Sweet Chestnut Back to Home Page

Sweet Chestnut is a superb timber that has been used as an alternative to oak for centuries. In fact for some purposes it is far superior, and yet it is available more plentifully in the UK and more cheaply. In fact we are lucky to still have good sweet chestnut in Britain, as in much of Europe and America it has been decimated by disease in a similar way to our Elm.

In appearance chestnut is very similar to oak, if anything with slightly more striking grain, but a very similar colour and general appearance. It lacks the ray fleck of oak (medullary rays), which appear on quarter-sawn oak, but plain sawn boards are so similar they are often mistaken for oak. It also shares similar working properties, hardness and durability. It is not quite as strong as oak, but is still a very strong wood.

One great advantage chestnut has over oak is its stability. It is far less prone to splitting and distorting as it dries. This means it is really much more suitable for decking, cladding and in fact anything where you don’t want too much movement as the timber dries. If you want a lot of character and splits and so-on you might be better off with oak, but if stability is important chestnut is the one to go for.

What does it cost? The price is simply as for oak, but with 25% knocked off. So exactly the same grades are available, ie regular, structural and clear, or as beams.

Here is a freshly cut chestnut log showing the gorgeous grain. And this isn’t even planed or finished in any way.

For more information about Sweet Chestnut we would be pleased to discuss your requirement.