Why Use Basswood For Interior Shutters?
Whenever you install fine interior shutters in a woodworker's home, something we've done many times, you're going to have a serious conversation. The first clues the conversation is coming are the television surrounds and crown molding. They're perfect. Then you notice a set of matching custom bookshelves in the den; a hand carved mantle built seamlessly into the adjoining stonework in the living room; some furniture with more inlays than you could ever get stock; and a small turned bowl so elegant the thought of putting peanuts into it makes your stomach hurt. These visual cues though are merely a buildup to the garage. All of this without the garage is merely a pleasant exchange about interior shutters between aficionados of fine craftsmanship. But, if the garage has eight or more pieces of well oiled woodworking equipment; if there's a lathe, a scroll saw, dado jigs, 10 to 15 assorted clamps, a set of mallets and cold chisels and the whole thing is as neat as a pin, you may as well get a cup of coffee and a comfortable chair, because you're in for a debate.
If Basswood is good for interior shutters, wouldn't oak, maple, walnut (insert tree here) be better? No, the other furniture-grade hardwoods all have non-uniform grain patterns. Fine interior shutters depend upon the uniformity and integrity of their louvers to reduce structural variability. Louvers are relatively thin and unsupported and therefore particularly susceptible to swirling grains. We couldn't extend the louvers or control the gaps between louvers as well with "fancier" woods.
I saw some great interior shutters made of poplar. Poplar is cheap. Why don't you use poplar for your interior shutters? Poplar would be an excellent material for interior shutters except for its inherent color variations. Unlike Basswood, which is uniformly tan, a single unit of Poplar stock comes in everything from white and dark green to light gray and near black. Covering these color differences requires layering the panels with a lot more paint solids. This means using either a thick, brittle undercoat (like Gesso or calcium carbonate) or layering the panels with additional top coats. In either case, the extra paint affects the gaps between moving parts and builds up a thick layer around the wood that tends to crack or shatter if struck. Fine interior shutters should be built with a minimum of gap variances and to withstand a lifetime of normal use.
How do you know the wood in your interior shutters has 8 % or less moisture content? All of Elizabeth Shutters' wood comes from Basswood mills in the Great Lakes region and Canada. These mills guarantee the wood specifications and are required to keep current certificates on file attesting to kilning and moisture content. An inspector from the state or province must certify that the wood is kiln-dried to a given time and level. More importantly, Elizabeth Shutters processes over a million square feet of Basswood for interior shutters per year. Each piece is handled multiple times for cutting, shaping, sanding, assembly, etc. The only weight variable that exists in Basswood is moisture content. If wood came in that was wet, it would be too heavy, and we would send it back. Our suppliers are well aware of this and Elizabeth Shutters has yet to return a load of wood for moisture content.
How do you know your interior shutters will never bleed sap? Obviously, Elizabeth Shutters can't absolutely guarantee the future, no one can. All we can do is promise to replace or repair our shutters if they do bleed sap. But, we've been making interior shutters out of Basswood for over 30 years. We process over a million board feet per year. We see the wood when it comes into our factory. We see the wood as we process it. We see the finished panels when we complete the process; when we pack them up; and again when we install them. Sometimes, we see the panels yet again when we come out to install more interior shutters. Our customers see them every day, and have seen them for over 30 years. No sap, yet.
