TIMBER DEFECT

1.1 INTRODUCTION

A defect in this case means anything that affects the structural integrity or appearance of
timber.There are many potential defects as there are uses for timber. In this assignment we will
discuss about :

i. Natural defect

ii. Seasoning defect

Thing that attack timber

1
1.2 NATURAL DEFECTS

Planed lumber can have defects that have occurred during the tree's growth. These include:

i. Decay, Rot or Unsound Wood

Decay results from fungal activity. The wood loses its strength and may become soft or
“punky”. Decay can be seen in a variety of forms. These forms are known as “white speck”,
“honeycomb”, and “peck”.

ii. Knots
Knots are created where branches grew from the stem of the tree. Size and number of
knots will affect the grade of the lumber. Additionally, the wood of the knot may fall out
and leave a hole. This happens when the branch forming the knot dies and the wood is
not bonded to the trunk wood.

2
iii. Burl
Burl is a defect caused by an injury in the living tree. This causes distortion of the grain
and affects the strength of the lumber.

iv. Shake
A shake is a lengthwise separation of the wood. Shakes are most likely caused by wind
damage. When the tree tissues are not elastic enough to withstand the stress as the tree
is bent by wind, the tissues separate. If the separation is between or along the annual
rings, it is known as a cup shake. If the separations radiate from the heartwood, they are
known as heart or star shake. Shakes may also be caused in the drying process.

3
v. Timber Breaks

Timber breaks are tiny cracks

that zigzag across the
grain of a board or plank.
Their cause is unknown but
may be due to wind stresses
or hard contact with the
ground during felling.

vi. Pitch
Pitch is an accumulation of resinous material. This is unsuitable for certain grades
of lumber because of appearance requirements. Pitch may be present in streaks or
pockets.

4
vii. Sap Stain
Sap stain is a variation in the natural colour of the wood. This is unsuitable for
certain grades of lumber because of appearance requirements. The usefulness of
stained wood is reduced to uses where natural finishes will be applied. Stained wood
is divided into light, medium, and heavy stained categories. Sap stain will not
progress when the wood has been kiln dried and planed.

viii. Heart Stain

The heartwood is naturally a darker colour than the sapwood. However, if the colour
is in irregular patches, it is called heart stain. This is often a dark or reddish colour,
but may range from pink to brown. Heart stain is unsuitable for certain grades of
lumber because the strength can be affected.

5
ix. Bark Pockets
Pockets of bark may be present in lumber as a result of the stem of the tree growing
outwards around a branch that has broken off. Bark pockets can also occur when
scar tissue is formed after an injury.

x. Insect Damage

Wood is prone to attack from a fairly wide array of insects.

Pith Fleck: Pith fleck are small darkened streaks or flecks on the face of a board
created by the larvae of tiny flies.

Pinholes: Small round pinholes, up to 3 mm (1/8”) in diameter are usually the work of
an insect known as the ambrosia beetle. The damage occurs when the adult beetle
bores into the wood carrying a tiny fungus spore with it. It deposits the spore in the
wood tissue and as the spore develops it causes deep staining on the walls of the
bore hole.

Wormholes: Wormholes are larger than pinholes. Usually they range from 3 mm to
12 mm (1/8” to 1/2”) in size and they consist of elliptical or circular galleries or tunnels
in the wood. Wormholes are caused by the larvae of several insects, including
longhorn and flathead wood borers and horntail wasps.

6
xi. Reaction Wood
Reaction wood or “timber bind” develops from a leaning tree stem or trunk.
Once the stem of a tree begins to grow in a direction other than vertical, the
force of gravity puts considerable stress on one side of the tree. It is thought
that trees produce reaction wood to compensate for this stress. There are two
types of reaction wood: compression wood in softwoods and tension wood in
hardwoods.

7
xii. Compression Wood
In softwood trees, reaction wood forms on the underside of a leaning stem. It is
referred to as compression wood because it is compressed by the weight of the tree
stem or trunk. Compression wood has a hardened, brittle quality that severely
reduces its strength.

Another major problem with compression wood is its tendency to shrink along its
length. Severe warping may result. It has an abnormal tendency to split and is
difficult to machine.

8
1.3 SEASONING DEFECTS

Planed lumber may have defects that have occurred during the Seasoning Process:

i. Shrinkage

Shrinkage is a defect, and generally a natural defect, occurring during the

seasoning process.

When timber is seasoning and it's moisture content (MC) is reduced below the
Fibre Saturated Point (FSP) continued drying will cause dramatic change such as
increase in strength but also distortion and shrinkage.

Shrinkage is the greatest tangentially over the radial direction with little loss along
the length of the board, etc.

ii. Cup

Cupping occurs when a board becomes curved across its width. In most cases,
holding boards flat during the drying process may prevent cupping. Boards near
the bottom of a stack are held flat by the weight of the boards above. The top
layers must be weighted.

9
iii.Bow

Bow describes a board that curves along its length. In other words, when the
convex side of a bowed board is laid flat on a level surface, both ends cannot be
made to touch the surface at the same time. Bow usually results from uneven
shrinkage in a given piece of wood. The most common cause is the presence of
reaction wood in a board.

iv. Crook

A crook is similar to a bow except that warping or bending occurs along the
edges of a board. As a result, the distorted board resembles the base of a
rocking chair. Crooks are created in much the same way as bows. The only
difference is that the abnormal wood is concentrated along one edge rather than
along one side.

10
v. Twist

When a board is laid flat on a level surface and only three corners of that board
touch the surface, the board is said to have a twist. Minor twisting may result from
the inclusion of uneven or irregular reaction wood in a board, but pronounced
twisting is associated with spiral grain pattern in wood.

vi. Splits

A separation of the wood fibres along the grain forming a fissure that extends
through the board from one side to the other.

