Pines are one of the common trees and we can find them anywhere. They are good for their durability and working ability. Pines can be used indoors for decorative, household works, furniture and even for outdoor uses. However, they don’t work as great as the hardwoods.
But can you use pine for a cutting board? Let’s find out below.
Can you use pine for a cutting board?
Pines are used as a cutting board because of its excellent durability and working ability. They have antibacterial properties that provide less possibilities to be affected by molds and bacteria. However, they are not the best choices for using in cutting boards as hardwood is stronger than pine.
Pine is not the first choice for cutting boards, but it can be utilized due to its availability, cost-effectiveness, and some of its favorable qualities. When a sealant is applied to pine, it is perfectly alright for use as a cutting board.
Aside from that, pine has a wonderful finish that makes it sturdy and prevents it from breaking when you cut over it. Although pine is a softwood, the end grain particles, which are densely packed, have excellent working durability, making it suitable for cutting boards.
However, in comparison to hardwood, pine wood for cutting boards may not be the best choice, as hardwood is harder than pine. However, pines are less expensive than hardwoods and can be used just like hardwoods if sealed and finished properly.
Pines are also easier to access than other woods for chopping.
Pine can be used as a cutting board if it is sealed with paraffin oil or beeswax to prevent drying and to seal the pores. Because pine wood is soft, it may be shaped and used in a variety of ways. It is also easy to handle and work with due to the light weight of pine wood.
In addition, utilizing pine as an end-grain cutting board prevents the fibers from being damaged during the cutting process, making pine wood more durable for use in cutting boards.
Some claim that pine wood contains antibacterial properties that prevent microorganisms from invaginating the body.
Though pine has several disadvantages, such as being difficult to clean and not being food safe, considering the other advantages, it can be utilized to make cutting boards with adequate sealing and finishing.
Is pine safe and good to use for a cutting board?
Pines are not the greatest option to use it as a cutting board. Pores on a cutting board are undesirable because they allow bacteria and water to infiltrate, spoiling and discoloring the board.
Because pine wood has small pores, it’s not safe for food and needs to be sealed before use. Because of the resins, it can make food toxic. It’s also tough to keep clean, and if users don’t keep it clean, disease will spread.
As a result, pine-based working equipment should be carefully finished to ensure food safety.
Is pine hard enough to be used for a cutting board?
Pine woods are usually used as cutting boards because of their low cost and wide availability, but it is not as hard as hard woods to make a quality cutting board.
Pines are widely used as they are inexpensive. They are easy to work with and we can even use pine as a cutting board. But it’s not as good as hardwoods are. Cutting board has to be hard enough to give a strong grip to cut and as pines are softwood.
But pine wood is not hard enough, thus it can’t provide the same strength. Moreover, it can have scratches and cracking more often.
Is pine safe for food?
Food safety is one of the downsides of pine. Pine includes resins and turpentine that deteriorate food quality. Pine is also not safe because the resin in it might cause food toxicity. Pine reduces the taste of foods as well.
Pinewood also degrades the flavor of food and emits a distinct odor, so it is not suitable for use in food.
Furthermore, because pines are soft in nature, cutting over pine-made cutting boards may raise the chance of bacteria contaminating the food and multiplying.
However, pine can be made food safe by putting wax or oil on the cutting board, masking the effect of the resin and making it safe to eat.
Pros and cons of using pine for cutting board:
Pines are not great to use as cutting boards. It has both pros and cons. Starting with the pros of pine for cutting board:
Pros
Durability:
The end grain particles are densely packed in the pine that makes it more durable than some other woods.
Cutting board made of pine can be used for a long time if its dense fibers are perfectly sealed in a way that water and moisture can’t enter the wood.
Antibacterial properties:
Some powerful antibacterial properties are contained by pines that help to prevent microorganisms from invaginating the body of the cutting board. There are less possibilities in pine cutting boards to be affected by molds and bacteria.
Easy to work:
Pine has a really light weight that makes it easy to work with, easy to stain and transfer it anytime and anywhere. While cutting it’ll give a strong grip and you can cut in a great shape.
Decorative:
Many homeowners keep cutting boards that are made of pine for decoration purposes. It gives a bold look in the kitchen as its grains and patterns provide an aesthetic look.
Cost-effectiveness:
As pines have great availability and grow quickly compared to the other woods, it’s quite cheaper than other different woods. Pine wood cutting boards can be found in every common place and it’s also quite inexpensive to buy.
Here are a few cons as well.
Cons
Large pores on its surface:
The surface of pine doesn’t work as sealant and absorbs more water than others. In fact, there are thousands of pores on the surface of pines that are quite large in size and the moisture can enter and damage the wood.
It’s not hardwood:
For cutting boards, hardwood is the best option. Pines are known as softwood and while cutting you may have some scratches and cracking one the board and also sometimes do not strongly give you grip.
Not safe for food:
Resins and turpentine are the components that hamper the quality of food and they can get mixed into food and increase food toxicity. Moreover, bacteria can grow into it and good can get spoiled.
It hampers the natural flavor of food and reduces the taste.
Hard to clean:
Because of the grains and patterns of natural pine it’s hard to clean it properly. Moreover, it has large pores and food components can get stuck easily into it.
Is yellow pine good for cutting boards?
Yellow pine is a good choice for cutting boards because of its density and strength, which is nearly identical to that of hardwoods, but it is not the ideal choice for woodwork.
When cutting boards are made of yellow pine, it is preferable to seal them to close the pores and prevent bacteria from growing. This also makes them water resistant. The working durability will be increased by sealing with beeswax the yellow pine cutting board.
If the finish is good, yellow pine can be used for cutting boards as it can prevent scratches over it and bacterial residence. Aside from that, yellow wood is simple to work with and may be used to create a variety of craft designs on cutting boards.
Though it is a softwood with some limitations, it comes at a reasonable price and is widely available, making it a decent choice for cutting boards.
Can I use pine for an end grain cutting board?
Pine wood can be used to make an end-grain cutting board because of its dense fibers, which provides durability and avoids scratches or water entry into the cutting board when cutting, though some prefer not to use it as it is softwood.
Pine wood provides a nice grinding surface, which is essential for safe grinding. Pine wood’s density and hardness are suitable for these, so pine wood can be used for end-grain cutting boards.
Do you need to seal a pine cutting board?
A pine wood cutting board needs to be sealed to protect it and prevent large pores from appearing on its surface. Sealing the surface prevents unnecessary scratches when cutting, keeps it from drying out, and reduces the possibility of cracking.
To seal the cutting board, linseed-based oil or other hard wax can be used.
Clean the entire cutting board first, then use any paint brush to spread the sealer evenly across the full surface of the board. The heavy wax oil will leave a nice finish on the surface, making it easy to work with. If you want your pine wood to survive for a long time, you should seal it.
Final thoughts
Pines can be used as a cutting board but it’s not very beneficial. Pines are great for its durability and much easier to work. But because of its larger pores it’s not an ideal choice for wood work. It’s better to use hardwoods rather than pine because they’re not as hard as the other hardwood.