# wood smells like dog doo when cut



## MikeGager

im cutting some old 2×4s and they give a distinct aroma of puppy poo when cut. the smell seems to stick around for awhile too. these boards are old (1930s) framing 2×4s i took out of my attic during a remodel.

any idea why they smell that way or maybe a clue to what kind of wood they are? i have been calling them douglas fir but they could be some sort of pine. i dont really know


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## saddletramp

Dog wood? ;-D


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## wiswood2

i had some oak that smelled like that, dont know why.
Chuck


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## Karson

I've cut some wood that was in a selection of popular. Kinda looks like popular but has a real bad smell/


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## Skillet

Wish I could tell you. Sell it to a kennel. Oh! and by the way, don't burn it!


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## Gene01

Possibly cottonwood. They smell terrible. They pickup whatever is in the ground water. Dog poo, cat poo, human poo, cow poo….. 
I cut on one that had grown close to an outhouse. Gawdawful!


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## kiefer

i have had many oak boards over the years that smell like cow pee and always wonderd as to what causes this until one day i came to me
as a youngster i lived out in the country and i remember cows gathering around big oak trees for shade and leaving their deposits which i am sure got soaked up by the tree hence the smell in the boards from the tree 
so now i call those boards pee oak
also when framing with spruce lumber i get this cat pee odor in my nose but have not figured that one out

kiefer


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## rance

Well, I've heard that King Wood smells like a wet dog. Wet dog/dog poo…..... not much different. But the color is not even close.


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## auggy53

red oak smells like dog crap everytime i cut it


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## ksSlim

>Kiefer Probably why my Dad refered to chair seat wood as "Piss Elm".


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## spunwood

I vote for oak, had that experience with it.


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## MikeGager

yeah oak has an interesting smell but i dont find it unpleasant.


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## pjones46

Could it be Bat feces? You said it was in the attic and bats if they get in can really make a mess.


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## Greedo

hmmm, oak has that nice smell of "expeniveness" mixed with lung cancer. you like to smell it, though you know it's gonna kill you!

funny this thread comes up now, yesterday in class my teacher planed some african hardwood strips and the smell was really like butt sweat!


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## McKinneyMike

Greedo,

I guess I have never been close enough to someone else's crack to know what butt sweat smells like  Sorry I could not resist. LOL!!!

Sounds like the wood might have been Zebrawood. It is not the most pleasant smelling wood to work with IME.


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## greasemonkeyredneck

It's quite possibly cottonwood. I use a lot of cottonwood. Some spots in it, especially if you cut into some of the darker areas, smell like, uh, well, crap.
I've heard some older guys who didn't know what it was call it ********************um wood. No I'm not making that up. I had one guy try and tell me seriously that this was the proper species name for this wood. I would have probably believed him if I didn't already know it was cottonwood.


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## MikeGager

does cottonwood look like pine?


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## StumpyNubs

First question is how heavy is it? Can you easily mark it with your thumbnail (not the old outdise surface, check a freshly milled surface)? You should be able to tell if it's a type of pine or a hardwood pretty easily. what does the end grain look like? Oak has a pretty distinct open grain pattern on the end. And oak does smell. So does Poplar, and sometimes even maple.

But pine can smell too. I have a very old house (1890's) and pine from this one has all sorts of different grains and smells when salvaged and cut.

If it's in the shape of a 2X4 and reasonably light, I'd say it's a type of pine no matter what it smells like. If it's slightly hard and a little heavy, it's probably poplar. If it's pretty hard and reasonably heavy it's likely oak. If it's really hard and really heavy it could be maple. All of those woods can smell like poo and were not uncommon in old construction. (I once saw a barn made entirely from maple!)


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## MikeGager

lol guys i know this is not a hardwood, absolutely no question there. it is either some sort of pine, douglas fir or possibly spruce? basically any sort of softwood used in residential framing construction. the majority of the wood i took out of the attic was douglas fir so i have little doubt that this is any different

i have a picture of it before i cut it but it turned out blurry (cell phone camera)


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## dbray45

And people wonder why we do such a great job with finishes. Gives a whole new meaning to "smell the roses"


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## McKinneyMike

Well from the photo it sure looks like Pine to me.


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## greasemonkeyredneck

Cottonwood looks a lot like pine if it's sanded good. From the photo, it could be. The two woods look a lot alike in the fact that they are both soft woods. Cottonwood technically is considered a hard wood. It is soft as pine though and cuts easily. Cottonwood fibers though are real "stringy". I don't know how to explain that without you being in my shop so I can show you. When I run it through my planer though, if my blades are sharp enough, it'll left the fibers off the top of the board leaving like little tiny strings sticking out of the board. This I have to then sand smooth.


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## greasemonkeyredneck

Go here to my latest project. The top photo is an arch made of cottonwood.


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## jeepturner

Every piece of cottonwood I have ever had the unpleasant experience to fall or cut smelt like crap. However that being said, the photo looks more pine than cotton wood.

My neighbor wood make his shaving horses and pole lathes out of cottonwood, and gawd, would his place stink for months. I can identify cottonwood smell from a mile.


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## chrisstef

Its the ever illusive turdwood !!!


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## Bearpie

I picked up some Magnolia that was cut down because borer beetles got to it and killed it. When I cut into it, PHEEW!!! Needless to say I did not make anything with it except to trash it!

Erwin, Jacksonville, FL


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## lilredweldingrod

It's possible that with a house this old, somewhere along the line a family of raccoons took up residence and got trapped out.They generate a huge toilet area where ever they live. I saw one in eastern Kansas that was at least 3 feet high and about 10 in diameter and stunk to high heaven.


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## Dusty56

I'd second the Pine and raccoon theory : )


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## EPJartisan

Looks like Pine to me (fir always seems to have a greater contrast of early to late wood, but each tree/board is unique) Wood is still basically a sponge, even after being cut and dried. Attic conditions are prone to harsh conditions.. mostly dry, but also cold and warm, depending on your roof type and temperate zone, the wood will breathe… meaning any fungus, mold, or scent can get absorbed from anything else in the area, including animal droppings, old clothes, paper lice.. etc. Funny after all these years there are species I can easily identify by smell alone, so when one smells odd.. I am very curious.


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## matthww

It's probably Grand Fir. It grows right next to Doug fir, looks fairly similar, but smells hideous compared to its counterpart Doug.

There's a way to distinguish (with the way the branches/needles grow) but I forget. The smell is a dead giveaway… slightly citrusy but not pleasant. Could possibly be ********************um fir too


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## MrRon

I usually associate smelly wood with the moisture content. It seems green wood always has a bad smell.


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