How to use the Good Wood Guide

To search for timber products

1) Go to the Good Wood product search.

2) Select a Category from the drop down menu. The categories are:

• Materials (these are building materials, such as construction timbers, flooring, decking, joinery, mouldings, windows and doors)
• Indoor furniture  
• Outdoor furniture

Materials search:

1. Select 'Materials' in the Search by dropdown menu.
2. Select an option from the Category dropdown menu. Categories include:
   Construction, Decking, Flooring, Joinery, Mouldings, Sawn timber, Timber veneer, Windows and doors
3. Most categories default to the 'All' in the Product dropdown menu and your search results automatically display. If your search results do not appear, make a selection from the Product dropdown menu.

Indoor furniture search:

1. Select 'Indoor furniture' in the Search by dropdown menu.
2. Select 'Indoor furniture' in the Category dropdown menu. 
3. Your search results will automatically display. 

Outdoor furniture search:  

1. Select 'Outdoor furniture' in the Search by dropdown menu.
2. Select an option from the Category dropdown menu. Categories include:
   Chairs and seating, General, Miscellaneous outdoor, Tables and dining sets
3. Select an option from the Product dropdown menu.
4. Your search results will automatically display.

To search for timber species

Use this search to check whether your favourite timber species is credibly certified or to find an alternative timber. The search includes colour samples so you can find good wood in your choice of colour.  

1) Go to the timber species search.

2) Search by common name or Latin name by checking the corresponding button.

3) Select your timber species from the alphabetical List from dropdown menu.

4) In the Species dropdown, choose the timber species.

Good Wood Guide product rating system; What do green and amber mean?

Our Good Wood Guide rates timber species and products using a colour system of green and amber. Here is a guide to what these colours mean:

 = Excellent. Use this timber every time. 

• Certified or verified recycled, reused, and urban salvaged
• FSC-certified forests, plantations, woodlots or agro/farm forestry enterprises
• Certified or verified ecotimber from Melanesian community ecoforestry projects

 = In transition to 'green'. Use when 'green' timber is not available.

• Plantations and forests that are from verified 'non-controversial' sources (1). This means that the plantation did not require clearing of a forest, the timber is not from a 'high risk' region, it is not genetically engineered and no human rights have been violated in its growing or harvest.
• Unverified recycled, reused and urban salvaged
• Imported sources from forests or plantations that have signed an agreement to transition to FSC certification (for example, Tropical Forest Trust and 'community timber' sources from the Pacific that are moving to certification).

When you shop, you make a difference

Thank you for being a responsible timber consumer. Your buying decisions will protect remaining ancient forests and save forest communities.

Please note that the ratings refer only to the products you search for. There are companies in this guide who are stocking legal and responsible products as well as suspected illegal timber such as merbau. Make sure you ask for the specific Good Wood product. This guide does not list products from illegally or destructively logged sources.

Beyond search results: Using the Good Wood decision tree

The decision tree is a list of questions designed to help you gain accurate information on a product's status from your local timber supplier. Use it as checklist to help your source good wood from suppliers not listed in our Good Wood Guide.

Download and print our good wood decision tree

Suppliers: Find out how to get into the Good Wood Guide