Replies

1. 
   ring | Aug 09, 2006 08:58am | #1

   Peter,  do you actually have some on hand or is this a theoretical question? 

   I'm asking because the eucalyptus I am familiar with is associated with such serious drying and checking problems (because of its high water content) that it is commonly considered unsuitable for anything but rough outdoor furniture.  If you actually have some that is dry and usable I'd be interested in where it came from and how it was dried.

   DR

1. 
   petersturner | Aug 09, 2006 12:31pm | #2

   I have been offered a job that will entail turning a dozen staved columns from my client's eucalyptus, to serve as display bases. I have not seen the wood. I have never worked with this wood and am trying to learn of its working properties prior to undetaking the job. 

   thanks,Peter  

1. 
   ring | Aug 09, 2006 02:27pm | #4

   Peter,

   My experience with eucalyptus is from Israel, where quite a lot of it grows.  Large tracts of it were planted 50 years ago to help drain the swamps here, because it has a remarkable ability to take up quantities of water.  There have been any number of trials over the years to make commercially viable timber from these trees which are quite large now; studies have been made by the agriculture ministry, and so on.  No one has come up with a way to dry it without getting unacceptable cracks and checking.  The properties that made it useful for draining swamp are the same ones that make it problematic for lumber.  The wood can be quite attractive, with reddish and cream colors.  However, 90% of the trees that are felled are sold for firewood or shredded into chips for various industrial uses.  A little bit gets used for picnic tables and such. I have seen small objects made successfully from PEG treated eucalyptus.  I don't know if this is a viable alternative for you.

   In any case, there are some 50 varieties of eucalyptus, and growing conditions may vary greatly.  Take my experience as a warning light, and thoroughly check the wood you've got before you're up to your eyeballs in invested time.

   DR

2. 
   philip | Aug 09, 2006 02:19pm | #3

   Peter , you need to establish which Eucalypt it is - there are something like 400 species, ranging from awesome to down right dreadfull.....

   Philip Marcou
3. 
   SteveSchoene | Aug 09, 2006 03:02pm | #5

   In the US this could likely be the product marketed under the Lyptus brand name by Weyerhauser.  It is bred, planted, dried and marketed specifically for use as a hardwood and is in lumber, solid flooring and engineered flooring forms.  I haven't used it but other comments I have seen indicate it works well, but can be splintery.  Lots of material on line by searching under Lyptus.