Ripped Oak has a special surface texture, not created artificially or by mechanical treatment, but by splitting the wood and ripping the grain. The Oak is not sanded or planed but is split in a special process. After the wood is prepared for the treatment, a special blade cleaves the Oak top-layers. The resulting surface texture can  be somewhat compared  to cleaving firewood, although not as rough. After turning the top-layers into floorboards, the surface needs to be thoroughly scrubbed by hand to soften and smoothen the surface. The ripping process often results in characteristic rips and splits in the surface, which adds to the character of the boards.