27/07/2026
Why did this table top crack? 🌳
We laminated this solid timber top to spec — but the design, breadboard frame, and steel fixings were done by the client's own installer. And that's exactly where this crack started.
Timber never stops moving. Even fully finished and installed, it absorbs and releases moisture with the seasons — swelling across its width in humid months, shrinking back in dry ones. That's not a flaw, it's just what wood does.
Good design plans for that movement. A breadboard end or frame needs to let the top slide slightly at the fixing points — usually with slotted holes or elongated screw holes, not a rigid, fully tightened fixing. In this case, the steel fixings held the top down tight on all sides. With nowhere left to expand into, the timber split right down the grain instead.
A laminated top is only as good as the frame and fixings it's built into. If you're designing or installing your own base, frame, or fixings around one of our tops, it's worth getting that detail checked before it's screwed down for good.
Got a cracked top and want to know why? Send us a photo — happy to take a look. 🪵
