Rain Water Lab Results

Introduction
In my experiment I will be testing the differences of wood being soaked in rain and saltwater for a period of days. Then set out to dry to see if it had any change in width and weight.

Question
Does water affect the weight and appearance of wood over periods of time?

Hypothesis
I believe Red Oak will have the most change in weight in saltwater and the most change in appearance will be Pine in saltwater.

Materials
1/3 8ft of Red oak
1/3 8ft of Yellow Pine
1/3 8ft of Treated Yellow Pine
1/3 8ft of Cedar
4 ice cream buckets w/ lids
Circular Saw
Triple beam balance
Ruler
Rainwater
Beach water

Procedures
1. Get cedar, red oak, yellow pine and treated yellow pine 1/3 pieces of 8ft wood.
2. Retrieve 4 buckets.
3. Fill 2 buckets full of beach water and Fill 2 buckets full of rainwater.
4.
Cut all the wood pieces into 6 inches.
5. Name 2 buckets treated for rainwater and for beach water.
6. Name 2 buckets for regular rainwater and beach water.
7. Place non treated wood pieces in both types of water buckets.
8. Place treated wood pieces in both types of water buckets.
9. Retrieve a triple beam balance to measure weight of the wood when soaked in water. Record data
10. Repeat for non soaked wood. Record Data
11. Retrieve a ruler and measure the width of the wood when soaked in water. Record Data
12. Repeat for non soaked wood. Record Data

Variables
Types of wood
Types of water

Safety
During my experiment I had to wear safety googles while cutting the wood.

Sources of Error
During my experiment my wood was not all cut into same size pieces and the humidity outside had an effect on the rainwater as well as the coldness outside where I kept the buckets.

Application
The way this could be applied to life is when building a tree house or anything, to see which wood would be durable if it was wet.

Extension
The way this project could be improved is by testing the durability when soaked in water by applying human
force. Conclusion
My hypothesis was that red oak would weigh the most and yellow pine appearance would change the most. My results did not support my hypothesis red oak was the second most change in weight yellow pine had the most change in weight, but red oak did have the most change in appearance. My testing did go smoothly, except of the triple beam which balance was not accurate likely do to a problem with the triple beam balance zeroing out after measurement. Therefore I kept zeroing out the balance before I measured each time.

References
Red Oak. (n.d.). Retrieved January 10, 2015, from http://www.wood-database.com/lumber-identification/hardwoods/red-oak/

..:: REPUBLIC OF TURKEY MINISTRY OF CULTURE AND TOURISM ::.. (n.d.). Retrieved January 10, 2015, from http://www.kultur.gov.tr/EN,35285/wood-as-a-building-material-its-benefits-and-disadvanta-.html

Wood, the right choice. (n.d.). Retrieved January 10, 2015, from http://www.nordicewp.com/innovation/wood-the-right-choice/

What salt water does to houses. (2012, November 6). Retrieved January 10, 2015, from http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2012/11/06/what-salt-water-does-to-houses/

Effects of Water Damage. (n.d.). Retrieved January 10, 2015, from http://www.thewaterpage.com/water-damage-effects.htm

Before Soaked
Width
Weight
Cedar
3.8cm
41.7g
Yellow Pine
3.7 cm
44.7g
T. Yellow Pine
3.7cm
43.6g
Red Oak
3.8cm
107g

Soaked Beach Water
Width
Weight
Cedar
3.9cm
57g
Yellow Pine
3.8cm
106.7g
T. Yellow Pine
3.8cm
71.7g
Red Oak
4.0cm
148.6g

Soaked Rain Water
Width
Weight
Cedar
3.8cm
58.6g
Yellow Pine
3.9cm
98.8g
T. Yellow Pine
3.9cm
72.1g
Red Oak
4cm
151.5g

Discussion
The results on this tables show all the changes that occurred when different types of wood were soaked in saltwater and rainwater. Table 1 shows the wood before placed in the two different types of water. Table 2 shows the 2 week soaked saltwater wood that swelled and gained weight. Table 3 shows the 2 week soaked rain water that swelled and gained weight.

Abstract
The purpose of this experiment is to see what type of wood will last the longest in rainwater or saltwater in case of a disastrous situation such as Hurricane Ike. This project looks at which wood will gain the most weight and swelling when soaked in water over periods of day. Wood tested was red oak, cedar, treated yellow pine and non-treated yellow pine. The independent variable is the amount of water in the bucket while on the other hand the dependent variable is the swelling and weight change of the wood over time. My hypothesis is that in saltwater red oak will be the heaviest and in saltwater the yellow pine would swell the most. My results show that it was the other way around the red oak swelled the most and the yellow pine was the heaviest.