Overheard a guy at the lumberyard talking about grain direction on door jambs

I was at the 84 Lumber in Raleigh last Saturday picking up some casing stock and this older carpenter was telling his apprentice that he always checks the grain direction on door jambs before cutting. Said he had a job where the grain ran opposite on a jamb and it warped bad within 6 months. I never really paid much attention to that before because I mostly just grab whatever piece fits. But thinking back to a few of my own jobs where doors started sticking after a season change maybe this was the issue. The guy seemed pretty confident so I tried it on a bathroom door I was hanging yesterday. Matched the grain from the existing jamb to the new piece and it sat way flatter than I expected. Has anyone else had problems with warped jambs and think grain direction might be part of it?

2 comments

2 Comments

ryang7710d ago

I get what he's saying, but I've had jambs warp no matter what direction the grain was running so I'm not fully sold on that being the main cause. Your mileage may vary but I think moisture in the house and how well you seal the cut ends matters a lot more.

mia_singh2410d agoMost Upvoted

That reminds me of the time I tried to save money by not sealing the cut ends on a door jamb install. Six months later it looked like a banana. I swear I could have peeled it and made a smoothie. You're spot on about moisture though, that's the real enemy here. People get so focused on grain direction cause it's this neat little rule someone told them, but they forget that wood is basically a sponge with a grain pattern. I had a whole house where every jamb twisted and the only thing that stopped it was getting a dehumidifier and actually painting every cut edge like my life depended on it. Your mileage may vary, but I'd bet on moisture control over grain direction any day of the week.