About Frank Pouwer
Who are we?
At WoodWorldWide by Frank Pouwer Reclaimed Wood we are proud owners of one of Europe’s largest stocks of used wood. From this stock we provide other wood lovers, both private and business, with the most beautiful beams, planks, posts and floors. We stroll all over Europe to complete and expand our wood collection. We bring specimens up to 400 years old to our timber yard. Over the years, the size and diversity of our collection has increased. Wagon planks, old oak beams, pine planks, hydraulic engineering materials, elm trunks, we have it all. Together with the special location of our company and our helpful team, a visit to Frank Pouwer Historical Building Materials is a unique experience.
Frank Pouwer: “I was only sixteen years old when I saw a house built from the remains of a castle on the ‘Palmesteyn’ estate in Deil. Here lies the seed for the current company. I loved to see how honest materials from the old days were given a second life in a new home”.
More information
Visit our company website over at https://www.frankpouwer.com
Our beams and climate
Air dried beams are essential in a succesful building project, they are like a good wine or whiskey and need a long period to get to their prestine quality. If you were to build with fresh beams there is a good chance you risk the structural integrety of the project as fresh beams warp, shrink and crack when drying. At WoodWorldWide by Frank Pouwer Reclaimed Wood we give the beams an optimal environment in their natural drying proces so the beams do not warp, shrink or crack.
In the Netherlands we have a perfect climate for drying oak beams and with our location close to the Rhine river the air - slightly moist - dries the beams to their most aesthetic potential. The beams often come in fresh from the saw, where they have been treated and prepared to be stored for several years, we sort them and give them enough room to shrink. Did you know that a fresh beams loses up to 30% of it's weight in the drying process? Here at Woodworldwide by Frank Pouwer Reclaimed Wood we let our beams dry for a minimum of 5 years until they are gray and fully dried.
In the summer our climate sometimes does more harm than good for the beams, they can dry too quickly - for example when the weather has been hot without rainfall. When the beams dry too quickly they can start to form cracks and splices, something that harms the structural integrety of the beam as well as the aesthetic. That is why we have installed special sprinkler systems that provide the beams with moisture and cool them off. It is also important to decrease the minimum and maximum temperatures the beam experiences during a day and night cycle, the water also helps with this.
