Western, verses Eastern cedar.

[LinuxRandal]

I don't know exactly what is the difference (other then location from), or why you see Western outside for fencing/etc, verses Eastern, for Closets/chests.

I have about 100bdft (little more) of Eastern, I bought at a little over $1 a board foot a few years back, to build some shelves and such for my mom. She ended up with a rubbermaid closet orgainizer, so she could move things (I installed, and she has never moved).
I was thinking of a couple of airondeck/Jeff?s chairs. Would this be really a poor choice (trying to use what I have, or should I save for later).

Thanks

[jackellis]

I think eastern cedar is what's known as aromatic cedar while western cedar has an awful aroma when cut.

The eastern stuff drives away moths, which is why it is used inside chests. The western stuff is rot resistant. Our decks are made from it. Lightweight, not really strong, machines very easily, has a mildly unpleasant odor when machined.

[jziegler]

Is is eastern (or atlantic) white cedar? Light tan in color. If it is the redish colored, aromatic cedar, that is not really for outdoor projects. There are distinct and very differnt red and white eastern cedars.

Jim

[pelligrini]

I've never noticed an unpleasant smell when milling the non-aromatic cedar. Don't know which is western or eastern. I planed down some left over fence boards for some trim on a porch awning I was doing on my shop last weekend. It had a cedar smell, but not nearly as pronounced as the really red stuff chests are made out of.

[Mr__Bill]

Here, out west, we have both aromatic cedar and non-aromatic cedar. I am sure this only adds to the confusion



Bill, on the sunny Oregon Coast

[mschrank]

Here, out west, we have both aromatic cedar and non-aromatic cedar. I am sure this only adds to the confusion

Bill, on the sunny Oregon Coast

If we really want to confuse things, it should probably be pointed out that eastern red cedar and western red cedar are totally different species...and neither is a true cedar.

None of the "cedars" that grow naturally in the U.S are true cedars. If you look at the latin names, you will see that Eastern Red, Western Red, and Incense cedar all have different genus names, none of which in "cedrus."

Eastern red cedar is really a juniper. Out here (pacific NW), I've not seen much juniper in large enough sizes for a chair. I'm really not sure about it's structural intergrity for such uses.

while western cedar has an awful aroma when cut.

Not sure where this comes from...IMHO, western red cedar smells wonderful when cut.

[tseavoy]

When I lived in Michigan, the predominate cedar was northern white cedar. It isn't a very large tree. Out west here, the predominate cedar is western red cedar and we use a lot of it for outdoor wood, shingles, shakes, boatbuilding, decks, fascia boards etc. The old growth cedar is almost unobtainable now. The aromatic cedar I remember was referred to as Tennessee red cedar, used for cedar chests. In Oregon there is Port Orford cedar which used to be used for arrow shafts and caskets. In Alaska there is alaska or yellow cedar (really a cypress) and is an excellent boatbuilding wood and getting hard to obtain.

Tom on Marrowstone

[billwmeyer]

I live in Kansas. We must have middle cedar.
Bill

[bruce hylton]

I spent many years with a powersaw in my hands as a "Shake Rat", timber faller, and mill owner/operator. The worst smell you can get from cedar is the money you are paid with and it smells like paper.

[Black wallnut]

Western red cedar smells fine when cut. As does walnut and alder. Red oak on the other hand and especially poplar smell bad.

[crokett]

Red oak doesn't smell bad when cut. Poplar does though.

[Pappy]

I live in Kansas. We must have middle cedar.
Bill

You have a tree in Kansas now?????

[LCHIEN]

A quick trip to Wikipedia:
Cedar is a genre of wood found in the middle east (Lebanese Cedar) which are true cedars.




Red Cedars are noted as follows

• Toona ciliata, an Australian / Asian rainforest tree
• Juniperus virginiana, a North American juniper
• Thuja plicata, a North American tree in the cypress family.

Of the American Red cedars, one is actually a Juniper (second one), and is called Eastern Red Cedar or Aromatic cedar and is rot resistant and used to line cedar closests and chests as well as fence posts. Found in the Eastern US.

The Western Red Cedar is really a member of the Cypress family (third one) and is found in the Western US and is rot resistant and also quite aromatic, used for fences, fence posts, shingles and also for lining cedar chests.

Both are claimed to repel moths and insects, hence the use in chests and closets, due to their persistent aromatic oils.

on a personal note, I found the WRC aroma when woodworking with it tends to be rather pleasant rather than unpleasant as a couple of posters have stated.

[billwmeyer]

You have a tree in Kansas now?????

I live in the Southeast corner of the state. We get some spillover from Arkansas, Oklahoma and Missouri. Here is some "middle" cedar I just picked up at auction for about $.15 a board ft.!!
Bill

[HarmsWay]

A quick trip to Wikipedia:
Cedar is a genre of wood found in the middle east (Lebanese Cedar) which are true cedars.

Where ever I go I take pictures of interesting trees. This is a Lebanon Cedar (cedrus libani) that lives in the Cambridge University Botanical Gardens.

Like several others in this forum, I live in the middle of WRC country. I have a few in my yard, but mine are not too impressive once you've seen the monsters growing in the forest. We still have pockets of first growth. I like the smell of WRC in the forest or fresh cut. WRC is not just for outdoor projects though. Any Canadian "west coast" style home will use it for architectural elements inside.

Yellow cedar grows not too far from here (within a few hundred km's). It has an interesting smell and is a bit boring to look at but it has pretty impressive structural properties.

The only aromatic cedar I've seen is in packages sold for closet liners.

Bob