How to choose lumber for construction. How to choose quality lumber for use in construction How to choose lumber

It is always very important to choose the right material for construction. Nowadays there are a very large number of different suppliers on the market edged lumber. In order not to make a mistake with your choice, you need to know some of the subtleties of this difficult matter. After all, the result of your work largely depends on the correctly chosen lumber.

Edged lumber- this is lumber of rectangular cross-section with wane, if allowed, not exceeding the established value. There is also a group of unedged lumber, the edges of which are not sawn or partially sawn. However, even edged lumber may have poorly sawn edges. There are many reasons for this. One of which is the savings of wood processing enterprises, when they try to make the largest amount of finished products from a smaller volume of unprocessed wood. It is necessary to understand that it is better to use such edged lumber where it will not affect the appearance. Lumber used for exterior and interior decoration of the house should look impeccable.

There are special standards for edged lumber. The grade determines the acceptable number of knots and their maximum size, type and distance from each other. The load-bearing capacity of the beam will not depend on its appearance, but knots can complicate construction work and increase its cost. And if the knot begins to crumble, then a hole may appear in the most visible place.

The low strength of edged lumber may appear immediately after installation, when it is no longer possible to replace them. Therefore, it is very important to notice this in time and reject such material. Most often, low strength is associated with moisture ingress during storage or transportation, as well as violations of the drying technology of edged lumber at the production stage.

High sawing speed of edged lumber or incorrectly configured equipment, as well as shrinkage during the drying period, can lead to too much variation in size in a batch of edged lumber, both in thickness and length. Inconsistency in the sizes of edged lumber affects the difficulty of fitting them to each other, resulting in unsightly gaps, and when installing beams, rafters and crossbars, they may turn out to be shorter than the required length.

In order to choose the right suppliers of edged lumber, carefully study existing standards and select the class that is most suitable for you, both in quality and price. In some cases, you may be better off switching to a different type of wood rather than looking for a specific species with a higher quality grade.

Try to estimate how much problems with the quality of edged lumber will cost you. Call different suppliers. Sometimes it is beneficial to purchase different structural elements from different suppliers. If you accurately determine the parameters of the edged lumber you need, then you can find a product of excellent quality, and at the lowest prices!

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How to choose the right lumber?

How choose quality lumber? A buyer who is not a specialist in the field of woodworking is unlikely to be able to answer such a question. But the success of the entire event and the result depend on the choice of lumber for repair or construction. First of all, you should know the basic quality criteria for lumber.
The most important selection criterion- This quality of raw materials, from which lumber is made.
Correct and high-quality raw materials for lumber are forest harvested (cut down) in winter (since in winter the moisture in the tree trunk is contained in the very minimum amount).
A huge advantage is reduction in the number of cracks during winter harvesting, the drying process of wood occurs much slower in cold weather.
Lumber made from winter forest much less susceptible to rotting, both during transportation and storage, and in the future.
Winter lumber is much easier to process, and in addition, it has increased strength and wear resistance, which is very important in wooden construction.
Lumber made NOT from “living” wood (for example: burnt trees - trees after forest fires, windfalls or dead wood, shriveled trees standing on the root) can only be used in temporary rough construction (formwork, flooring, etc.). Lumber from burnt wood, windfall or dead wood is a priori infected with harmful insects and is susceptible to rotting. Check with sellers what kind of wood the lumber is made from and pay special attention to this, since it is not always easy to determine this externally. From conscientious sellers, lumber made from windfall should cost several times less than high-quality wood made from “living” wood.

Second selection criterion- external characteristics of lumber.

What is “edged” and “unedged” lumber?

Edged lumber - lumber with a rectangular cross-section with the presence of wane only within the established standards.
Unedged lumber is included in a separate group - these are lumber with an unsawed or partially sawn edge; wane is not standardized.

Lumber geometry

The quality of cutting edged lumber is a determining parameter. Violations of sawing technology can lead to quite sad consequences.

For example?

Rapid sawing of edged lumber or improperly operating equipment, as well as shrinkage during the drying period, can lead to too much variation in the size of a batch of edged lumber, both in thickness and in length. This, in turn, will certainly affect the difficulty of fitting them to each other, unsightly gaps will appear, and when installing beams, rafters and crossbars, they may turn out to be shorter than the required length. If you purchase your own lumber, be sure to take a tape measure with you. Don’t be lazy and take measurements of the lumber you decide to choose - this will help identify any shortcomings.

