Q: What is a board foot? Also, I saw something about Doyle board feet -- what are they?

Q: I need to know what the difference is between black gum compared to sweet gum, and how do I identify black gum. I think I am getting black gum in my sweet gum and our customers do not want it.

Q: I have a flooring project we have just completed for a local college. The floors which we glued down to the base have buckled and lifted several inches off the floor at the top of the buckles. The contractor was not controlling the humidity after installation. Readings indicate that the relative humidity was 85 percent with a temperature of 65 degrees. Recently, the moisture levels have since been controlled and are stabilized below 55 percent, but the buckles are not entirely gone. Am I correct that this a moisture problem due to the high RH?

Q: What's the ideal ambient temperature and humidity level for a veneer gluing operation? We've heard about 50 percent relative humidity, but we're having difficulty maintaining it; our workers don't like the warm temperatures. What's the ideal balance?

Q: How can I separate white ash from black ash. I think our supplier is slipping some black ash into our white ash; at least the wood is much browner.

What really defines big in the 21st century woodworking industry?

Q: We continue to have problems with cherry oxidation. We build doors that go into inventory in our door racks. Occasionally, some stacks may be there for long periods. The edges of the door and panel profile are sanded as the door is being built, but not the faces of the styles and rails. As we pull doors and send them through the final sanding lines, the stiles and rails and the center of the panel get sanded. This leaves a darker edge that was exposed to the air and light while in the door racks. This causes a quality problem for us, as most of our cherry goes out in a natural or light stain. We are proposing to put some type of curtain up around the cherry racks. Will this help? Do you have any suggestions?