How is lumber made? Watch this video

Watch this video to see how lumber is made at Wightman Specialty Woods.

Coming Soon!

Visit Wightman Specialty Woods this winter in Albany and the Hudson Valley:

Great Northeast Home Show
February 6-8, 2009
Empire State Plaza, Albanyhttp://www.greatnortheasthomeshow.com/

BAHV - Trade Show
February 25, 2009
Anthonys Pier 9, New Windsor http://www.hvbuilder.com/

Fall Open House

Thank you to those who came out for our Open House last month!

Click here to view the winners of our woodworking competition.

Changing Seasons

It's that time of year again in the northeast. The leaves have fallen, the temperature has dropped, and the air has become dry. This time of year, many of us are thinking about "winterizing" our homes.

One thing to consider during this process is how to best control your indoor air moisture levels throughout the winter months. When air becomes too dry a variety of problems start to occur: our skin feels itchy, our eyes become irritated, and static electricity occurs. Dry air also affects wood by causing it to shrink which can result in cracks, squeaks or gaps in floors, cabinets and doors.

The Environmental Protection Agency recommends indoor relative humidity levels at 30-50%. In winter months, it is common for our homes to become dry, in large part due to air leaks. When cold air from outdoors enters a home it is heated to the indoor temperature. Because cold air is not able to hold nearly the amount of moisture that warm air is, when these two mix, relative humidity decreases and the home becomes dry.

There are ways to mitigate this problem and maintain recommended relative humidity levels. It is important to seal and eliminate air leaks to reduce the amount of outdoor air coming into your home. Caulking and sealing around windows, doors, and any other seams, cracks and openings to the outside will make your home more air tight. This will help maintain your air moisture levels, reduce your heating requirements, and ultimately make your home more energy efficient. For more tips on sealing air leaks and to find out where air may be escaping from your home visit the U.S. Department of Energy.

Of course our homes will never be air tight - at the very least, we have to enter and exit our living space. Humidifiers will increase and maintain recommended air moisture levels and protect us from the adverse effects of low relative humidity. There are numerous humidification systems on the market from small, inexpensive humidifiers that can be moved from room to room, to whole house humidification systems that are built into heating systems.

We hope these tips will help you to enjoy a safe and healthy winter!

Our Commitment to Quality and Sustainability

The last time you purchased wood materials, did you know where the raw wood was sourced, or how your materials were manufactured?

At Wightman Specialty Woods we are committed to delivering our customers the highest quality wood materials, while leaving the smallest carbon footprint on our environment.

To reduce the harmful effects of transporting non-native species into our area, we source nearly all of our raw wood materials from our local forests of central New York State. Once raw materials arrive, they remain at our facility throughout the entire milling process.

In our day-to-day operations, we adhere to strict principles of conservation and preservation of resources. From our sawing, to drying to milling facilities, we use state-of-the-art equipment which allows us to generate the maximum amount of useable materials, while leaving little of our wood fibers to waste.

At Wightman Specialty Woods we also reuse or repurpose all materials that would have been waste. Our sawdust is primarily used as fuel for our boilers which heat our drying kilns; remaining sawdust is sold to local farmers. Bark and wood chip materials are sold to landscapers and regional manufacturers of fiberboard, wood pellets and other products.

Visit our website today to learn more about Wightman Specialty Woods' environmental commitment and get ideas for how to use our responsibly manufactured materials in your next project.

Endless possibilities: Square Edge materials

With the winter months fast approaching, now is the time you might be ready to start that woodworking project you've been talking about all summer. At Wightman Specialty Woods we stock a wide variety of northeastern hardwoods and softwoods to accommodate everyone from the professional cabinet maker to the do-it-yourself home owner.

Our S2S and S4S materials are available in a variety of dimensions and grades. Hardwood species include Basswood, Cherry, Hard Maple, Red Oak, Soft Maple, Hickory, Ash, Birch, Black Walnut and White Oak. Softwood species include Eastern white pine and Cypress.

The possibilities that square edge materials hold are truly endless. Our wood has been transformed into hand-carved cribs, intricate clocks, turkey calls, guitars, doll houses and so many more.

For those of you looking for larger quantities of S2S or rough materials, we also accept small lot wholesale orders (500 - 3,000 BF).