Is Balsa Wood A Hardwood Or Softwood

Balsa lumber is very soft and light with a coarse open grain.

Is balsa wood a hardwood or softwood. This happens to be generally true but there are exceptions such as in the cases of wood from yew trees a softwood that is relatively hard and wood from balsa trees a. Balsa wood is very soft and light and is commonly used in model aeroplane building but it is not technically classified as a softwood. Surprising though it may seem balsa is a hardwood. Is the wood balsa a softwood or hardwood.

The terms hardwood and softwood don t relate to the weight or density of the wood but to the tree type. But as the classification of balsa wood demonstrates there is no minimum weight requirement to become a hardwood. The actual hardness or density of the wood has little to do with the classification. The trees are harvested after six to 10 years of growth.

The name balsa comes from the spanish word for raft. Yet despite its softness balsa is technically classified as a hardwood rather than a softwood since it has broad leaves and is not a conifer. Evergreens do tend to be less dense than deciduous trees and therefore easier to cut while most hardwoods tend to be more dense and therefore sturdier. That is hardwood isn t necessarily denser than softwood.

But the difference between these two types of wood isn t in their name. For instance yew wood is classified as a softwood but is considerably tougher than certain hardwoods. It is the softest commercial hardwood. There are many more types of hardwood trees than there are softwood.

Balsa has excellent sound heat and vibration insulating properties and is also incredibly buoyant. The hardwood softwood terminology does make some sense. Broad leafed flowering trees are hardwoods. Likewise balsa wood is classified as a hardwood and yet it s one of the least dense and softest types of.

In fact balsa is the spanish word for raft. Hardwood trees are angiosperms mostly decidous in the northern hemisphere but evergreens in the southern hemisphere while softwoods are conifers. The balsa tree is deciduous and classified as an angiosperm which is the same classification as a hardwood such as an oak tree. Although the wood of a balsa tree is soft balsa is a hardwood.