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Sweet birch

Betula lenta

U.S. hardwood · Birches · United States

Sweet birch measures 1,470 lbf on the Janka scale, 14% harder than northern red oak.

  • Of the three birches in the handbook, none is harder, heavier or stiffer, and none has a higher T/R ratio.
  • Across all 155 woods it falls in the top fifth for stiffness, radial shrinkage and volumetric shrinkage and in the bottom fifth for T/R ratio.
  • On the Janka scale its nearest neighbours are willow oak at 1,460 lbf and pin oak at 1,510 lbf.

Compare sweet birch

U.S. hardwoodsU.S. softwoodsImported woodsNorthern red oak

Sweet birch · 1,470 lbfCeibaEastern white pineBlack cherryShagbark hickoryIpe01,0002,0003,0004,000 lbf← softerharder →Ceiba, 240 lbfNorthern white-cedar, 320 lbfAtlantic white-cedar, 350 lbfBlack cottonwood, 350 lbfQuaking aspen, 350 lbfSubalpine fir, 350 lbfWestern redcedar, 350 lbfBalsam fir, 380 lbfCuangare, 380 lbfEastern white pine, 380 lbfOkoume, 380 lbfSugar pine, 380 lbfEngelmann spruce, 390 lbfAmerican basswood, 410 lbfNoble fir, 410 lbfRedwood (young-growth), 420 lbfWestern white pine, 420 lbfEastern cottonwood, 430 lbfObeche, 430 lbfPacific silver fir, 430 lbfLight red meranti, 460 lbfPonderosa pine, 460 lbfIncense-cedar, 470 lbfLodgepole pine, 480 lbfRedwood (old-growth), 480 lbfWhite fir, 480 lbfButternut, 490 lbfGrand fir, 490 lbfLimba, 490 lbfCalifornia red fir, 500 lbfEastern hemlock, 500 lbfBanak, 510 lbfSitka spruce, 510 lbfBlack spruce, 530 lbfAmerican chestnut, 540 lbfWestern hemlock, 540 lbfYellow-poplar, 540 lbfHura, 550 lbfRed pine, 560 lbfJack pine, 570 lbfYellow-cedar, 580 lbfRed alder, 590 lbfTamarack, 590 lbfDouglas-fir (Interior North), 600 lbfSpanish-cedar, 600 lbfIlomba, 610 lbfCativo, 630 lbfPort-Orford-cedar, 630 lbfDeterma, 660 lbfDouglas-fir (Interior West), 660 lbfPrimavera, 660 lbfMountain hemlock, 680 lbfLoblolly pine, 690 lbfShortleaf pine, 690 lbfCucumbertree, 700 lbfSilver maple, 700 lbfDouglas-fir (Coast), 710 lbfVirginia pine, 740 lbfAmerican sycamore, 770 lbfYellow meranti, 770 lbfDark red meranti, 780 lbfParana-pine, 780 lbfMahogany, 800 lbfBlack tupelo, 810 lbfAfrican mahogany, 830 lbfAmerican elm, 830 lbfWestern larch, 830 lbfBigleaf maple, 850 lbfBlack ash, 850 lbfSweetgum, 850 lbfSlippery elm, 860 lbfLongleaf pine, 870 lbfHackberry, 880 lbfWater tupelo, 880 lbfSande, 900 lbfOcote pine, 910 lbfPaper birch, 910 lbfBlack cherry, 950 lbfRed maple, 950 lbfRoble, 960 lbfTeak, 1,000 lbfBlack walnut, 1,010 lbfAlbarco, 1,020 lbfSouthern magnolia, 1,020 lbfSouthern red oak, 1,060 lbfAvodire, 1,080 lbfManni, 1,120 lbfAndiroba, 1,130 lbfChestnut oak, 1,130 lbfOregon ash, 1,160 lbfBlack maple, 1,180 lbfOvercup oak, 1,190 lbfWater oak, 1,190 lbfGreen ash, 1,200 lbfBlack oak, 1,210 lbfLaurel oak, 1,210 lbfKapur, 1,230 lbfCaribbean pine, 1,240 lbfSwamp chestnut oak, 1,240 lbfIroko, 1,260 lbfYellow birch, 1,260 lbfKeruing, 1,270 lbfAngelique, 1,290 lbfMersawa, 1,290 lbfNorthern red oak, 1,290 lbfAmerican beech, 1,300 lbfRamin, 1,300 lbfRock elm, 1,320 lbfWhite ash, 1,320 lbfPost oak, 1,360 lbfWhite oak, 1,360 lbfBur oak, 1,370 lbfScarlet oak, 1,400 lbfSepetir, 1,410 lbfSugar maple, 1,450 lbfWillow oak, 1,460 lbfPin oak, 1,510 lbfSapele, 1,510 lbfAfrormosia, 1,560 lbfHoneylocust, 1,580 lbfPeroba de campos, 1,600 lbfOpepe, 1,630 lbfBlack locust, 1,700 lbfPilon, 1,700 lbfKempas, 1,710 lbfPara-angelim, 1,720 lbfPiquia, 1,720 lbfPeroba rosa, 1,730 lbfAngelin, 1,750 lbfBenge, 1,750 lbfShellbark hickory, 1,810 lbfPurpleheart, 1,860 lbfShagbark hickory, 1,880 lbfJarrah, 1,910 lbfDegame, 1,940 lbfMockernut hickory, 1,970 lbfKarri, 2,040 lbfPignut hickory, 2,140 lbfSucupira, 2,140 lbfGoncalo alves, 2,160 lbfMora, 2,300 lbfCourbaril, 2,350 lbfGreenheart, 2,350 lbfTropical oak (roble), 2,500 lbfBubinga, 2,690 lbfBrazilian rosewood, 2,720 lbfKaneelhart, 2,900 lbfMacawood, 3,150 lbfIndian rosewood, 3,170 lbfBulletwood, 3,190 lbfAzobe, 3,350 lbfManbarklak, 3,480 lbfMarishballi, 3,570 lbfIpe, 3,680 lbfSweet birch · 1,470 lbfIpe01,0002,0003,0004,000 lbf← softerharder →

