The Forestry Forum

I have cut some Eastern Red Cedar for my friend 5/8" thick by 6" wide I am going to plan them down to 1/2".  He is going to install them in a bathroom.  They have been air drying in my shop for a month and the logs were cut three years ago.  My question is can I tongue and groove them or i thought I might bevel the edges at a 22.5 degree angle so if they shrank the gap wouldn't be as noticeable?  Ideas suggestions please?

To my taste any t&g paneling looks better with a tiny bevel on the edge. You'll never have an invisible crack anyway, the tiny bevel accent is attractive. A lot of t&g cutters have this feature anyway. Some make a rounded bevel, some are angular. If your cutter does not have the beveling feature you can still make a bevel with another cutter and pass.

As for ERC and moisture management I've never used a more forgiving wood. It's the only wood I trust in my climate to use for indoor work air dried only. Your mileage may vary on that last part.

I put ERC up on the ceiling of my bathroom. Planned to 3/4" inch with a ship lap on edges. Can't easily blind nail ship lap so I face nailed it with some modern cut nails with square heads. I like the look and easier than t&g.

i bet that looks good. thanks for the idea