When did it arrive?
The Emerald Ash Borer was first detected in North America in 2002, but probably arrived on the continent a decade earlier. Native to Asia the beetle has been highly destructive in North America. Since its arrival it is estimated to have infected and killed in excess of 40,000,000 ash trees. Within 6 years of an infestation arriving in a wood lot 99% of the ash trees will die.
Have you always used Ash for Hardwood Flooring?
Yes, Ash has been a large part of our product line for more than 30 years. We've always loved so many properties of the Ash - it's durability, beautiful graining, and colour variation throughout. It has a similar look to oak, in terms of graining but takes on stains in its own unique way.
With the Ash trees coming down, we want to rescue and reuse as much of this beautiful wood as we can. Ultimately, we are giving it a second life as flooring.
Will I notice a difference in my Ash Hardwood Flooring?
With the normal logging process most of the mature trees are harvested leaving a selection of smaller trees to develop. In the case of the infected ash trees all sizes are being harvested, which includes many of the smaller logs. When these smaller logs are sawn, livesawn grain is unintentionally produced in the flooring. What does this mean? Your flooring ends up having stunning sound character and is more stable than lumber that is plain sawn. With the smaller lumber being used, you will notice the lengths in the ash are not as long as some of our other products.
Does anything get rid of the Ash Emerald Borer?
The only predator to the emerald ash borer is the woodpecker! (Cool right?) Unfortunately, by the time the wood pecker arrives to help combat these bugs - the trees are already infested! Fun Fact: The woodpeckers are able to hear the larvae and mature bugs moving under the board!
We'd love to hear your comments, thoughts, and interesting facts in the comments if you have some!