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DEF-011 · Wood · Moisture

Unseasoned timber cracking

Sheesham shipped above 12% moisture splits when it meets central heating in the US or EU. The single largest claim category.

SeverityCRITICAL
MaterialSolid hardwood — sheesham, mango, acacia
Process stageTimber seasoning and kiln drying, before machining
SurfacesSix weeks to six months after delivery, in the first heating season.
Book the inspection that catches it All defects
Hairline crack running along the grain of a sheesham tabletop, with a steel rule beside it for scale. SPLIT 0.4MM
DEF-011WOOD · MOISTURE

Why it happens

Kiln time is the first thing cut when an order is running late for a vessel date. The surface of a board reads dry on a pin meter long before the core does, so a batch can look ready and ship wet.

Wood then gives up that moisture wherever it lands. In a centrally heated home in a British or German winter, or an Arizona warehouse, it shrinks across the grain and the tabletop splits or the joint opens.

Because the failure happens weeks after delivery, it reaches you as a customer return rather than a shipping dispute — which is why it is the largest single claim family we log.

Write it into the order

How to specify against it

A defect you can name in the purchase order is a defect an inspector can fail the shipment on. One you only describe in an email is not.

  1. Put a number in the purchase order, not an adjective. "Properly seasoned" is a hope; "≤10% at pre-shipment inspection, pin meter, core reading" is a specification.
  2. Set the limit against the destination climate, not the factory’s. Our published shipping specifications run 6–8% for Canada, 7–9% for the USA, 8–10% for the UK, Germany and the UAE, and 9–11% for the Netherlands and Australia.
  3. Require the reading as a range across sampled pieces rather than one figure, so a single flattering board cannot represent the batch.
  4. Book a during-production visit as well as a pre-shipment inspection. Once the batch is packed, a moisture failure means unpacking and re-kilning against your vessel date.
Where we catch it

The inspection point

Each of these is a numbered check on a published scope, so you can see exactly which visit finds this and when.

Further reading: Moisture content: the defect that shows up after your container lands · Why solid wood dining table tops crack and joints open · Jodhpur risk guide — skipped kiln cycles

Other defects in the library

Finish bloom in transit

DEF-024 · Finish · Humidity
Lacquer cured during monsoon humidity clouds and blushes inside a hot container.

Joint and frame failure

DEF-032 · Structure · Joint
Subcontracted assembly with undersized tenons or missing corner blocks — invisible until a customer sits down.

Short shipment

DEF-047 · Quantity · Count
Cartons counted at the door, not the invoice. Orders arrive 5–20% short with no recourse after payment.

Catch this one before it ships.

Confirmed within 2 hours. Report within 24 hours of inspection. Paid by buyers only — never by factories.

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