The result of inaccurate cutting can also be various chips and gouges, which significantly complicates processing and spoils the appearance of the lumber. High-quality graded boards, as a rule, do not have chips or gouges.

What to do if, after all, a batch of edged lumber contains boards or beams with poorly sawn edges?

Poorly sawn edges, for example the ends, are a problem of nothing more than the appearance of the lumber. Poorly sawn edges do not affect the overall strength and reliability of the board. Often lumber is produced with some margin in length. Arm yourself with a tape measure and check whether the boards can be finished again by sawing off the unsuitable edges?

What is a defect in lumber and what defects make it worth refusing to purchase?

Knots greatly affect not only the appearance of lumber, but also its performance characteristics. Knots disrupt the uniformity of wood texture and the integrity of the material. Often, in the place where the knots crumble, depressions or through holes appear. Knots are the cause of a decrease in the strength of unedged lumber when it is stretched along the grain or when bent. Knots cause wood fibers to bend, disrupting the layering of the wood.

Each type of lumber has its own standards, according to which the permissible number of knots is strictly standardized; the sizes of knots and their distance from each other are also specified in the standards. Choose lumber grades that suit you (higher grades (1,2,3) - for heavy loads, lower grades (4) - for use with minimal loads)

What to do with cracks?

Cracks, alas, cannot be avoided: wood is a natural material, and cracks appear in the wood as it grows under the influence of natural factors and internal stresses that arise in the trunk. Such a defect directly affects the quality of the material, as it reduces its strength, disrupts its integrity, and therefore shortens its service life. The abundance of visible cracks, of course, should alert the consumer.

Another factor on which the quality of lumber depends and which you need to pay attention to when choosing boards is the possible warping of the board. Warping of a board is a change in the bending of the board along its length into an arched shape. High-quality wood does not have warping, or it is not significant.

The so-called wingedness of the board. Winging of the board is a change in the shape of the board into a helical one, which, in turn, makes it difficult to process and use the wood, and therefore significantly reduces the quality of the lumber. You can check for the presence of such a defect with a thin, strong cord, applying it to the edge of the board.

The board should also be considered a defect cross-layered. It represents various deviations of the direction of the fibers from the longitudinal axis of the tree. Wood with such a defect does not tolerate lateral loads well. Wavy placement of fibers and curl are varieties of cross-layering.

Sprouting is a defect in a section of wood resulting from mechanical damage to the fiber. Such a section of wood spoils the appearance and makes finishing difficult.

Finally, fungal infections of the wood may occur. As a result, the mechanical properties of the wood and its color tones change.

In some cases, the low strength of lumber is caused by the use of young trees as raw material at the production stage.

Whenever a defect is discovered, should I raise the alarm and refuse to purchase?

Probably, such an approach would be irrational. It is necessary to distinguish what certain lumber is needed for: for formwork, walls, floors, rafters, finishing... Moreover, in the latter case, “defects” in the form of a picturesque pattern caused by knots and growths can be advantageously played out.

The most picky selection should be when choosing finishing profile elements. Considering the decorative functions of such elements, they should not have any wood defects, with the exception of healthy fused knots of small sizes (up to 20 mm), non-through end cracks up to 10 mm long and a grain inclination (cross-layer) of up to 10%. Such strict requirements should only apply to the front (visible) surfaces of finishing elements. On surfaces that are invisible during operation, there may be larger defects, but also of normal sizes.

Lumber storage

Lumber should be stored in stacks, sorted by size. Air must pass freely through the constructed stack. This is necessary to preserve the properties and air dry the wood.

Spacers need to be laid along the length of the stack. The stack should be located in a well-ventilated place so that the long side of the lumber is perpendicular to the direction of the prevailing wind. To prevent the ends of thick boards and beams from cracking, they can be coated with lime.

You should not build a stack more than 3 meters high, as the lumber may become deformed under the influence of its own weight. Stacked wood should be protected from rain and other precipitation using a pitched roof made of roofing felt or roofing felt. It must overlap the stack by at least 0.5 m.

Perhaps purely professional terms are of no use to the average consumer. However, a competent salesman somewhere at a construction site, as a rule, uses these terms, and therefore a certain minimum vocabulary is necessary here. Let's decipher the basic concepts.

If a round log is once passed through circular saws at a sawmill, we obtain a material that has planes on both sides and is called carriage. If all four planes are sawn, the resulting edged material is divided into timber, edged board and small bar. The so-called planed moldings are lining, platbands, skirting boards, floor boards, etc. Glued laminated timber, laminated veneer lumber, as well as furniture panels are called glued products.

