Warping is when wood loses its flatness and begins to bend or twist. Wood can warp for a number of reasons. If it is exposed to high temperatures or absorbs too much moisture, wood may warp. Warping is when the fibers found within wood are altered by the temperature or moisture. You’ve probably experienced wood warping at home. During the summer when the temperature is high, your garden shed door may have felt harder to open. This is because the wood is expanding in the heat and not fitting perfectly to the frame that it was built for.

Do All Woods Warp The Same?

Despite woods being commonly referred to as “hardwood” and “softwood”, all wood types are susceptible to warping. Despite this, some wood types are more resistant to warping than others, such as redwood, cedar or fir. These wood types are resistant to warping because of the natural chemicals found within these woods, offering higher levels of stiffness.

The Different Kinds Of Warps

Wood warps in different ways depending on the temperature, moisture level or uneven finishing. The types of warping are as follows:

Bow – A bend in the wood running along the length of the wood face. 

Cup – A warp on the width of the wood causing the edges to curl up.

Crook – Similar to a Bow Warp but runs along the edge of the wood.

Kink – A confined sharp bend in the wood. 

Twist – The ends of the wood do not lie flat, both are upturned in different directions.

Benefits of Wood Warping

Warping may sound negative, but it does have some creative applications in woodworking. Have you ever seen a wooden arch? This is created by manipulating the natural properties of wood. By submerging wood in water or exposing it to steam, a skilled carpenters will intentionally warp wood. This is a skill often found in creative focused woodworking workshops. 

How to Prevent Wood Warping

Wood warping is a natural process that is impossible to prevent. It happens with all natural wood and is at the whim of the natural environment. However, there are things you can do to prevent wood warping.

1. Apply a varnish or stain once you receive the garden shed. This will limit the impact the natural enviornment will have of the wood by acting as a sealant.
2. Buy wood from a local supplier. Wood that has been freshly sourced from across Europe or the world requires time to climatise to our Irish conditions. By working freshly imported wood, your garden shed, log cabin or wooden building will warp in the typically more humid Irish weather conditions. By buying wood from a local supplier, you are reducing the likelihood of the wood warping to any large extent.
3. Purchase Pressure Treated Timber. Pressure Treated Timber contains an addition that repels moisture to ensure water lasts longer. To learn more about Pressure Treated Timber, Click Here.

Every MCD Garden Shed come as standard with fully pressure treated timber, a steel roof and a waterproof internal membrane. All of our products are built and assembled on site by our team of in-house expert carpenters. To view our range, click below to learn more about some of our quality handmade garden sheds. Click Here to Contact one of our team.

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MCD Garden Sheds are a family garden sheds business based in Naul, Co. Dublin in Ireland. The business manufactures high quality, bespoke Garden Sheds. Each made to order. Read the rest of the story of MCD Garden Sheds

Background

MCD Garden Sheds, owned and operated by the McDonald family, is located in Naul Co. Dublin. This family of engineers create, develop and manufacture all their garden sheds at the Naul manufacturing site.

Before making garden sheds, the company managed allotments through Fingal Allotments, which is owned and operated by the family. While supporting the allotment owners, many of whom travelled a distance to manage their garden allotments, a need arose for a garden shed on practically every allotment. This led to the initial purchase of garden sheds for the allotment owners at Fingal Allotments. Upon supporting customers by sourcing the garden sheds, Gearóid the founder of MCD Garden Sheds was left frustrated.

As an engineer, he found that the garden sheds which were available on the market, did not survive in the tough wet & windy Irish weather. Many of these garden sheds were made using cheap wood, that while in appearance seemed fine, however the reality was that they were not going to meet the needs of his allotment gardeners. Eventually, Gearóid decided to make a garden shed for one of his allotment owners.

Garden Sheds

Upon making a Garden Shed, Gearóid took his engineering knowledge and applied it to a simple Garden Shed. What could be complicated about a garden shed? Well, to survive the tough weather conditions, you need a garden shed that can handle wind and plenty of rain. For this, a metal roof as standard was chosen. Secondly, a strong frame with supports in the key places. Then a breathable membrane was added to the roof and walls. And finally, high quality pressure treated Scandinavian wood was sourced. All wood used throughout, including our tough T&G floorboard are fully pressure treated, which means all wood is preserved and protects against rot and insects. All these factors along with hot-dipped galvanised nails, screws & hardware combine to provide you with a garden shed that is designed to survive the toughest of weather conditions, resulting in many years (or even decades) of enjoyment.

Soon after the first garden shed order, another quickly followed. As word spread, Gearóid had to call in the support of his father Ger. Shortly after the first carpenters joined the team. They were another father and son duo from Dublin who became invaluable to the business in the early days and even to this day as one of the duo, Gary holds the master carpenter role in our manufacturing team, while his father, Sean has since retired. Their woodworking knowledge and attention to detail has helped the business grow whilst always focusing on quality.

Business Growth

As the business grew, so did our markets and team members. In 2017, Gearóid’s brother Derek joined the company, making it a trio of McDonald’s at the helm. At the same time, an opportunity became available in Barnsley in South Yorkshire in England. This saw another family become involved in the business. Martin and Emma Blacksell joined our UK team, representing the MCD Garden Sheds brand across the United Kingdom.

In 2019, before the Covid pandemic, the company had less than 20 employees across the UK and Ireland. Today in 2021 the company has grown to 50 employees and counting. The demand for garden sheds through the covid period caused many opportunities for the business. Ultimately the business grew successfully in line with demand, and naturally with this growth the business faced many challenges. One of these challenges was the efficient supply of garden sheds to avoid long lead times. To combat this, a thorough review of the business operations began at the start of 2021.

The company systems were updated, processes reviewed and product offering optimised based on the need of our Irish and UK customers. In reading this, you are seeing an early visible phase of this optimisation through this website, while there have been and will be many more changes to come that our customers will see through an ongoing improvement in customer support.

Post Covid Growth in 2021

In 2021, another milestone was reached. The business became the official supplier of Wooden Garden Sheds to Woodies DIY in Ireland. This growth has provided the business with national attention. With this increased attention, the business continues to grow and thrive to meet the needs of our valued customers.

Going forward, the business aims to continue investing and adapting to meet the ever-changing needs of our customers. At MCD Garden Sheds, the focus and passion for bespoke, high quality solutions is relentless. To join our family on this journey, follow us on our social media, or press the link below to sign up to our Newsletter for a monthly update.

Did You Know?

All of our branded delivery vans are named after one of the families children. Pictured here, is our Eimear truck. Keep an eye out for our other van names.

Love the story of MCD Garden Sheds? Want to check out what we build. Shop Garden Sheds now!

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