People ask us “Will Choppa Block boards split like all my previous chopping boards?”
We are frequently asked how stable our boards are compared to others in the marketplace and if our boards will split over time (like customer’s previous boards).
Many end grain boards available on the market are imported brands. The imported brands are sourced and manufactured from foreign native timber supplies which normally contain a high moisture content. We don’t doubt that other manufacturers make efforts to reduce the moisture content to suit Australia’s drier conditions, but the timber will naturally shrink as it acclimatises to the Australian environment. As the timber dries and shrinks the board becomes under tension, which will eventually cause a split in the board (most likely along a glue join).
These issues are caused simply by the timber naturally acclimatising to the new drier surroundings; hence an Australian hardwood is far better option, not only for chopping boards, but furniture as well.
How splits happen in a chopping board
For a split to occur in a chopping board, the board must be in tension. For a board to be in tension, the timber must be shrinking. For the timber to be shrinking it firstly needs to be in a swollen state (which is a direct result of excess moisture). Timber will naturally shrink further than the initial expansion, which in turn creates the tension.
Generally, a board will only have one or two splits in the entire board. This is a result of the tension being released once the split had occurred.
For more information about taking care of a timber cutting board, check out our Handy Tips and Board Care pages.
