Enhancing Timber Naturally with Heat and Steam
When you choose Thermowood for your fencing, you’re choosing timber that has been enhanced using one of the most natural processes available.
But exactly how is Thermowood made?
The answer is remarkably simple: heat, steam and nothing else.
From natural timber to Thermowood
Thermowood begins as carefully selected natural timber. Instead of treating the wood with chemical preservatives, the timber is placed inside a controlled heat-treatment process where high temperatures and steam are used to permanently modify some of the wood’s natural properties.
The patented modification process has been developed in Finland through years of research and uses carefully controlled stages of heating, steaming and conditioning.
The result is timber with enhanced durability, stability and resistance to moisture, while retaining the natural beauty and character of the wood.
Heat and steam — nothing else
One of the things that makes Thermowood so interesting is what isn’t added to it.
There are no traditional chemical preservatives impregnated into the timber as part of the modification process.
Instead, heat and steam are used to change the structure and behaviour of the wood itself.
During the process, moisture is driven from the wood and the timber’s cellular structure is altered. This reduces the wood’s tendency to absorb and release moisture, helping to make it more dimensionally stable.
In simple terms, the wood is naturally enhanced rather than chemically preserved.
Why does heating the timber make such a difference?
Wood is a natural material, and its relationship with moisture is one of the main reasons it can move, swell and shrink.
Thermowood’s heat-treatment process changes this relationship.
By removing moisture from the wood cells and modifying the timber at a cellular level, the finished material becomes more stable when exposed to changing environmental conditions.
For fencing and external applications, this can be a significant advantage.
The result is timber that is:
- More dimensionally stable
- Highly durable
- Better suited to outdoor environments
- Naturally resistant to moisture-related movement
- Free from chemical wood preservatives
- Beautiful and natural in appearance
A natural process for a natural material
Thermowood doesn’t try to hide the fact that it’s wood.
The grain remains visible. The timber retains its natural character and develops a beautiful appearance as it weathers.
Over time, untreated Thermowood can naturally develop a silver-grey patina, allowing a fence to become part of its surroundings rather than simply looking like treated timber.
And because the process relies on heat and steam rather than chemical impregnation, Thermowood offers an interesting alternative for customers looking for a more natural approach to outdoor timber.
Years of research behind a simple idea
Although the principle sounds simple, producing high-quality Thermowood is anything but.
The treatment process requires precise control of temperature, steam, moisture and time. Years of research and development have gone into refining the process and understanding how different timber species respond to heat treatment.
The technology behind Thermowood has therefore transformed a very simple combination — heat and steam — into a sophisticated method of enhancing natural timber.
Why we choose Thermowood for Taiga fencing
At Taiga, we believe fencing shouldn’t just be functional. It should look beautiful, perform well and complement the environment around it.
That’s why we’ve chosen genuine Thermowood as the foundation for our premium fencing panels.
No unnecessary chemical treatment. No compromise on aesthetics. Just naturally enhanced timber, engineered through heat and steam.
It’s a different way of thinking about fencing — and one we believe is worth remembering.
Beautiful by nature. Tough by design.
