Planning ahead...what kind of wood?

[ehbowen]

I'm in the process of rebuilding a half bath and an adjacent back room/office/computer room in my home. I'm planning to go with natural hardwood floor in the office and ceramic tile in the half bath.

Since I'm now the proud owner of a new-to-me Shopsmith, I was thinking about adding some extra touches like waist-height wainscoting and a custom vanity cabinet. I'm very much a newbie when it comes to working with wood, so I'm asking for advice as to what wood to choose here...with the idea that I might use the same kind when I move on to the other rooms.

Budget is a big consideration, but I'm in no hurry...if it takes longer to save up pennies in order to do the job right, that's just fine. At the same time, I want something which will be understated and (hopefully!) timeless. I'm not completely opposed to using soft wood, but I'd prefer hard. Hard or soft, it needs to take stain well and be fairly durable.

What are the thoughts of the more experienced members for an attractive wood which is readily available at a not-too-unreasonable price?

[garys]

Everybody has their favorite woods. Mine are American hardwoods. I work exclusively with the US grown hardwoods.
My favorites are Oak, Walnut, Hickory, Butternut, and Cherry for appearance. I also use Maple for structural work where appearance isn't important.
I use a fair amount of aromatic cedar (Juniper) where the aroma is needed. (not a hardwood)

I suggest you look at what other wood you already have around this project and work the new things into the design.

[dusty]

Hardwoods are no doubt the best for what you are planning but I enjoy working with poplar. It is not a hardwood but is the hardest (I believe) of the softwoods. I also like to work with yellow pine but it is becoming hard to find (at least in my parts). I don't like to work with plywoods,

[RFGuy]

Just curious...are you doing the remodel solely for yourself, or do you intend to possibly sell this house down the road at some point? Reason that I ask is that what wood you pick, colors, etc. will all be dependent on whether you are remodeling for your own tastes, or whether you are remodeling for future resale. Home trends vary and change frequently. For example, the whole "grey" trend has resulted in a lot of homes selling with this the past few years. It is a hot trend, but personally I can't stand the blahness of greyed out or all white interiors. To match these interiors are fumigated or white washed hardwood flooring options. I prefer and love the warmth of natural wood finishes, but at present they are out of style for home interiors. Your local market may be different. However, if you intend to sell in the near future, I would check with local realtors to confirm what kinds of finishes are trending. If selling is no where on the horizon, then pick the woods and finishes you prefer. For hardwoods, I personally love cherry or hard maple, but I really don't think you can go wrong with any hardwood selection. Pricing is another matter. It really depends on what distribution is near you and whether the chosen wood is abundant in your locale. Lastly, consider whether you will apply finish inside your house or if you can pre-finish it outside of the house and then install them. If you will be finishing inside, you will probably want a low VOC finish such as a hard wax/polymerized oil type finish or similar. This will keep the odors down during installation and keep the house more livable.

[Toymeister]

Inexpensive wood in the truest form is green wood (unseasoned). And that will be regional.

I bought 1000 - 800 bd ft of red oak. I thinned out the worst first and sold 300 bd ft the same day. My cost was a little over a hundred then. I stickered the wood and sealed the ends. The wood was dry after my trip to Afghanistan. I thinned it again. Made a few bucks and now I work with free oak.

[ehbowen]

Just curious...are you doing the remodel solely for yourself, or do you intend to possibly sell this house down the road at some point? Reason that I ask is that what wood you pick, colors, etc. will all be dependent on whether you are remodeling for your own tastes, or whether you are remodeling for future resale. Home trends vary and change frequently. For example, the whole "grey" trend has resulted in a lot of homes selling with this the past few years. It is a hot trend, but personally I can't stand the blahness of greyed out or all white interiors. To match these interiors are fumigated or white washed hardwood flooring options. I prefer and love the warmth of natural wood finishes, but at present they are out of style for home interiors. Your local market may be different. However, if you intend to sell in the near future, I would check with local realtors to confirm what kinds of finishes are trending. If selling is no where on the horizon, then pick the woods and finishes you prefer.

I'll probably die in this house. I really don't care what a prospective purchaser will think; I have no plans to sell. If they don't like it, they can haul out the sander and paintbrush.

I like rich, buttery colors, not too dark. For the room I'm looking to wainscot I might go with a darker, cherry-type finish for the floor and wainscoting and then light colors for the sheetrock above the wainscot.

For hardwoods, I personally love cherry or hard maple, but I really don't think you can go wrong with any hardwood selection. Pricing is another matter. It really depends on what distribution is near you and whether the chosen wood is abundant in your locale. Lastly, consider whether you will apply finish inside your house or if you can pre-finish it outside of the house and then install them. If you will be finishing inside, you will probably want a low VOC finish such as a hard wax/polymerized oil type finish or similar. This will keep the odors down during installation and keep the house more livable.

I'm trying to find lumber mills in my region (east Texas) which handle native hardwoods. I did find one which seems to have a selection of black walnut, but I haven't received any response as to what kind of price they want.

I live alone, so I should be able to finish in place. I can go to work or stay a night with the parents if I need to let finishes dry.

Thanks for the suggestions.

[ehbowen]

Inexpensive wood in the truest form is green wood (unseasoned). And that will be regional.

I bought 1000 - 800 bd ft of red oak. I thinned out the worst first and sold 300 bd ft the same day. My cost was a little over a hundred then. I stickered the wood and sealed the ends. The wood was dry after my trip to Afghanistan. I thinned it again. Made a few bucks and now I work with free oak.

As I said just above, I'm looking for regional sawmills which handle hardwoods. Could you point me in the right direction for information on drying, seasoning, and then working with green lumber and hardwoods? In addition to the Shopsmith setup, I've ordered a DeWalt DW734 planer and I just picked up a Shopsmith jointer accessory on eBay.

[thunderbirdbat]

Find a local woodworking club to see if they have a list of lumber suppliers for the area. Or contact them to see if they know of any local saw mills. Craigslist may also list custom cutting of logs or lumber. Facebook may also have listings. One of my local lumber yard/saw mills only has a Facebook page and does not advertise much but does go to various wood shows.

[ehbowen]

Just got a call back from that sawmill (voice mail, so I couldn't ask questions). They want $4 a board foot for black walnut. I'm assuming it's rough cut, and he didn't say anything about sizes available. I have about $200 to spend, and it's about a 400 mile round trip drive. Does that price sound reasonable, or does someone think I ought to be able to do substantially better?

(Note: When I did my online searching I was actually looking for oak, but this was the only lumber mill within reasonable driving range which I found selling hardwoods. They actually do a lot more cedar than black walnut, but carry it as a sideline.)

https://www.wilcoxtimber.com/

[rpd]

Thy this web site to locate sources in your area.
https://www.woodfinder.com/