What Wood Is Best For Beds?

A little about Wood:

The classification of wood has historically always been either hard wood; any leaf bearing tree - deciduous, or soft wood; coniferous - any cone bearing tree. These terms can be confusing since some leaf bearing trees can have very soft wood and some coniferous trees can have very hard woods. To make this easier, below you will find a list of different tree types, classification and then individual wood characteristics.

Hardwoods include; Oak, Maple, Mahogany, Teak, Cherry, Rosewood, Hickory

Softwoods include: Pine, Beech, Ash, Birch, Cedar, Redwood, Hemlock, Fir, Spruce

When searching for new furniture, such as a sofa bed or platform bed, you will find many options are available. Of the options to consider are the size, the color, and the material used in its construction to name a few. In regards to a platform beds construction, consider genuine solid hardwood. Solid wood furniture has many benefits that other types of wood furniture do not. With solid wood, you’ll find that it is much more attractive than manufactured wood. The overlays and veneers, although less expensive, can look cheap, chip or scratch easily and can be made using high amounts VOC’s including formaldehyde. Consider the content of formaldehyde in wood. The national Cancer Institute lists Formaldehyde as a potential carcinogen (http://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/causes-prevention/risk/substances/formaldehyde/formaldehyde-fact-sheet) Many types of wood, like plywood and particleboard, use formaldehyde as a method of treating the wood and keeping parasites out. With solid wood furniture, this is not an issue.

With solid hardwood for your sofa bed or platform bed, you can be sure that people will see a continuous grain pattern all the way through, showing them the strength and the quality of the wood that you have chosen. The look of hardwood and the craftsmanship that goes into making it is incredible. Another important aspect that you should remember about solid wood platform beds is that they will last for ages. Hardwood furniture is the furniture that you buy when you want to have something that will one day be an antique for your family. Even though solid wood does show wear, it can be sanded and refinished. Unlike manufactured wood platform bed frame, which is a very here today, gone tomorrow, solid wood can be repaired and restored. Genuine solid hardwood furniture ages well. If you want your furniture to last, solid hardwood is the way to go.

A less expensive alternative to Oak is Rubberwood, also called Parawood. If you look for furniture or other wooden items at large retail outlets, chances are good that you have seen rubberwood. Despite the fact that rubberwood is an extremely common component of imported goods in the United States very few people are familiar with it and some that are familiar with the name may have misconceptions as to its durability and features.

This type of wood is growing increasingly more popular for use in furniture as it is relatively inexpensive, has very little tendency to warp or crack and because rubberwood is an agricultural byproduct and is grown in plantations, it is sometimes promoted as an environmentally-friendly product. Rubberwood is one of the most ecologically “friendly” lumber used in today’s furniture industry. After the economic life of the rubber tree, which is generally 26-30 years, the latex yields become extremely low and the planters then fell the rubber trees and plant new ones. Unlike other woods that are cut down for the sole purpose of producing wood for furniture, the rubberwood is used only after it completes its latex producing cycle and dies. This wood is therefore eco-friendly in the sense that we are now using what was going as waste. Rubberwood was used only locally, primarily as a fuel, however over the past 20 years Rubberwood logs and lumber are now major exports for countries such as Malaysia and Thailand . In China, large volumes of rubberwood used for furniture and wooden parts of household items are exported throughout the world.