What Does White Oak Wood Look Like

White oak color options.

What does white oak wood look like.

One of the most challenging decisions to make is what color to stain your white oak hardwood floor or simply leave it au natural with a clear finish. Oak is another common type of wood in north america. Oak wood is generally straight grained and has an uneven texture. Colors ranging from sapwood that is nearly white in color to the brownish gray heartwood are found in white oak wood.

Stains because of the color variations in the wood and the defined grain texture red or white oak take either a clear varnish or a colored stain very well highlighting the beauty of this durable wood. If a tree has been felled cut and split you may need to consider characteristics like the color the smell and the look of the grain. Red oak will almost always have very short rays usually between 1 8 to 1 2 long rarely ever more than 3 4 to 1 in length. Hand scraped techniques are done by hand for an authentic look and feel just like the original pine floors were over 200 years ago.

White oak left red oak right look closely at the picture above click on it to enlarge it if you have to and note the length of the rays in both types of wood. Red oak leaves usually come to a point at the end of each lobe while the lobes of white oak leaves tend to be rounded. White oak acorns take one year to reach maturity while red oak acorns take two years. Many customers don t even realize they have a choice between red oak and white oak floors and just buy what s available or what they see.

White ash finished to look like red oak. Of the more than 600 species of oak that exist in the world the most readily available are red oak and white oak. Identify oak wood once it s been cut. Pictured above on the right.

Golden oak is a great medium color to use when you don t want to go too light or dark. Another good way to differentiate white from red oaks is the shape of the leaf lobes. You ve got to give this stain a try. However there are other aspects of oak s grain that makes it quite unique.

At least with the whitewood pine and poplar pieces. And to be honest on the pine it looks like a true brown without as much gray. For example white oak s water resistance lies in its pores. Both species are light brown in color although red oak usually has hints of red and both have visible growth rings and straight grains.

The white ash received a second coat to further enhance the grain. The two wood samples were stained with a diluted dark golden oak water soluble aniline dye but first the red oak was sealed with thinned shellac so it wouldn t darken too much. They re totally sealed off by tyloses.