Species Guide

Species Deep Dive

Detailed profiles of our most popular reclaimed wood species — history, characteristics, and best applications.

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White Oak

Quercus alba

1360 Janka47 lb/ft³

Tight, straight grain with prominent rays. Highly resistant to rot and moisture. Often features beautiful medullary rays when quartersawn.

Best Uses

Flooring
Furniture
Exterior applications
Boat building
Whiskey barrels

Origin Story

Most commonly salvaged from Iowa and Minnesota barns built between 1870-1940. These structures used locally milled white oak for its strength and rot resistance.

Eco Note: Old-growth white oak has a tighter grain than today's commercially grown stock, making reclaimed white oak genuinely superior for many applications.

Heart Pine

Pinus palustris

1225 Janka52 lb/ft³

Rich amber to reddish-brown color with tight, resinous grain. Incredibly dense — old-growth heart pine can be harder than most modern hardwoods.

Best Uses

Flooring
Paneling
Stair treads
Mantels
Countertops

Origin Story

Sourced from Southern U.S. factories and warehouses built in the early 1900s. These massive beams and joists were milled from virgin longleaf pine forests.

Eco Note: Virgin longleaf pine forests are 97% gone. Reclaiming heart pine from old structures is the only way to access this extraordinary wood.

American Chestnut

Castanea dentata

540 Janka30 lb/ft³

Warm brown tones with straight grain. Lightweight yet surprisingly durable. Naturally resistant to decay without treatment.

Best Uses

Paneling
Trim work
Furniture
Accent walls
Cabinet making

Origin Story

Exclusively from pre-1940s structures, as the chestnut blight wiped out nearly all American chestnut trees by the 1950s.

Eco Note: There is no new-growth American chestnut lumber. Every piece is irreplaceable — reclaimed is the only option.

Douglas Fir

Pseudotsuga menziesii

660 Janka34 lb/ft³

Warm reddish-brown with pronounced vertical grain. Strong for its weight. Old-growth specimens show incredibly tight growth rings.

Best Uses

Structural beams
Timber framing
Flooring
Decking
Millwork

Origin Story

Salvaged from warehouses, bridges, and industrial structures throughout the Pacific Northwest supply chain.

Eco Note: Old-growth Douglas fir has 20-30 growth rings per inch vs. 4-8 in modern plantation fir — making reclaimed stock significantly stronger.

Red Oak

Quercus rubra

1290 Janka44 lb/ft³

Open, porous grain with a warm pinkish-tan to reddish-brown color. Prominent growth rings create a bold, cathedral-pattern figure on flat-sawn boards. The grain is coarser and more open than white oak, giving red oak a distinctive, textured look. Old-growth reclaimed red oak has significantly tighter growth rings than modern plantation-grown stock, resulting in a denser, harder board with more refined grain patterns.

Best Uses

Flooring
Furniture
Cabinetry
Stair treads
Paneling

Origin Story

Widely salvaged from industrial buildings, factories, and commercial warehouses throughout the Midwest and Great Lakes region built between 1880 and 1950. Red oak was the workhorse timber of American industry due to its strength, local abundance, and ease of milling.

Eco Note: While red oak is still commercially grown today, reclaimed old-growth red oak is a fundamentally different material — denser, harder, and more dimensionally stable due to its slow growth under a closed forest canopy. You cannot buy this quality new.

Elm

Ulmus americana

830 Janka35 lb/ft³

Interlocking, wavy grain that makes elm one of the most visually striking species available in reclaimed form. The grain pattern produces a dramatic, almost three-dimensional figure when flatsawn. Color ranges from light tan to medium brown with occasional olive or grayish streaks. Elm is exceptionally resistant to splitting due to its interlocked fibers, which is why it was historically favored for wagon wheel hubs, barrel staves, and structural applications subject to shock loading.

Best Uses

Live-edge slabs
Bar tops
Table tops
Accent walls
Turning blanks

Origin Story

Salvaged from barns, fencing, and agricultural structures across Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. The devastating Dutch elm disease epidemic that began in the 1930s killed billions of American elm trees, making reclaimed elm lumber the primary remaining source of large-dimension elm boards and timbers.

Eco Note: Dutch elm disease has eliminated the American elm as a commercial timber species. Reclaimed elm from pre-disease structures represents the last accessible supply of wide, clear elm boards — material that cannot be sourced at any price from living trees.

Hard Maple

Acer saccharum

1450 Janka44 lb/ft³

Creamy white to pale amber color with a fine, closed grain that takes finishes exceptionally well. Hard maple has the highest Janka hardness of any commonly available domestic species, making it extremely resistant to denting and wear. Old-growth reclaimed maple often features subtle bird's-eye or curly figure that is less common in modern farm-grown maple. The tight, uniform grain produces a smooth, almost luminous surface under clear finishes.