It is usual in end grain and is remedied by cutting away the defected area. All
boards should have an allowance so that some end grain may be cut away
because of possible shakes or splits.

11
 vii. Checks

All kiln-dried lumber suffers, to some degree, from a kind of case hardening. Even
air dried lumber may develop the condition, especially if it is subjected to uneven
temperatures. In a mild form of distortion, when tension stress on the outside
layers exceeds the strength of the wood, cracks may appear in layers to relieve
the stress. If the cracks are confined to the surface they are called checks. Small
surface checks may be removed during planning. Checks and deeper cracks,
called splits or shakes, are more likely to form at the ends of boards, because
drying is faster at the board ends than along the sides. (The reason: moisture
travels about 15 times faster along the grain than across it).

viii. Spring

Spring is concave/convex distortion along the length of the board again but this
time the distortion is in the flat plane of the board.

Boards with this defect may have been cut from near the heart of the board and
is the result of growth stresses being released on conversion.

Useable timber may be recovered from these boards by cutting a straight edge
and re sawing. The grain direction however may not be satisfactory for
aesthetics and care should be taken for placing the possible short grain figure
where stability is required.

ix. Collapse
12
Collapse is a server distortion of cells which occurs in wood during the early
stages of drying. The wood fibers appear to have collapsed inward on the surface.

DETERIORATION
13
2.1 INTRODUCTION

Deterioration of timber during service may cause by hazard, and therefore reduce the long-term
expected performance of the timber. They include a range of biological and physical or
environmental hazards. Timber can be effectively protected from all hazards through
appropriate detailing, treatment and maintenance.

2.2 BIODETERIORATION

Under proper conditions, wood will give centuries of service. However, if conditions exist that
permit the development of wood-degrading organisms, protection must be provided during
processing, merchandising,and use.The principal organisms that can degrade wood are
fungi,insects, bacteria, and marine borers.

Molds, most sapwood stains, and decay are caused by fungi, which are microscopic, thread-like
microorganisms that must have organic material to live. For some of them, wood offers the
required food supply. The growth of fungi depends on suitably mild temperatures, moisture, and
air (oxygen).Chemical stains, although they are not caused by organisms, are also be mention
because they resemble stains caused by fungi.

Insects also may damage wood, and in many situations must be considered in protective
measures. Termites are the major insect enemy of wood, but on a national scale, they are a
less serious threat than fungi. Bacteria in wood ordinarily are of little consequence, but some
may make the wood excessively absorptive. In addition, some may cause strength losses over
long periods of exposure, particularly in forest soils.

Marine borers are a fourth general type of wood-degrading organism. They can attack
susceptible wood rapidly in saltwater harbors where they are the principal cause of damage to
piles and other wood marine structures.

Wood degradation by organisms has been studied extensively, and many preventive measures
are well known and widely practiced. By taking ordinary precautions with the finished product,
the user can contribute substantially to ensuring a long service life.

14
 Cause of biodeteration of timber

2.2.1 Defects due to fungi

Fungi attacks timber when these conditions are all present:

i. The timber moisture content is above 25%

ii. The environment is warm enough
iii. There is lots of air

Wood with less than 25% moisture remains free of fungi for centuries. Similarly, wood
submerged in water will not be attacked by fungi because of absence of air.

Fungi timber defects:

i. Blue stain
ii. Brown rot
iii. Dry rot
iv. Heart rot
v. Sap stain
vi. Wet rot
vii. White rot

a common form of wood rotting fungus that causes structural defects

15
2.2.2 Defects due to insects

Following are the insects which are usually responsible for the decay of timber:

1. Beetles

2. Marine borers (Barnea similis)

3. Termites

4. Carpenter ants

16
2.3 PHYSICAL DETERIORATION

Most timber species exposed to strong acids and alkalis will be detrimentally affected. A notable
exception is redwood (sequoia sempervirens). Strong acids and alkalis result in separation of
wood fibres or changes to the wood structure with an effect similar to chemical pulping.

The contact of some preservative treated wood with iron fastenings such as screw spikes with
CCA-treated railway sleepers (cross-ties) are an example of chemical degradation. This is
referred to as ‘iron rot’.

Some timber species may also be discolored by reaction between naturally occurring timber
tannins and metals such as uncoated nails.

Some timbers, such as pine species, of low to medium density are ‘soft’ and are susceptible to
physical abrasion which will wear away timber surfaces. Species that are more dense are better
suited to applications such as flooring where weighty objects or the heels of shoes will not leave
imprints on the timber surface.

Exposure of timber surfaces to sunlight (UV rays) can lead to bleaching, yellowing and
roughness of timber surfaces the UV rays alter the cell structure in the surface wood cells.
Western red cedar is commonly used as a cladding material and over time will grey and develop
surface checking.

Prolonged wetting and drying cycles (swelling and shrinkage) of wood will also lead to
deformation of wood which is seen as warping (twist and bow), splitting and cracking (checking)
of timber different timber species or products may be more resistant to moisture and therefore
appear to be more dimensionally stable.

The failure of paint coatings or films may also allow moisture ingress into wood and open wood
joints as timber takes up moisture and swells. The maintenance and renewal of paint coatings is
important and can significantly affect the overall long-term performance of a wood product in
service.

17
 REFERENCES

1. http://www.nzwood.co.nz/images/uploads/file/Designed
%20PDFs/NZW13611%20Durability-Hazards-2.pdf

2. http://www.slideshare.net/stootypal/timber-defects

3. http://www.geoffswoodwork.co.uk/shrinkage.htm

4. http://www.scribd.com/doc/6698702/Ch13-Bio-Deterioration-of-Wood

5. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lumber

18