Lower prices help white oak sales

Market conditions have improved for white oak, thanks to lower, stable prices and adequate supplies in most areas of the country, according to lumber suppliers interviewed by Woodshop News.

“The price had gotten real high last year, but it’s falling back down now,” says John Sliney of Vienna Hardwoods in Fairfax, Va. “Even a few months ago, people would call looking for white oak and when I’d give them the price, they’d switch to the red oak. But recently it seems like if they call for white oak, they go ahead and buy it.”

Clint Dillon of Steve Wall Lumber in Mayodan, N.C., says white oak is a top-four seller, especially for customers looking for character-grade flooring.

“It seems like the last year or two, white oak has been extremely popular,” says Dillon. “I’m still moving a ton of white oak for stair treads, flooring, all kinds of stuff. Prices have [leveled] out; they’re not going up anymore.”

White oak (Quercus alba) grows from eastern Canada, south to Florida and Texas, and throughout the Midwest. The tree reaches heights up to 120’ with a trunk diameter of 2’ to 3’. The narrow sapwood is white to light brown in color, while the heartwood ranges from light to dark brown. Quartersawn lumber often produces bright flake patterns that are sometimes referred to as butterfly or tiger ray.

White oak has a course texture, is usually straight-grained, heavy, strong and durable, and has a specific gravity of .60. Generally, the wood is easy to work with. It dries fairly slowly and may occasionally check or crack.

“White oak, it’s still very popular, although it has started to flatten out a little bit from last year when it was extremely popular,” adds Carl Mahlstedt of Goosebay Sawmill & Lumber in Chichester, N.H. “The craze has died down a little bit, I would say. At least in what I’m seeing there’s less of a frenzy for it than what it was. We’re still selling a bunch of it. The most popular sizes are 4/4 and 8/4 and there’s still some flooring being made, and we do some plywood and flat sawn. The price is definitely coming down.

“The other thing is we do sell a lot of green white oak for boat builders also that are either steam bending it or using it for keels or other boat parts. It’s always been popular for that, but it seems like it’s been harder to get. Being in New Hampshire, we don’t get a ton of white oak logs. It can just be hard to get a good grade out of it because we’re not in the heart of white oak country here. We only get so much that’s clear, so it can be a little tough compared to red oak where we have a ton of it.”

Retail prices for 4/4 FAS white oak were quoted at $7 to $8.50/bf. 

This article was originally published in the March 2023 issue.