Best Uses

Flooring
Butcher block countertops
Workbench tops
Bowling alley lanes
Stair treads

Origin Story

Commonly salvaged from factory floors, gymnasium floors, bowling alleys, and industrial buildings across the northern Midwest. Maple was the preferred species for industrial flooring due to its extreme hardness and resistance to abrasion under heavy foot and cart traffic.

Eco Note: Reclaimed hard maple from industrial floors has been naturally compression-hardened by decades of heavy use, making it even denser and more durable than freshly milled maple. The patina of factory-floor maple — oil stains, wear patterns, and subtle discoloration — adds character that is impossible to replicate.

Walnut

Juglans nigra

1010 Janka38 lb/ft³

Rich, dark chocolate brown heartwood with lighter sapwood streaks creating dramatic contrast. Walnut has a straight, open grain with occasional wavy or curly figure that makes it one of the most prized domestic hardwoods for fine woodworking. The color deepens and warms over time with UV exposure. Old-growth reclaimed walnut tends to have wider boards and more consistent heartwood color than modern walnut, which is often harvested younger and has a higher sapwood-to-heartwood ratio.

Best Uses

Fine furniture
Gun stocks
Accent flooring
Mantels
Cabinet panels

Origin Story

Salvaged in limited quantities from pre-1920s farmsteads, fencing, and small agricultural buildings in Iowa, Missouri, and Indiana. Walnut was used sparingly in construction due to its value as a furniture wood, making reclaimed walnut structural timber exceptionally rare and sought-after.

Eco Note: Reclaimed walnut commands premium prices because old-growth trees produced wider, darker heartwood boards than today's 30- to 50-year plantation walnut. A 12-inch-wide board of pure heartwood reclaimed walnut is a piece of wood that modern forestry simply cannot produce.

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Species Selection Guide

Not sure which species is right for your project? Use this decision matrix to narrow your options based on the characteristics that matter most for your application.

Application	Top Pick	Runner-Up	Avoid	Why
High-Traffic Flooring	Hard Maple	White Oak	American Chestnut	Maple and white oak have the highest Janka hardness ratings, resisting dents from foot traffic, pets, and dropped objects. Chestnut is too soft at 540 Janka for heavy-use floors.
Exterior Projects	White Oak	Douglas Fir	Hard Maple	White oak's tyloses make it naturally water-resistant, and old-growth fir's resin content provides natural decay resistance. Maple absorbs moisture readily and is prone to rot in exterior applications.
Fine Furniture	Walnut	American Chestnut	Douglas Fir	Walnut's rich color, excellent workability, and ability to take fine finishes make it the premier furniture wood. Chestnut carves and joins beautifully. Fir is too soft and splintery for fine joinery.
Fireplace Mantels	White Oak	Elm	Hard Maple	White oak's bold grain and warm color create a striking mantel. Elm's dramatic figure makes a statement piece. Maple's light color competes poorly with most fireplace stone or brick.
Accent Walls / Paneling	Heart Pine	American Chestnut	None	Heart pine's rich amber tones and tight grain create warmth on walls. Chestnut's light, silvery patina suits lighter interiors. Any species can work for walls since hardness is irrelevant.
Bar Tops / Counters	Elm	Walnut	Douglas Fir	Elm's interlocked grain resists splitting and creates dramatic wide slabs. Walnut's dark color hides stains and wear. Fir dents too easily for countertop use and its open grain traps debris.
Structural Beams	Douglas Fir	White Oak	American Chestnut	Old-growth fir has the best strength-to-weight ratio of any species we carry. White oak is heavier but extremely strong. Chestnut, while durable, is too soft and light for structural loads.
Stair Treads	Hard Maple	Red Oak	Douglas Fir	Stair treads need extreme hardness to resist the concentrated impact of foot traffic on nosings. Maple and red oak deliver that. Fir will dent and wear visibly at stair nosings within a year.

* These recommendations are general guidelines. Species availability changes regularly based on our salvage projects. Contact us to discuss your specific project requirements and current inventory.

Quick Comparison

All eight species at a glance. Compare hardness, cost, availability, and key characteristics to find the best match for your project.

Species	Janka	Density	Workability	Price Range	Availability
White Oak	1360	47 lb/ft³	Excellent	$$	High
Red Oak	1290	44 lb/ft³	Excellent	$$	High
Hard Maple	1450	44 lb/ft³	Good	$$$	Medium
Heart Pine	1225	52 lb/ft³	Good	$$$	Limited
Walnut	1010	38 lb/ft³	Excellent	$$$$	Rare
Elm	830	35 lb/ft³	Good	$$	Medium
Douglas Fir	660	34 lb/ft³	Very Good	$	Medium
Am. Chestnut	540	30 lb/ft³	Excellent	$$$$	Rare

$ = $3.50\u2013$6/bf$$ = $6\u2013$10/bf$$$ = $10\u2013$16/bf$$$$ = $14\u2013$22/bf