Depending on the cross-sectional dimensions, the edged material is divided into bars (width and thickness more than one hundred millimeters), boards (the width of which is greater than double the thickness) and bars (width no more than double thickness).

The main standard dimensions of sawn domestic timber: 100 x 100 mm, 100 x 150 mm, 150 x 150 mm. Usually sawmills are issued six-meter beam.

Edged boards usually have a standard thickness 25, 40, 50 mm , width 100 and 150 mm , and the length is six meters.

The small bar has two common sizes: 40 x 40 mm and 50 x 50 mm with two length options - 3 and 6 meters.

After passing through the sawmill, the lumber forms wide surfaces - faces, narrow surfaces - edges, and end surfaces - ends. The face that is furthest from the core of the log is considered the outer face, and the less distant face is considered the inner face.

During the sawing process in the manufacture of timber or edged boards, a by-product is formed - croaker . On one side the slab has a face, on the other there is a hump of untreated wood. But this material is quite can be used to create temporary building structures. When used as a decorative cladding (this is popular today) or for subfloors, it must be debarked and treated with antiseptics. Otherwise, within a year or two, all that will be left of him is dust.

Is one tree or another needed for different purposes?

The leading place in the construction market belongs to materials made from pine needles. Needles are durable, easy-to-work wood that does not absorb moisture as intensely as deciduous wood. That is why timber, boards, and moldings are made from pine needles. In addition, spruce, cedar, larch, and fir are used in construction. Oak, beech, ash, and mahogany are used as finishing and carpentry materials. Aspen is used mainly for cladding saunas and steam rooms, birch is used for making parquet and parquet boards.

based on materials from the site lp-market.ru

How to choose the right edged board

At specialized sawmills, logs are cut on machines, as a result of which various lumber is produced. And depending on the type of cut, two types of materials are obtained - with an uncut edge, with a completely cut edge or with a partially cut edge. Depending on the presence or absence of flaws on the surface of the wood, its quality is determined. And, perhaps, one of the most famous lumber - cut products - are edged softwood boards. They attract with their appearance, excellent technical characteristics, naturalness and an adequate price for a large number of buyers. The scope of their application depends on the grade, thickness, size, but in general it covers three industries - construction, furniture production and packaging manufacturing.

The type of edged board determines its quality, so for the production of containers you can use low grade wood, but for furniture - only the highest grade, without defects. The grade of wood is directly affected by the presence of flaws and the distance at which they are located from each other. There are situations when defects do not affect the properties of the material in any way and it does not matter for the design whether they exist or not. But in a number of construction operations where it is necessary to adjust boards to each other, for example, defects create unnecessary difficulties, boards with defects are put aside, thereby requiring more material and more funds to purchase them.

It should also be noted that knots often break down over time and a hole forms in their place. And if we are talking about finishing walls, floors or facades with boards, or about producing furniture, such defects are simply unacceptable. Grading a board also takes into account what kind of wood it is made from. It is very important to sort purchased boards before construction begins, to remove all that are not of suitable quality, since after installation it will no longer be possible to replace defective boards.

When first faced with the need to buy dry or natural moisture edged boards, the buyer does not know what exactly he should pay attention to. First of all, you should consider the purpose for which the material is selected. If you need to buy a board in order to make sheathing, sheathing, and other construction work where the appearance of the board does not matter, you should give preference to a board that does not have sawed-off side edges - this option will be cheaper while maintaining all its positive properties. Several factors directly influence the quality of the final material, among which is sawing.

If the material has potholes or chips, then it is more difficult to work with it, and the appearance noticeably suffers. Edged lumber assumes that there is no bark on the sides (although even the standard allows for a minimal error, the presence of wane). The cost of an edged board also depends on its size. The length is usually 6 meters, thickness ranges from 15-75mm, width - 75-275mm.

Choosing a quality material and supplier is not an easy task. It is necessary to familiarize yourself with the requirements of the standards in advance and do not be afraid to ask the supplier about all the nuances. It is considered best to choose boards made from coniferous species (Siberian pine, for example), since they resist the decay processes natural to wood well. However, in fairness, it should be noted that today problems with rot, fungus, rodents and insects are solved quite simply - special impregnations and antiseptics reliably protect natural wood from negative external factors.

