Nettle wood is one of the few kinds of wood that are not so common among regular customers but is widely used in its native areas. People have been using this wood for a wide range of purposes since the beginning. It has a beautiful texture and looks good as well but a question arises, is Nettlewood good for furniture?
This question is often asked by customers because they don’t know much about this tree and they don’t have any idea of how it will go with time. There is no second opinion that Nettlewood has been used in the furniture manufacturing industry for a long time now but there are some shortcomings that have restricted this wood to only be used in specific kinds of furniture. This article will go through all these minor to major aspects to bring you all that you want to know, in one place.
Table of Contents
What is Nettlewood?
The nettle tree is one of the 70 major trees of the Celtis genus that comes from the well-known tree family, Cannanaceae. It can be widely found in tropical or temperate areas and is highly popular among local as well as furniture manufacturers because of its ornamental qualities and high-quality wood. It can easily grow as big as 40 to 100 feet and can produce efficient timber.
It was initially used just like a tree planted in streets or related areas for shade but it gained attention among furniture manufacturers as they were getting good responses from their customers. The tree itself has green leaves along with purplish fruits which means that they are able to enhance the environment and beauty of the area where it is planted.
Is Nettlewood water-resistant?
Do keep this fact in mind that there is not a single wood type in the whole world that can be categorized as fully waterproof or water-resistant but it is a fact that some wood behaves and survives better in moisture while others just don’t.
The Nettlewood is not water-resistant at all because moisture and water can easily get inside the pores of the wood and can cause the furniture piece to rot. This can not only mitigate the life of the furniture but can result in other issues as well such as insect attacks, mold build-up, discoloration, etc.
Can I use Nettlewood for furniture?
As said earlier, nettle wood is one of the few kinds of wood that tend to rot and get ruined very easily especially if they get combined with moisture. Apart from this, the wood is soft as well which places it even farther from being used in heavy-duty furniture.
This is the reason that Nettle wood is only being used for the manufacturing of dining chairs as this product not only stays indoors all the time but is only used for a small portion of the whole day.
You can increase the life of nettle wood furniture to a greater extent by painting, sanding, and refinishing the furniture on a periodic basis. This practice closes the pores of the wood and leaves no passage for the moisture to get inside the pores and cause issues.
Pros of Nettlewood furniture
- Semi-hard texture.
- Moderate weight.
- Cheap in terms of price.
- Best for small furniture pieces with minimum usage such as dining chairs.
- Have good bending characteristics which makes it a bit easy to work with.
- Don’t require pre-drilling or any additional efforts to use screws and nails on wooden parts.
- Straight grains give an attractive finish and look.
- Easy to paint, stain, or refinish.
Cons of Nettlewood furniture
- Not so durable wood especially for the furniture.
- Don’t resist rotting.
- Non-water-resistant.
- Prone to insect attacks and mold if exposed to water.
- There can come some knots which can make the manufacturing process a bit difficult for the woodworker.
How to identify Nettlewood furniture?
Firstly you need to keep this thing in mind that almost all trees have wood of two different colors depending upon the area from where the wood has been extracted to be used in furniture. The heartwood of the nettle wood has a color somewhere between gray to brown but when it comes to sapwood, it is completely different as it comes in bright to light yellowish color.
If you have ever encountered White Ash Wood or have seen furniture made up of that wood, you can easily identify the Nettlewood furniture as they both look almost the same. Another thing to look for is the grain pattern of the Nettlewood. It usually has grains aligned in a straight manner while sometimes they can get interlocked and form patterns like chains as well.
How to care for Nettlewood furniture?
After reading all the information mentioned and briefly explained below, you would have a good idea of how Nettlewood behaves in different conditions.
Still, below are some of the best and most useful tips that can help you in taking good care of Nettlewood furniture while increasing its life and durability as well.
- The thing you can do to take care of Nettlewood furniture is to keep it far far away from moisture and water. This thing can effectively be done by keeping the furniture indoors.
- Apply paint and polishing every so often and don’t let it scrape off as it will act as a protective layer over the Nettlewood furniture while blocking the water or moisture from getting inside the wood pores.
- Clean the furniture piece on a regular basis in terms of normal dusting while deep cleaning should be done at least once a week as it will mitigate the chance of mold buildup and insect attacks to a greater extent.
- Always keep Nettlewood furniture inside your home and if there is extremely cold weather and moisture is increasing even inside your homes, it is better to cover the furniture with a sheet or gently rub a cloth on the whole chair once or twice a day (only for the areas where water can be extremely cold combined with moisture in the air).