleanup at the end of the day.
Types of Woods (Trees)
Buy local. You know what your getting, how its made, where the money is going, and who you’re supporting. I prefer using wood from local trees, local lumber yards and local mills, supporting local.
America has many great, locally grown woods: oak, ash, walnut, cherry, poplar, pine, maple, hickory, cedar, and many more! They are local, available, renewable, and abundant! (Fortunately, the USA has excellent landscape for many tree species!)
Many tropical woods are not local, not sustainable, and they could be endangered. Think before you buy! You could be buying wood imported through unfair trades, or worse: killing endangered forests!
Buy local, buy quality, buy responsibly!
