Live Edge in Skoolie Yay/Nay?

[Deb&John]

I really love the look of the wood slabs and live edge countertops.
I’m thinking of installing it in our build. I’m envisioning 2” thick, well dried and aged, sealing on both sides to prevent absorbing moisture. I would think 2” should prevent cracking in the heat / cold. We do plan to live in it full time and for the most part it will be temperature controlled.
Does anyone have experience good or bad with wood slab or live edge? How thick did you use? What happened? How did you seal it?
Thanks a bunch!!
Deb 🤓

[Drew Bru]

We've got wood all over our bus. The countertops are 1" thick wood, the tabletop is 3/4" solid wood. Cabinet doors, bathroom cabinets, etc. are all solid wood.
I just used well-dried wood and finished everything on all sides with polyurethane and we haven't had any cracking or checking.

[somewhereinusa]

I have a lot of wood also, no slabs or live edge, not really a fan. All of it was milled, air dried, planed and finished by me. The walnut vanity cabinet



and speaker grill



are as straight and true as the day I put them in about 8 years ago. Not full time so temps range from -20° to 100° None of it has split or cracked. I usually use tung oil for finish.

I would think that any splitting would be because wood, depending on species, splits.. Not because it is in a bus. Sycamore was splitting almost as fast as I was milling it. Maple, ash and walnut seem to be pretty stable once dried.

[Rucker]

Originally Posted by somewhereinusa

I would think that any splitting would be because wood, depending on species, splits.. Not because it is in a bus. Sycamore was splitting almost as fast as I was milling it. Maple, ash and walnut seem to be pretty stable once dried.

Hickory is beautiful wood but the worst for checks and cracks. Pine is second, because it is fast growing and typically has very high moisture content when green. Pine is the cheapest, so lots of people use it.

Most of the moisture escapes from the ends of the wood, and it's the differential drying that causes the wood to crack-dry wood shrinks. Controlling the drying by painting the end grain while it's curing is the ticket.

If you buy green, you'll need to cure it 6 months per inch of thickness, painting the end grain so it doesn't check. Even then, you may get checking so most woodworkers cut the wood over-long so the ends can be trimmed before using.

Lots of places sell live edge-give them a call and ask questions, they'll be happy to answer.