Secondary Wood-Using Industries. 



The industries of Idaho which consume lumber 

 in the manufacture of their products are small in 

 number and with but few exceptions consume no 

 great quantity. All of the industries combined use 

 only 19,489,800 feet of lumber annually. Of this 

 amount 85.5 per cent is grown within the state, 

 and the balance, 14.5 per cent, is imported from 

 other states to serve the needs of local manu- 

 facture. 



The following is a summary of the wood used 

 in the state of Idaho, by species, and gives data 

 which indicates the scope of the development of 

 industries in the state which consume wood in 

 the process of manufacture: 



The thickness of box boards varies according to 

 the kind of boxes manufactured, but is one inch 

 or less. 



yellow pine being the most serviceable, is espe- 

 cially suited for casing and framing because it 

 does not warp easily, takes paint well and has a 

 Table U Boxes and Crates, Packing. 



Sash and Doors, Blinds and Millwork. 

 For the manufacture of sash and doors several 



Table I Summary of Kinds of Wood Used In Idaho. 



Less than 1/100 of 1%. 



The total cost of all "woods used by Idaho in- 

 dustries annually as shown by Table 1 is $341,901, 

 based on delivered prices. The average cost is 

 $17.54 per thousand feet board measure, which 

 indicates the cheap quality of wood necessary to 

 sustain the wood-using industries of the state. It 

 is significant that the principal timber species of 

 Idaho, western yellow pine, furnishes 73.99 per 

 cent of all wood used by its industries, while 

 western white pine, which ranks second in the 

 importance of the commercial species of the state, 

 furnished 19.33 per cent. No other wood is used 

 in appreciable quantities except Douglas fir, 

 which furnishes 5.33 per cent of the total consump- 

 tion. 



Only thirteen species of wood contribute raw 

 material for the industries of the state, and it is 

 significant that less than 1 per cent of the wood 

 consumed is represented by six species of hard- 

 woods. Two of these hardwoods are produced 

 within the state, namely, black cottonwood and 

 apple wood. Cottonwood itself constitutes about 

 one-third of the hardwoods utilized. 



While western white pine is cut in larse quan- 

 tities by Idaho sawmills, 43.37 per cent of the 

 amount reported by the industries was imported 

 from outside the state. The Douglas fir used in 

 the state is obtained principally from the west 

 coast. The local trees of this species yield 

 material unsuited to the needs of such industries. 

 Only two and forty-one one hundredths per cent of 

 the Douglas fir was supplied by local saw mills, 

 while the state itself supplied 97.59 per cent of 

 the western yellow pine to its wood working 

 plants. 



Boxes and Crates, Packing. 



The manufacture of boxes ranks first in the 

 amount of wood consumed by wood-using indus- 

 tries in Idaho. The manufacture is confined largely 

 to fruit boxes for use in Southern Idaho and for 

 packing boxes, which find a local market. The 

 home woods are eminently suited to this purpose. 



Western yellow pine constitutes 98.49 per cent 

 of the wood actually manufactured into boxes and 

 all of the wood used for this purpose grows in 

 Idaho. Western white pine furnishes a little less 

 than 1 per cent and cottonwood and western larch 

 the balance. No wood is imported by box manu- 

 facturers. The light weight and strength of west- 

 ern yellow pine make it most desirable for fruit 

 boxes. Its value prohibits its use for rough pack- 

 ing boxes, which demand is met mostly by western 

 larch. 



In addition to the boxes manufactured in the 

 state, large quantities of box lumber are produced 

 in planing mills and subsequently manufactured 

 Into the finished form outside the state. The large 

 areas of Idaho and contiguous states devoted to 

 horticulture and the suitability of western yellow 

 pine and other native woods for boxes indicate 

 an expansion of this industry. 



The requirements of a good box wood are 

 strength, light weight, ability to nail without 

 splitting, and ability to hold nails. Strength 

 rather than light weight is a requisite of boxes 

 used for shipping apples and other fruit, and west- 

 ern yellow pine is better suited than other avail- 

 able species. Lumber for box manufacture is ob- 

 tained in rough form or surfaced on one or two 

 sides. Widths vary up to 12 inches, and the box 

 lumber is usually one inch thick before surfacing. 



of the local woods of Idaho are well adapted. 

 Such woods should be straight grained, fairly hard, 

 easily worked, and capable of taking a good fin- 

 ish. Western yellow pine, which leads all other 

 species in the amount consumed, must be thor- 

 oughly dried before using in order to remove the 

 small amount of pitch in the wood and at the 

 same time prevent swelling or warping after man- 

 ufacture. White pine, which takes second place 

 among the woods used, works more easily than 

 yellow pine, and is well adapted for this purpose. 

