White oak's popularity lies in its ability to easily take on stains. Pictured here is Shaw Floors' white oak option from the Epic Plus Extreme Nature collection. Lighter colored species of hardwood are trending — in particular, white oak is at an all-time high, edging out red oak in North American sales.
The high density gives the wood more durability, but makes it a bit harder to work with. Another example of a downside is that white oak is trendy, but red oak is still more common because there are more of them domestically and grow more quickly.
The inventory is low, the demand is at an all-time high and so are the prices. Many are surprised to learn that the availability of white oak is not the issue— as many as 5.2 billion white oak trees cover 235,000 square miles in the United States.
This reason right here is one of the main reasons people use it so much! It is also one of the more durable hardwoods; it's harder than other kinds of hardwood like pine (harder meaning more resilient to dents). It's become very popular in new builds in recent years because of this.
White Oak has a decent hardness rating making it resilient to dents and gouges. Even in the scenario where your flooring gets a scratch the grains of your White Oak flooring will help hide these better than smooth grain floors. White oak flooring a perfect choice for kitchens because it is closed grain wood.
According to the Janka hardness scale, white oak's rating is 1360, while red oak has a 1290 hardness rating. The difference is small, and even if white oak is harder, red oak may still be a better option for its visual appeal.
White Oak looks downright captivating when it's installed. There really isn't any other type of flooring quite like it. White oak has grey and brown undertones with a cooler hue, which makes white oak much more versatile and able to coordinate with most interior designs and other wood floors.
White Oak. The light brown to darker tones of White Oak undergoes a medium degree of color change with slight ambering over time.
White oak is a bit harder and more durable
White oak is bit harder then red oak on the janka hardness scale (white oak is 1360 vs red oak is 1290). This makes it a bit more resilient when it comes to denting. Note that this does not have an impact on scratching…that is determined by the type of polyurethane or finish.
White oak floors are a stylish and timeless flooring option that can be customized to suit your design needs.
While there's no shortage of white oak trees across the country – one source said there's an estimated 5.2 billion in the U.S. – there is a shortage of loggers to cut the trees, as well as mills to turn them into the raw wood necessary for barrel-making or cooperage.
African Blackwood
It is considered as the most expensive wood in the world because not only it is challenging to work with hand or machine tools, its trees are already near-threatened. But as expensive as it may seem, African Blackwood is worth the price.
Available in both sustainably sourced fresh-sawn, or storied reclaimed, Ash is a great alternative to white oak in nearly every application. “When folks are looking for a change from Oak, I often steer them to Ash,” said Rob D'Alessandro of New Energy Works fine woodworking group.
Good news, they're not. Both light colors and wider planks have been the hardwood styles of choice with designers and architects for years, however 2020 forecasters predict that this will be THE hot look in flooring for consumers.
White Oak has large open pores that absorbs stain readily. Since it's very easy to stain, there are numerous stain and finish options to choose from with this species.
Durable Flooring
The Janka hardness scale is a measure of durability for wood species. White oak receives a Janka hardness score of 1360, which makes it harder than red oak, white ash, American cherry and American walnut. This means that it will withstand daily use well, without a lot of denting or dinging.
White Oak has a history of "tannin pull" when a water based finish is used. That's why a sealant is HIGHLY recommended/required. It acts in two ways: It greatly reduces tannin pull (slight yellowing over time)
White oak is still the best all-around hardwood and remains in reasonably good supply. It is a valuable, rather expensive wood, but is usually less expensive than cherry and walnut.
We recommend using their Hardwax oil to protect your flooring from damage. They offer a wide variety of colour tones that can either darken the oak, keep it lighter shades or even more white washed options. The colour tones are then finished with a hard wearing layer of Treatex Clear Hardwax oil.
The name White Oak might make you think that this flooring is lighter in color, but in fact the opposite is true. White Oak is actually a mix of browns and tans, making it darker than Red Oak. Red Oak has pinkish and red tones throughout.
White Oak has more of a warmer, golden brown tone with green and gray undertones. Often, White Oak will take stain more evenly than the Red Oak. The graining of each is very different as well.
White Oak, both kinds of wood take stain easily. However, stain colors in lighter white and gray are quite popular today and White Oak is better suited to these hues.
All acorns contain tannic acid and deer prefer acorns with the least amount. White oak acorns, the number one hard mast choice for deer, contain the least amount of tannic acid. Preference can vary by region.