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Cracks and warpage

Decking boards can crack over time. They can also warp or already be warped before installation. Find out here how you can prevent unpleasant surprises and how your wooden decking can age gracefully.

Why do decking boards crack and become crooked?

Cracks and warping can occur in decking boards as the wood adapts to its environment and the changing temperatures and humidity levels. Two factors are decisive in ensuring that decking boards remain as straight and crack-free as possible: the natural properties of the wood and gentle drying.

The drying process

Drying is a decisive factor for the dimensional stability and accuracy of outdoor decking boards. The right type of drying minimizes warping and cracking as the wood adapts to changing climatic conditions. Two drying methods dominate the European market: technical drying in a drying chamber and drying in the air. In kiln drying, the wood is dried in an electronically controlled drying kiln to a moisture content of around 15%. This process significantly reduces the swelling and shrinkage behavior of the wood. In terms of quality and dimensional stability, kiln-dried timber is of a higher quality than air-dried timber. All decking boards at Betterwood are kiln dried.

The wood properties

Another factor for the dimensional stability of the wood is its natural tendency to warp. There are woods that have a strong tendency to warp and others that are characterized by high dimensional stability and dimensional accuracy. Teak has the best technical values in this area. You can find an overview of the technical properties of the best-known decking woods in our wood lexicon. At Betterwood, we look for particularly good values in this area when selecting our decking boards so that you can enjoy your decking for a long time.

Prevent cracks

Unfortunately, even the best wood can form cracks and splinters outdoors. As a preventative measure, the wooden decking should therefore be treated with a decking oil. This prevents surface cracks on the decking boards. The cut edges of the decking boards should be treated with a front edge wax. You can find suitable wood care products to prevent cracks and splinters in our Wood care.

The German Timber Trade Association has published an information brochure on wood cracks published. This defines which cracks are normal and are part of the natural ageing process of the wood and which cracks are due to incorrect drying or storage.

Installing crooked decking boards

Even crooked decking boards can be installed straight. You can find out how this works best and what tools are available in our Laying instructions for decking boards.