The next important factor when choosing a board is its appearance. The absence of cracks, knots, and any plaque is a prerequisite. Another thing is that wholesale buyers do not have the opportunity to examine in detail each board from the purchased batch. Therefore, they use another method - they simply take any one board and carefully inspect it. High-quality material will be straight, with a smooth surface, dry, treated with special means that increase its protective properties and improve its appearance (if this is important for the construction/finishing work being carried out).

If you need a planed edged board of a certain size, we can help you. The assortment includes almost any standard sizes of edged boards, from the best manufacturers. To order, you just need to call our managers, who are always happy to advise on any issues and provide information support. From us you can find out which board - from what wood and what type - is best suited for solving a particular problem, how much a cubic meter of such a board costs and how long it can take to deliver it to your site.

We sell only high-quality lumber of all types, suitable for construction work, used in furniture production, and also have in stock boards that are optimal in cost and the quality of which is quite suitable for the manufacture of containers, pallets, etc. You will be pleased with the personal approach to each client and an excellent selection of building materials made from natural wood. In turn, we guarantee our clients excellent service and flexible terms of cooperation, optimal prices and highly qualified advice from experienced specialists.

It all depends on the type of lumber, what type of wood was used in its manufacture, and the quality of processing. This will cause not only the price to fluctuate, but also the quality of the purchased material. Let’s assume that in front of you is a log that has been passed once through a “circular saw” at a sawmill. This processing produces a material called carriage; it has planes on both sides. However, if four planes are cut down, then this is already edged material, which in turn will be divided into subtypes, be it timber, edged board or small timber. Have you heard the name planed molding? This includes lining, floorboards, skirting boards, floor boards, etc. Glued products include laminated veneer lumber, logs and furniture panels.

Do you think that there is no need for the average person to load their heads with professional terms? You are mistaken, at construction sites any seller will operate with exactly these terms, and in order not to get into trouble and understand what is being offered to you, you need to know the terminological minimum.

After lumber has gone through the sawmill phase, it develops wide surfaces called faces, narrow surfaces called edges, and end surfaces called ends. The layer that is farthest from the core of the log is considered external, less distant - internal. In relation to the annual rings, the layers can be located differently, depending on how the sawing took place: radially, tangentially or mixed. According to the cross-sectional size, the edged material will be divided into beams (width and thickness exceeding 100 mm), boards (width exceeding double the thickness) and bars (width not exceeding double the thickness).

For domestic sawn timber there are standards: 100 x 100 mm, 100 x 150 mm, 150 x 150 mm. As a rule, sawmills produce timber 6 meters long. The use of longer spans is simply not rational or economical. To produce such material, you will have to place an individual order. The width and thickness of the timber can also be changed at your discretion. However, any deviation from standard values ​​will mean an increase in the price of the material. It will also be more expensive to purchase profiled timber; its surfaces are treated to a high class of cleanliness.

Edged boards, as a rule, have the following dimensions: thickness 25, 40, 50 mm, width 100, 150 mm, length 6 m. Such construction boards are available at any base, but if you need material of a non-standard size, you will have to run around and look, and in the worst case, even place an order for an individual cut. Small timber is usually made in two sizes: 40 x 40 mm and 50 x 50 mm; the timber has two lengths: 3 and 6 m. When sawing to make timber or edged boards, a by-product called slab is often used. On one side the croaker has a face, on the other the hump is made of untreated wood. However, this material is also quite suitable for the construction of temporary structures. If you want to use it for cladding or for a subfloor, you must be sure to edge it and treat it with an antiseptic. Otherwise, after just a couple of years, he will turn into dust. Among molded products, lining is the most popular. It is used for both interior and exterior decoration. The more correct name for the lining is cladding board; it is written under this name in technical documents. Recently, a cladding board called “American” has appeared on the market; it has a variable profile and is made from coniferous trees. There is a special flooring board for laying floors; its width ranges from 85 to 140 mm, with a standard width of 27, 37 or 45 mm. Small molded products, such as skirting boards, platbands, glazing beads, corners, can also be made in a wide variety of sizes, which allows everyone to focus on their own taste.

Let's talk a little about lumber made from various types of wood. Pine materials occupy a leading place in the domestic market. Pine is known for its strength; it is easy to work with wood; unlike hardwood, pine does not absorb moisture as intensively. That is why beams, boards and moldings are so often made from pine. Among the coniferous species, spruce, cedar, larch and fir are also favorites. Among the carpentry materials that have gained particular popularity for finishing are: oak, beech, ash, and mahogany. Aspen is very often used as a facing material for a sauna or steam room; birch is used as a basis for making parquet.

