Expert: Jamie Yocono - 2/9/2007

Question
I thought I would ask the question before I made the mistake.  All of the furniture that I have made has been in the location where it would remain or without significant temperature changes.  I'm about to build a small library (17' X 9') individual bookcases approximately 30" wide, made from 5/4 cherry with a butternut wanes' coating back.  The wanes' coating is about 3.5 inches wide and 3/8 inches thick.  The individual cases will be mounted on a fancy kickplate 6-8 inches off the floor and separated about 2 inches.  The space between will be filled or covered with another piece of 5/4 fluted vertically and stopped  at about 1 inch from the top and bottom.  A 5" crown at the top and some additionally trim is anticipated near the floor.  The fluted 5/4 will give the appearance of bulk or thickness and allow a space to pin the unit to the wall.  I'm a pretty accomplished woodworker but I'm concerned about making the box frames in a shop location (cool) and then transporting them and installing them with trim at their final location.  The material is cherry 5/4 kd.  There is no room to fabricate the individual cases at the site.  The shelve will not be permanently installed as the customer wants the option of adjusting the height.  What steps would you suggest I incorporate to avoid any shrinkage or expansion?  I'd like this to look like an old English library when it is done, so, I am also interested in any suggestions for minimizing the appearance of any fasteners.  Thank you.

Jerry Carinci

Answer
Hi Jerry,

I think your questions are good ones, certainly there is going to be some movement and it's wise to consider how to minimize it.

My first thought, of course, would be to acclimate the bookcases to the space, after you've built them. I realize that many times you can't build them on site, and I'm not even sure you would want to, for I don't think that's going to be the issue. I'm more concerned about the back and the filler material.

A long time ago, I did a job where I had to use some Butternut tongue and groove material as a back for some bookcases. Over time, that material shrunk so much, there were big gaps between each piece. I ended up having to take a few pieces out, and replace them. It was a pain.

So my first thought is that the back wainscoting needs to be acclimated very well. I would recommend bringing that Butternut into the room where it's going for a week or two. You didn't mention if you're applying that to the wall, and the bookcases will butt up to it, or if you're actually installing the Butternut in each individual bookcase. Either way, that stuff shrinks like crazy, so you REALLY need to acclimate it.

Next- if you think about the way that solid wood shrinks, it moves across the grain more than it does end to end. So if you build these bookcases, their shrinkage will be in the depth of the bookcase, not the lineal width of the case. Let's say that you build each unit 12" deep in your shop. By the time they dry out, they might end up a half inch or so less deep. But if you build them 30" wide, they're going to pretty much stay at 30" wide.

Here is the critical thing- I think it's really important that you acclimate all your trim pieces. If you don't, when they shrink, the trim is going to have some gaps. There are ways to help camouflage the shrinkage.  If I were doing this, I would consider applying that fluted piece (that's going between each unit on the front edge of the units) almost like a face frame.  Or- if that won't work, maybe there is a way you could install the filler so that it floats within a dado on the outsides of each unit. Maybe set back a bit, instead of flush. That way, if the units shrink a little, the piece will float in the dado and you won't see a gap.

The only other way I would consider doing this is to screw all the units together, starting in the middle and working your way out to the ends. When you get to each corner, maybe you could design some sort of column into the corner, where it will terminate. That way, the middle part (which is all connected) will stay together, with no gaps. And the gaps will occur at the ends, where you can conceal them somehow.

OK, I've given you quite a bit to consider. But I think the basic premise is that you don't need to build the units on site, just acclimate the trim so that once you connect it all together, it won't shrink too much.  Good luck, I hope this helps. Please feel free to write back if you have any further questions after reading this. And if this answer was helpful... please take a minute and rate my service. Thanks!

Jamie Yocono
Wood It Is! Custom Cabinetry
Las Vegas, NV
www.wooditis.com