 The somewhat higher price which white pine 

 brings and the fact that yellow pine serves equally 

 as well, prevents the former from coming more 

 into use for this purpose. 



Douglas fir obtained from the coast is used for the 

 higher class of doors where the beauty of its grain 

 can be exhibited to the best advantage by stain- 

 ing. Douglas fir is harder than either western 

 yellow or western white pine and does not work 

 as easily. 



All of the yellow pine and about three-fourths of 

 the white pine used for sash and doors is obtained 

 from Idaho mills. The remaining white pine is 

 brought in from the state of Washington. The 

 coast fir is somewhat softer and better* for sash 

 and doors than that grown in Idaho, and the 

 entire amount used is brought in from Western 

 Oregon and Washington. 



While sash and doors are manufactured in 

 quantities in this state, vast amounts of western 

 yellow pine and western white pine are shipped 

 from the state in the form of shop and factory 

 lumber for consumption by sash and door fac- 

 tories in Eastern states and Middle Western 



states. 



Table HI Sash, Doors, Blinds and General Millwork. 



uniform and attractive grain. For window and 

 door frames its strength, comparative hardness 

 and working properties commend it. 



The grain of Douglas fir commends it especially 

 and the non-warping and shrinking properties of 

 white pine give it preference where enamel paints 

 are to be used. 



Western larch is the cheapest wood used for 

 this purpose. It serves as a substitute for coast 

 fir where natural finish and staining is desired. It 

 supplies framing material principally. The lum- 

 ber is obtained rough, except that it is surfaced 

 one or two sides, and sometimes surfaced two 

 sides and one edge. For framing, thick stock to 

 2 inches, and 6 inches or wider, is employed. Clear 

 surfaced lumber 1 inch thick is required for 

 window and door casing. This is obtained in 

 various lengths up to 16 feet, and in widths not 

 less than 4 inches. 



Fixtures. 



The line of distinction between industries using 

 material in the manufacture of planing mill pro- 

 ducts, such as finish and siding, and industries 

 that use material classed as fixtures, must be 

 drawn more or less arbitrarily. Many planing 

 mills produce forms which are made into fixtures 

 by house builders and carpenters. These are not 

 included in the table for this industry, which 

 represents only the manufacture of fixtures by 

 wood-working plants. 



This industry ranks third in the amount of 

 material consumed, and manufacturers report six 

 different woods. The three principal ones, Doug- 

 las fir, redwood and eastern oak, are not grown in 

 this state. These constitute 85 per cent of all 

 the wood used for fixtures. Douglas fir is employed 

 in much greater amounts than any other wood. 

 The high price paid for it indicates that the best 

 grades alone are serviceable. The beauty of the 

 grain of Douglas fir, especially when finished by 

 staining; its hardness, and the fact that it works 

 fairly well and takes varnish, paint and stains 

 well, make it a very desirable wood for this pur- 

 pose. Where a wood cheaper than eastern hard- 

 woods is required for finish or fixtures, Douglas fir 

 finds preference. 



California redwood is rapidly coming into favor 

 in the state and ranks second in the amount used 

 for fixtures. Where a dark, rich wood, similar to 

 mahogany, is desired, redwood is utilized and is 

 generally employed for bar and store fixtures. It 

 is soft and works easily and when seasoned be 

 fore shaping, holds its form permanently. 



Eastern oak is used to a large extent where 

 high-class work is wanted. Oak has always been 



Sash and door stock is usually received at the 

 factory in rough form of any length, but not less 

 than 6 inches wide. The thickness varies from 

 1 to 2% inches and the stock must be clear in 

 lengths suitable for rails, mullions and stiles. 

 The grade of the stock is judged by the door or 

 sash cuttings it will yield. Shop or factory lum- 

 ber is some times obtained surfaced on two sides. 



For door and window casings and framing, local 

 woods and Douglas fir from the west coast are 

 employed. The use is very similar to planing mill 

 products used for sash and doors. Practically the 

 same species and grades are employed. Western 



Table IV- 



been considered a superior material for this pur- 

 pose and where a modest, rich and very attractive 

 grain is desired, it is hard to find a more desirable 

 material. 



Western white pine finds service for the cheaper 

 grades of fixtures and in parts that are not easily 

 seen. Western yellow pine is used in lesser 

 quantities, especially where a cheap but attractive 

 wood is wanted. 



The state has no native woods which can supply 

 the demand for high-class fixtures and finish, al- 

 though western larch will undoubtedly meet favor 

 for this purpose when better understood. No 

 -Fixtures. 