Six measures

Sweet birchU.S. hardwoods medianOther woods

  • Cupping tendency

    1.3812th lowest of 155
    1.092.90
    27% below the U.S. hardwoods median

  • Stiffness

    2.17 M psi15.0 GPa28th stiffest of 155
    0.54 M psi4.06 M psi
    36% above the U.S. hardwoods median

  • Bending strength

    16,900 psi116.5 MPa37th strongest of 155
    4,300 psi29,900 psi
    30% above the U.S. hardwoods median

  • Janka hardness

    1,470 lbf6,539 N39th hardest of 155
    240 lbf3,680 lbf
    8th of 53 U.S. hardwoods; 27% above the U.S. hardwoods median

  • Density

    0.600.65 at 12% MC39th heaviest of 155
    0.250.96

  • Shrinkage across the face

    9.0%radial 6.5%42nd highest of 155
    3.5%12.7%

How much it moves

The two directions move almost alike (T/R 1.38), so flatsawn and quartersawn boards differ by only 0.15 in.

0.54 in.

off a 6-inch flatsawn board, green to oven-dry

Tangential
9.0%
Radial
6.5%
Volume
15.6%
T/R ratio
1.38 (12th most stable of 155)
6 in. green (dashed)5.46 in. dry · −9.0%
Flatsawn
6 in. green (dashed)5.61 in. dry · −6.5%
Quartersawn

End view, shrinkage drawn 3× life size.

Closest substitutes

  • Yellow birch

    14% softer · 8% lighter · shrinks 0.5 points more across the face

  • Manni

    24% softer · 3% lighter · shrinks 0.7 points more across the face

  • Angelique

    12% softer · same density · shrinks 0.2 points less across the face

Compare with the first two

Among the birches

1st hardest of 3, lbf.

Laboratory values

Its most unusual laboratory figure is tension across the grain: 3rd highest of the 73 woods with a published value.

PropertyGreenDry, 12% MCChange when driedMetric, 12% MC
Tension perpendicular430psi950psi+121%6.60MPa
Impact bending48in.47in.−2%1,194mm
Shear parallel to grain1,240psi2,240psi+81%15.4MPa
Work to maximum load15.7in-lbf/in³18in-lbf/in³+15%124.1kJ/m³
Modulus of elasticity1.65M psi2.17M psi+32%15.0GPa
Compression perpendicular470psi1,080psi+130%7.40MPa
Modulus of rupture9,400psi16,900psi+80%116.5MPa
Compression parallel to grain3,740psi8,540psi+128%58.9MPa
Side hardness970lbf1,470lbf+52%6,539N

Wood Handbook Table 5-3b, Table 4-3. Data & method · Guides