Wormy Chestnut or Oak?

[Terry Dean]

I salvaged some 1x8 boards from an old barn that was leaning and ready to fall. The barn's owner was planning to hook a cable to his tractor and pull the thing down then set it on fire to get rid of the hazard. (I was very careful and took only about 1/2 a truck bed full of boards from the side away from the lean).

The barn owner said that the wood was wormy chestnut, but after looking at it a little closer I am not so sure. I suspect that it is oak.

He hasn't pulled the barn down yet, and I was thinking that if it was wormy chestnut that I would try to get some more before he set it on fire (after he gets the barn on the ground).

Quesion: How can I determine if the wood is wormy chestnut or oak?

[John Shuk]

They can look similar grainwise but chestnut is somehow warmer and mellower looking. I think the end grain on chestnut looks different than oak. Start by looking there.

[Mike Cutler]

Plane/sand it and look at the grain. the grain on chestnut is smaller/tighter than that of oak, and lacks the typical medullary rays of oak.

[scott spencer]

Sounds like a win either way. It's good if it's oak, it's fantastic if it's chestnut!

Lotsa chestnut pics (http://www.hobbithouseinc.com/personal/woodpics/chestnut.htm) here.

[Thom Sturgill]

About 40yrs ago I helped my dad tear down an old building that we found had been built of Chestnut. He bought a planer just to turn that into paneling and paneled the living room of his house with it. It is beautiful.

I'd grab as much as I could.

[Brian Hale]

Don't forget to grab the posts and beams ;)

Brian :)

[Mike Cutler]

Don't forget to grab the posts and beams ;)

Brian :)

I'd be grabbin' those first! Good point Brian.;)

[Don Bullock]

Great find!!! Get as much as you can haul away. Don't forget to use something like a Lumber Wizzard to find all the metal before you start working with the wood.

[julie Graf]

oak is a lot heavier than chestnut...

[Charlie Barnes]

Having grown up on a farm with several old buildings, I can tell you that you can't always judge the stability of an old barn or shed by looking at it. Some that look ready to fall down can stand for years while others that don't look too bad can fall down over night. I would guess it's a matter of build quality, material integrity, foundation soundness and probably a dozen other things.

Just be careful entering the building and especially of removing any timbers, posts, etc. that might be holding it up. Also remember that once a building starts to lean, there may be some boards carrying loads that weren't designed to do so. Removal of these boards could lead to an unexpected collapse.

Don't mean to sound like Chicken Little. Please be careful.