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How to Measure Wood Density

Calculate wood density by measuring its mass and volume. In the Imperial system of measurements used in the United States, density is often measured in units of pounds per cubic feet. This is technically called specific weight, since "pounds" is a measure of weight and not mass. Since weight and mass are closely related by gravity, which only varies a small amount on earth, this specific weight measurement is still considered a measure of density.

Tape measure
Weight scale
Piece of wood

Instructions

- 1
  Weigh the piece of wood in units of pounds. Do this on a weight scale.
- 2
  Measure the length, width and height of the block of wood. This measurement should be in units of feet.
- 3
  Calculate the volume of the block of wood by multiplying length times width times height for rectangular pieces. Calculate the volume of a cylinder by dividing the diameter by two to calculate the radius. Square the radius and multiply the result by 3.14 times the length. As an example, if you had a piece of firewood that was 1.25 feet long with a diameter of 1 foot, then the radius would be .5 feet and the volume would be .98 cubic feet.
- 4
  Divide the weight by the volume to calculate specific weight, or Imperial density. In the example, if the weight was 10 pounds, then the density would be 10.2 pounds per cubic feet.

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