If your home will be sustaining a lot of foot traffic, these two woods are good choices. And because it is self-lubricating and water-resistant, it was, until recently, the preferred substance for shaft bearings for silent-running submarines. An alternative, Koala wood from Australia resembles koa and is half the price. The wood is extremely hard, resistant to rot and longlasting, making it prized for fence posts and small watercraft. A good rule of thumb, don’t use water to clean your hardwood floors! That’s more than twice as hard as Osage orange (one of the hardest domestic woods) at 2,040 lbf and more than three times harder than red oak at 1,290 lbf. Koa trees grow fast and can reach heights of 100 feet (30 m). Call 866-452-2573 for a free quote. The beautiful reddish-brown koa wood is prized for its strength and weight. Comments: Although Koa is naturally quite abundant on the islands of Hawaii, most Koa forests have been cleared for grazing pastures; and since young Koa seedlings are edible for grazing animals, most new trees are prevented from growing to lumber-harvestable size. When cleaning your hardwood floor, make sure you do your research before using just any product. For more related content, subscribe to our newsletter! Bamboo floors bring a tropical look to the Hawaii home. Wet mopping can cause wood to expand or splinter. All Rights Reserved. Hawaiian red sandalwood is extremely rare! Prehung, Jalousie, Window-Sash, Louvered, French Masonite, Bi-Fold, Mirrored and Screen Doors. Mango Wood – Papua Mask 24″ (Mangifera Indicia) is a beautiful light colored wood with touches of gray & brown grain providing very nice grain patterns. © 2020 Meredith Corporation. Local tropical woods popular in Hawaii include ohia, mango, eucalyptus and monkeypod. Aloha, We are located in Kona, on the Big Island of Hawaii, Aloha Woods is one of the best sources for all grades of Hawaiian grown Koa Wood, including a highly figured instrument grade selection. Koa, the best known of Hawaiian woods, grows year round and can reach heights of 100 feet. Naturally infused with a wax-like resin, lignum vitae polishes to a high sheen, making it a prized wood for turners. Many of our local woods are available in lumber, natural-edge, large slabs, logs and even Plywood. This test measures the force required to push a steel ball with a diameter of 0.444" into the wood to a depth of half the ball’s diameter. The specific gravity is around .55, making it similar to American Black walnut in density. Before installing a new hardwood floor, make sure the wood has been sufficiently acclimated to the climate/elevation of your property. The Janka hardness test (from the Austrian-born emigrant Gabriel Janka, 1864–1932) measures the resistance of a sample of wood to denting and wear. If you don’t allow the wood enough to expand and settle, it could start to warp or buckle once installed. Installing metal shelf standards used to be rough on my fingers and my patience. NORFOLK PINE (Araucaria heterophylla) Discovered by Captain Cook on Norfolk Island; used in Hawaii for Christmas trees; wood used for bowls Read More. As a young man, it is reported that Abraham Lincoln spent a lot of time splitting rails and fence posts from black locust logs. Hardwood Decking Supplies Hawaii homeowners & contractors the most durable wood for decks available. It has been used for centuries by Hawaiians to make wa'a (dugout canoes). Macadamia nuts are very hard and dense, and it is impossible to crack their brown shell with one's hand only. Brazilian ebony and Brazilian cherry are the two hardest woods on the market. Bamboo floors bring a tropical look to the Hawaii home. 866-452-2573. It takes some patience, but if you allow your flooring to it sit in your garage or carport for at least five months before you install it, your floor will be happier in the long run. In fact, the highest grades of the wood are still sometimes referred to as “bearing” grade. Endemic Hawaiian forest tree; wood extremely hard & durable, almost black in color; natives made spears & laau melo-melo , a fishing implement, from the wood; wood very heavy & sank. The hardness of wood is measured using the Janka Hardness Test. That’s more than twice as hard as Osage orange (one of the hardest domestic woods) at 2,040 lbf and more than three times harder than red oak at 1,290 lbf. Generally acknowledged as the hardest wood, lignum vitae (Guaiacum sanctum and Guaiacum officinale) measures in at 4,500 pounds-force (lbf) on the Janka scale. Scrollsaw, Carving, and Decorative Projects, Hardness ratings help you choose the right species, How To Make A Translucent Transom with Veneer, Air-drying lumber is more than a matter of time. It measures the force required to embed an 11.28 millimetres (0.444 in) diameter steel ball halfway into a sample of wood. A common use of Janka hardness ratings is to determine whether a species is suitable for use as flooring. Owners of the Oahu-based company regularly go to the Big Island to hand-select the koa wood used for their gracious furniture.