There are a lot of factors to consider when deciding on the right core door. If you’re deciding between wood stave core and Laminated Veneer Lumber (LVL), you’re in the right place!
With almost 50 years of experience under our belts, the team at Western Core has the answers you need to determine the right door core for your application. Let’s dive in on the differences.
First, let’s examine the differences between how stave core and LVL are made.
Laminated Veneer Lumber (LVL) is made by bonding thin layers of wood veneer together with adhesives, typically oriented in the same direction.
During LVL production, wood veneers are typically rotary peeled or sliced thin, dried, and sorted by direction, then bonded and sealed with heat, pressure, and glue/adhesives.
The veneers are usually sourced from fast-growing wood species of trees like Poplar or Pine. The adhesive used is usually a strong, moisture-resistant resin such as phenol-formaldehyde.
Rather than thin sheets of wood, Stave Core (also known as Laminated Stave Lumber) consists of solid wood blocks. The lumber is bonded together with pressure and adhesives and then dried to form a larger panel.
At Western Core, we use top-quality Ponderosa Pine, Douglas Fir, and White Fir in our stave core. Unlike many other stave core manufacturers, we remove knots and other defects from the lumber.
Then, we glue the wood together using an eco-friendly, waterproof, and urea-free Type 1 PVA (Polyvinyl acetate) glue and press it all together using a Radio Frequency (RF) press system. It is then kiln-dried into sheets, stacked, and distributed.
LVL has been in use since the 1970s and is highly reliable and a strong building material. This high-strength product is often used in:
LVL exhibits excellent strength and dimensional stability. Its uniform composition and consistent properties throughout the panel make it highly predictable and reliable. LVL also possesses good load-bearing capacity and resistance to warping and twisting.
Depending on what strength properties you are considering and what direction the laminations you are testing, LVL has similar strength properties to our stave core products.
Stave core has the highest strength-to-weight ratio of any of the core products on the market. While other stave core manufacturers use downfall, knots, and scrap from a cut-up operation, we use the entire board and take extra time to remove knots and other defects.
As a result, you have a higher-quality, stronger product that's suitable for many building applications.
Stave core and LVL both have extra heavy-duty door use strength properties but stave core is known for being lighter in weight.
Ultimately, lighter weight products can save you on shipping costs and reduce labor expenses.
Western Core offers both LVL and stave core products, and we’re currently shipping across the United States. The availability of both door cores does not differ when you work with Western Core.
Request a free sample and compare our stave core and laminated veneer lumber products for yourself.
We're happy to answer any questions to help determine which of our door core products is right for your specific application.
Our samples are a great way to see our core in person, so you can make sure it meets the strict requirements for your products and customers.
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