Ah, as much as summer is a welcomed season after a cold winter, with it comes humidity. With humidity come sticky tabletops and drawers even in your Amish furniture. Wood is hydroscopic, meaning it sucks up water from the base and draws it up to its very tops. The water it sucks up is either liquid water or water vapor (humidity). Therefore, you can say, wood is like a sponge and with that being said only goes to mean that your Amish furniture is a sponge as well.
Say you lived in a tropical climate and moved to a dryer lower moisture climate. When you arrive with your Amish furniture, you may notice a change in the way your drawers work. In the tropical climate, your Amish furniture adjusted to the climate if you did not have air conditioning controlling the climate in your home and the doors likely stuck due to the moisture it absorbed over time. When you arrive in a lower moisture climate, your furniture naturally adjusts to its new living condition and will release the extra moisture into the air. This release will cause the wood to shrink.
Wood naturally swells and shrinks the most around the growth rings of the tree. When crafting furniture, the Amish must account for this movement or the wood may crack. With their long history in furniture design, they have this mastered it for the most part, but cannot do anything about the environment in your home.
If you are purchasing a new piece of Amish furniture, give it a good week to become accustomed to its new environment. Monitor the humidity level in your home and keep it in the 35% to 45% range. Summer humidity can cause some tabletops to stick tight. When you get the table open, apply some wax on the dowel pins and slides and it should remedy the problem in the future.
If you live in a high moisture area and cannot control your humidity level yet want to purchase Amish furniture, look into purchasing Amish furniture built from quarter-sawn white oak. It is naturally resistant to water damage and the quarter-sawing places the growth rings nearly vertical. This causes the wood to “swell” nearly vertical and allows the wood to expand and contract lessening the chances of twisting, cupping, or cracking.
ABOUT THE PICTURE
Escalade 7 Drawer Dresser with Mirror
The BEC-04 Escalade unit is a 7 Drawer Dresser that is 66" x 22" x 34" tall. It comes with the BEC-02 Mirror as shown. This unit is shown in brown maple with expresso dye stain. Choose from oak, quartersawn oak, cherry and your choice of stain colors.
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I had never heard about furniture made from quarter-sawn white oak but it makes sense. I have trouble with allergies so we go from heat to airconditioning without opening a window so humidity is controlled in our home. It's a good piece of info to know anyway.
ReplyDeleteHey Earl, I'm a fellow sufferer. I stay inside as much as possible, especially during the summer. We have a smart house and the humidity is automatically controlled. I'd be dead in the water without it. I guess it's good to know that this stuff is available, but it's not something I would be interested in, except for the look of the piece.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if other furniture makers take all of that into consideration. Something tells me that they don't. The Amish stand behind their workmanship. That's why I insist on Amish made for my home.
ReplyDeleteI love the dresser. The large mirror really sets it off. We are looking to replace the set we've had for nearly 30 years. It has served us well and beyond. It's time and I've decided I wants something Amishmade to replace it.
ReplyDeleteThe humidity in our area is pretty constant and ideal for wood furniture. I guess I never thought about how high humidity could be a detriment to it.
ReplyDeleteThe Escalade is a good sized dresser and I like the fact that the mirror is on the large size also. I'm looking to furnish my extra bedroom and I for sure want quality, that's why I'm looking at Amish built.
ReplyDeleteVery important tips! I want my Amish furniture to last forever as it is so gorgeous. Our home looks beautiful due to your furniture pieces. I can't imagine decorating with any other type of furniture.
ReplyDelete