11 most Common Lumber Defects and Their Remedies

Most of the lumber defects adversely affect a board’s appearance, strength, and ability to take a finish. However, sometimes the defects or abnormalities can actually make a piece of wood more desirable, for instance, when they produce a unique attractive figure like Eagle’s eye or clouds, etc. The decisive factor is the use of wood, what may be an imperfection to one woodworker could prove to be another’s selling point. For example, knots are considered a significant defect in boards intended for a tabletop, but they are an essential feature of some types of paneling.