Darkening of Cherry

[George Bokros]

I have an opportunity to buy some cherry already planned to 1" for a project I will be starting in a month or two. Most of the material will be further planned by me to 3/4", I only need some at 1" for the top. Will this cherry darken in two months stored in my basement shop?

Thanks

[Brian Holcombe]

It won't darken much, but it will darken enough that you will see a contrast. I would wait on finishing the top until you're nearly complete with the entire project then do a final finish planing (or sanding) which will even the color.

[John TenEyck]

Unless it all came from the same tree there's no saying it will all be the same color even if it were all freshly planed. I have a small side table I made where the legs came from a board from a different wood supplier than the rest of the table. That table is 25 years or more old now, and the legs have always been a different color even though everything darkened for a year or two.

John

[John K Jordan]

I have an opportunity to buy some cherry already planned to 1" for a project I will be starting in a month or two. Most of the material will be further planned by me to 3/4", I only need some at 1" for the top. Will this cherry darken in two months stored in my basement shop?

Thanks

I've even seen different color from different parts of the same tree.

There are ways to artificially darken cherry to match, stains, chemicals, etc - google search "darkening cherry wood" or some variation.

UV light seems to be the quickest natural method. Direct sunlight or strong UV lights.

JKJ

[roger wiegand]

I just enjoy watching the evolution of the color over the 2-3 years it takes to reach near maturity--it will continue to darken at a very slow rate for many years. For parts where it will really matter, like a frame for a frame and panel door I try very hard to make them all from a single board, or adjacent boards from the same tree. Otherwise it's pot luck where they will end up. Differences introduced by sanding or planing some but not other boards disappear in a matter of weeks or months and aren't worth worrying about, they will quickly even out.

[Rich Engelhardt]

George,
Here's my take on Cherry. If I want something that's all the same color, I'll either paint it or use a laminate.
To me, half the beauty of wood is that it's all different.

Having said that......

You remember all that Cherry I had in the garage of that rental?
It all sat there for close to a year until I got ready to do the kitchen part of that rehab.
That's when I planed it all down so the colors would be fairly close.

What can I say?
Other than stuff I do for me - - I do a bit different than stuff I do that's for general consumption,

[Lee Schierer]

Cherry darkens with exposure to UV light. Your basement probably doesn't have a lot of that and boards that are stacked and stickered won't get much exposure. If you have florescent lights it will get a bit more UV than incandescent lights. Make your parts using the cherry you have available. Give everything a complete sanding after construction, apply your finish and give it some time. The finish will darken it some and oil finishes tend to darken it more than surface finishes. Most water based finishes have UV inhibitors that will slow the darkening process. After 1-2 years it will reach a very nice color. I personally don't like staining or dying cherry as even stained and dyed wood will darken more over time.

I advise owners of newly made cherry pieces not to leave any solid object in the same location on the surface for more than a day or two as it will block the UV exposure and leave a light area shadow.

[Brian Holcombe]

That's excellent advise WRT the objects.

I have a basement shop without much UV light and still cherry pieces will darken just enough over the course of a few months to cause issues if I want to resurface one of them. DAMHIKT.

[Jim Becker]

UV is only one reason that the wood darkens...the other is oxidation. That said, once you get a piece into a "regular" environment where there is a normal dose of UV, etc., things will even up over time in my experience. I don't bother to sweat about these things and as someone already mentioned, some variance is normal.

[George Bokros]

Thanks for all the input. I will probably pick up a moisture meter and go look at this cherry tomorrow or Wednesday. I am thinking of the General Tools one that is sold at Lowes. I want to make sure what the moisture content is since I am not buying from a lumber dealer but an individual.

[Lee Schierer]

Look it over closely for signs of powder post beetles, they can ruin a lot of wood. You will also want to monitor the moisture change in your basement to insure you don't have problems when you start working with the wood.

[Don Bullock]

Just remember that the almost white sap wood will not darken. It will never match the rest of the cherry.

[George Bokros]

Just remember that the almost white sap wood will not darken. It will never match the rest of the cherry.

This why I will watch what I buy and how I use it.

[lowell holmes]

I might run the cherry through a planer to remove the dark surface.