I’m planning on making a shelf for a bathroom as you can see down below and planning on using this red oak I think it is. Do you guys have a suggestion on how I should make the wood look like rustic like distressed with saw marks and some stain or if I should just do stain or just use a clear coat on top. Is it worth it to have the wood look natural and nothing on it. What do you think?
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My first question is is it kiln dried? If not have you done anything to treat the insect infestation?
As for making it rustic, you don't show how thick the boards are but I'm guessing about ¾" which kind of rules out resawing it. So I will run through a list of commonly used" finishing"tools.
Wire brush-removes planed finish and leaves a coarse surface
Hammer-we have all left our share of hammer marks in wood
Heavy chains-leaves irregular dents and damage
Shotgun-small BBs to leave many small indentations
Nail sets-similar to shotgun but less fun and slower but more controlled
Wood rasp-useful on edges to rough up clean corners
Scrub plane-gives a hand planed finish when done with a convex blade. Very popular today in flooring. A convex spokeshave can also be used.
With any of these techniques go slow and do test boards if possible.
As for finishing check out the chemical from Weather Wash, that react with the natural tannins in the wood to accelerate the aging process.
https://www.weatherwashcoatings.com
I got it from someone and I think it was just air dried and I thought the worm holes would make it look better it seems like it’s been drying for awhile because it has a couple rot spots
The question is are there any active infestations. Others more experienced with air dried wood may be able to advise you the best way to handle it.
No active investation
You know this how?
My guess ,being that that is oak, those are not worm holes or termite larva holes but powderpost beetles. I have seen and cut through lots and lots of beetle damaged wood and have never actually seen a beetle. You know they are there and they are not microscopic. I think they must be about the same size and color as the dust they produce. In the case of the board in your picture it's not so damaged that you would think that they finished the meal and moved on to new wood. They really do turn posts to powder -- then they move on!
There are treatments for that that you can paint on the wood and will ,or a least they say,eliminate the problem. Mostly, in extermination for termites, they use a gas called Vicane since malathion (sp) proved to be toxic to us as well. If powderpost beetles are detected they have to triple the dose of vicane. So, apparently they are tough bugs as well. Powderpost beetles loose in the house can do a great deal of damage in time. Unless your oak has been cooked or treated in some way the possibility that there are live bugs in there is very possible.
I'm not sure what you mean when you say "Rustic". The Royal Castle at Balmoral is considered "rustic" by the inhabitants, whereas Buckingham Palace is not. By rustic do you mean worn, damaged,distressed? If that's the case-- yah, beat it with a chain. You can artificially get an aged appearance by painting the board with a vinegar solution and setting it out in the sun.