Aspen Appeal

Carol Wiestra, a cabinetmaker in 100 Mile House, BC, started working with aspen by chance a few years ago. When a neighbour who was felling a large aspen for firewood decided to mill the clear 30-foot trunk into 5/4" x 10" planks, he brought a sample to her Buffalo Creek Woodworks workshop. She was introduced to aspen in this form for the first time (aspen grows throughout the interior of BC in dense stands - see photo). Impressed with the beautiful white straight grain with no obvious distinction between heartwood and sapwood, Carol gladly purchased her neighbour's aspen.

Her next task was to dry the timber for use in her furniture making. As it was early spring, she was able to start the drying process by stacking the planks outside her workshop, using one-inch pine stickers to allow for air flow. After one year the moisture content of the pile had reduced to 12 per cent. She then moved the material into her heated workshop where the aspen reached six per cent within six months. Though she used fairly "unscientific" drying procedures, the resulting timber was tension-free and no warping or twisting occurred when it was machined.

Her cabinet shown here is made with solid aspen and aspen plywood with stained accents. Carol designed the piece around a long pane of salvaged ribbed glass that is no longer in production. The interior is designed to conceal entertainment equipment behind the solid door while decorative items can be displayed behind the glass door.

designing with aspen
Aspen's light weight can be exploited to appeal to consumers in today's mobile society, and the ease with which it can be stained offers designers many possibilities.

The large pores and low density of aspen require careful attention to finishing. Carol found that using a belt sander (instead of an orbital sander) with 120 grit paper gave a superior finish.

To maintain the almost white "look" of aspen, use a water-based finish. Use the more traditional polyurethanes to add a slight colour, avoiding an "unfinished" look.

suppliers of aspen in bc
The companies below supply aspen. (Expect to pay about $700-$800 per 1,000 board feet.)

Don Austin Quesnel, 250.991.9099 (kiln dried)

Hardtech Mills Peace River, 250.782.6065 (kiln dried)

Redkopp Mills Chetwynd, 250.788.2465 (green)

* Strength and Related Wood properties of Woods Grown in Canada, A.P. Jessome, Forintek Canada Corp. 1986

Typical stand of aspen

Aspen cabinet by Carol Wierstra

densification

The low density of aspen is a disadvantage for furniture applications that require high resistance to impact, such as table tops, chair legs, etc.

However, a new densification process trade-marked "Indurite" has the potential to make aspen competitive for furniture applications. Developed in New Zealand, the Indurite process impregnates low-density timber such as aspen with a non-toxic cellulose-like filler, claiming significant increases in the timber's strength, hardness, stability, machinability and other properties.

With assistance from members of the UBC wood-science list server, VCR contacted BC and Canadian "value-added" wood agencies to check if the Indurite process was being evaluated for use with aspen. To date VCR has received no response from these agencies.