Split in wood table top!

[Andrew Rice]

So I've been making tree top tables.

There is one with two splits in the wood that are maybe 1/8" wide at the widest part. I don't have a problem with it since I'm only using this table to play chess and drink coffee on. I would like to prevent the cracks from getting bigger though and want to stabilize them.

I've made a few tree top tables before and I've fixed one with a split once. I remember when I was a kid there were these wave shaped tacks that you'd hammer into the split and they'd prevent it from widening. I have no idea what these are called since I used the last of them. Any help?

[duckkisser]

not shure what you mean by tree top tables if you can take a photo that would be great but what i sugest is a tongue and grove joint that way the wood can shring and grow without poping the cracks between the boards. need more info on how you build them before we can tell you what is wrong with you project.

[TimV]

If I understand you correctly, the split is not between boards. Without a photo, I'm only surmising that a treetop table is one slab of a cut tree. I think you will have a difficult time keeping them from splitting further there or beginning in another place because if you cut these from trees that were downed in Hurricane Irene, they are still extremely green. The splits are occuring because the wood is drying. As it loses moisture, there is an extreme amount of stress incurred in the wood and thus the splits relieve those stresses.

[Brice_Arnold]

I don't know specifics but if the apex of a crack is looked at as a stress riser similar to what you might experiences with a sheet metal panel then you would drill a hole where the crack stops to minimize the stress riser at that local. For a wooden table top, you could look at maybe drilling a hole where the crack stops (1/4"~1/2" dia) and filling it with epoxy, maybe adding dye to the epoxy to try and match the color of the wood.

[Onboard]

I remember when I was a kid there were these wave shaped tacks that you'd hammer into the split and they'd prevent it from widening. I have no idea what these are called since I used the last of them. Any help?

To answer your "wave shaped tacks" question, they are called “corrugated nails” or “corrugated fasteners”. Just Google.

[duckkisser]

i hate those fasteners nothing against them they do the job but when refinishing they are a apain to remove without damaging the wood and i think they look cheap. most wood takes a year for every inch. so you might have to cut and then just stack somewhere do some research on drying lumber its not hard just take up space and its a long.

[dwacker]

Sounds to me like he is talking about a natural edge table top. If that is the case dovetail inlays are great and will stop the crack.

Don

[yodahinkel]

Google Dutchman or butterfly patch.

[RyanLincoln]

In my experience, repairing these defects effectively is nigh on impossible. Because wood expands and contracts depending on temperature and humidity, if you fill the crack, the filler will either pop out if it closes up or the crack will open up further if the wood shrinks. Any more extensive work than this on the crack will probally disturb the surface finish with the further problems this brings.

[dwacker]

Take a look at Jim's web site Urban hardwoods in seattle. Dovetail inlays will stop cracks. Ive been buying slabs from him for years and he will dovetail a crack three inches wide if need be and they dont come apart.

Don

[RyanLincoln]

Tables that have been exposed to the elements without protection, indoor tables that have not been kept dusted and conditioned, and tables kept in storage with extreme changes in temperature and moisture can all split. Splits in wood can be repaired, but not always undetectably. If a piece is valuable or an antique, consider having it repaired by a professional. But for ordinary pieces, you can fix splits in a wood table at home.