Facts about wood species
natural colour changes
Kährs wood floors come in a variety of species, ranging from silky, light birch to dramatically dark jarrah. Apart from looks, wood species also vary in versatility, hardness and how they react when they are exposed to normal sunlight.
Wood exposed to normal sunlight is subject to colour changes. As with all natural products made from wood, these changes are expected and add to the beauty and distinctiveness of wood floors.
If you move or rearrange rugs and furniture periodically, you avoid distinct lines between the exposed and unexposed areas of the floor. No matter which species you choose, you can rest assured that it has been sustainably forested.
Ash
The sapwood is almost white and the heartwood ranges from grey through light brown to light yellow with brown streaks. Ash undergoes a medium degree of change over time from a lighter freshly sanded tone to a straw/tan colour.
| Hardness (Brinell) | Spread | |
| 4.0 | 2.8 - 6.2 |
Beech
Beech ranges in colour from light cream to medium tan/brown with pink-orange overtones. It undergoes a medium degree of colour change with a slight muting of the orange colours and ambering over time. Beech is not suitable for installation over underfloor heating.
| Hardness (Brinell) | Spread | |
| 3.8 | 2.0 - 5.9 |
Birch
Birch is usually straight-grained, with a fine, often wavy, structure. Birch undergoes a medium degree of change from freshly sanded cream to reddish yellow as it ages.
| Hardness (Brinell) |
Spread | |
| 2.6 | 1.6 - 4.0 |
Cherry
The sapwood is creamy white, while the heartwood can vary from deep red to reddish brown, which together forms a fine figured, straight grain. Cherry undergoes an extreme degree of colour change with pronounced darkening to a dark reddish colour when fully aged. This process occurs within a few weeks in direct sunlight.
| Hardness (Brinell) | Spread | |
| 3.6 | 1.7 - 6.2 |
European maple
Compared with Hard Maple, European Maple has a lustre all of its own that gives the room a clean airy feel. It takes coloured stains easily, and is popular because of its wide area of application in interior design and furniture. Light in colour, European Maple turns golden over time.
| Hardness (Brinell) | Spread | |
| 3.0 | 2.3 - 4.5 |
Hard maple
The sapwood is cream-coloured, with a tendency to reddish brown, and the heartwood varies from light to dark brown with red highlights. It undergoes a medium degree of colour change, from a creamy white to golden over time.
| Hardness (Brinell) | Spread | |
| 4.8 | 3.2 - 6.9 |
Jarrah
Jarrah has a smooth surface and straight graining. The sapwood and heartwood vary from salmon-pink to deep red. Finished floors often have a dark brown to reddish purple colour, which also deepens over the years.
| Hardness (Brinell) | Spread | |
| 4.7 | 2.9 - 9.0 |
Jatoba, Brazilian cherry
The sapwood can have broad figuring, light pink and sometimes greyish tones. The heartwood ranges from salmon pink to reddish brown with dark streaks. Pronounced deepening of colours, may have or develop white mineral deposit spots as the floor ages. Over time it deepens in colour to a rich vibrant red.
| Hardness (Brinell) | Spread | |
| 7.0 | 4.5 - 14.1 |
Oak
The light brown to darker tones of White Oak undergoes a medium degree of colour change with slight ambering over time.
| Hardness (Brinell) | Spread | |
| 3.7 | 2.2 - 5.9 |
Red oak
The sapwood is white to light brown, and the heartwood is pink to reddish brown. The wood usually has straight grain. It is hard and durable, and it takes a wide range of coloured stains quite easily. Red Oak undergoes a medium degree of colour change over time, with a slight ambering of the pink/tan brown colour you get when freshly milled.
| Hardness (Brinell) | Spread | |
| 3.8 | 2.4 - 6.9 |
Walnut
The sapwood is creamy white - but the heartwood is a light brown to dark chocolate brown, sometimes with a tendency to purple. The wood gains a special lustre over the years and undergoes a medium to high degree of colour change with the dark brown heartwood lightening over time to a more golden brown.
|
Hardness (Brinell) |
Spread |
|
| 3.4 | 2.0 - 5.1 |