Selection details.

Well, let's move on to the actual selection of lumber. When choosing a material, always pay attention to the type of wood. On the domestic market there is wood of 0, 1, 2, 3 and 4 grades. The difference between varieties is in the quantity and quality of knots present on the material. It is much more difficult to determine sawn wood by grade than planed wood. On planed wood, you can see with your own eyes how many knots there are on it and evaluate their quality. If you have doubts about the quality of the product being offered, you should take a specialist with you, but if this is not possible, make every effort to prevent the sale of low-quality wood to you. Your main weapon should be knowledge of the technical minimum. Knowing the basics, you can ensure the purchase of materials for high-quality construction and finishing of a country house.

If you purchase lumber yourself, be sure to carry a tape measure with you. Very often it happens that in one batch of seemingly completely identical materials there is a variation in length; this is not critical, as a rule, but variation in width, thickness or configuration is a much more serious problem. If you don’t notice this in time when buying lining or tongue-and-groove floorboards, you will waste a lot of time and money. Also, don’t expect perfect geometry from a board with various bends and deformations. They can be easily checked using a regular string, applying it to the edges of the board. A large variation in the length of the supporting beams of crossbars or rafters can be seen with the naked eye, however, there are situations when instead of the stated 6-meter board they sell you 5.5. That is why it is worth taking a measuring device with you in order to estimate the length of the purchased product on the spot. It is worth paying attention to the thickness of the board; in some places it may vary. And when using low-quality equipment, or cutting too quickly, thickening and bends can form at the ends. If you have a tongue-and-groove floor board with such flaws, your carpenters will have a long time installing it. However, if you are not lazy and spend a few minutes more in the store, such shortcomings will immediately appear.

Another significant disadvantage of lumber is its possible low strength. Most often, lumber with low strength was stored incorrectly, moisture got into it, or there were violations in the drying technology at production. In some cases, low strength may be due to the use of young trees as the main raw material. This, of course, cannot be detected using a tape measure. But it’s worth noting right away that if you see black or falling knots on the surface, put such a board aside, you don’t need it. There are situations when construction sites try to sell lumber with raw edges for a load-bearing wall. This does not add prestige to the manufacturer, but it is worth remembering that poorly sawn edges, even the ends, are still a problem of appearance, not the quality of the wood. This will not affect the overall reliability and strength of a wooden structure assembled from such material. However, if you choose lumber for interior or exterior decoration, and it has poorly finished edges, then it is necessary to replace the material. The material used for finishing should not have any flaws and take up time from the workers involved in finishing the premises. By the way, they may require additional payment for this, and the speed of their work will be reduced.

It's time to talk about the natural defects of wood, which can affect the quality of the lumber used. The conditions in which the tree grew and developed greatly influence the structural characteristics of the wood; various deviations in the structure and development of the trunk are even possible. This can cause early defects, which significantly limit the range of possible uses of this wood. Such deviations include: curvature of the trunk, the presence of growths, a large number of knots and forks along the entire length of the trunk, which can cause changes in the structure, color and change the mechanical strength of the wood.

Knots remain in places where branches grow, which significantly reduces the value of the wood when selling it. In place of knots, mechanical strength is usually lower, and after drying, the knot will lose connection with the base and weaken the structure. In addition, knots are also an aesthetic problem, affecting the appearance of the structure. Each type of lumber has its own standards, according to which the number of acceptable knots, their maximum sizes, type and distance between them is determined. It’s not worth going into such details, but remember that the fewer knots on the material, the better.

Unfortunately, it is impossible to completely get rid of cracks. Wood is a living material, and cracks appear in wood during growth due to the influence of various natural factors. Cracks are divided into frost, spall and metic. Frost cracks appear during severe frosts. When internal moisture expands, it leads to the formation of through cracks, directed radially. Peeling cracks arise due to internal stress that occurs from time to time in the trunk, it is caused by the detachment of growth rings from each other, and also due to metric cracks that are directed upward along the trunk. In addition, cracks form as a result of shrinkage. Too many cracks in the wood should alert you, and quite possibly even make you think about refusing to purchase this lumber. Another defect in lumber is cross-grain. These are the so-called various deviations of the direction of the fibers from the longitudinal axis of the tree. Such defects have a very serious effect on the perception of lateral loads. The cross-layer also has different varieties, such as curling. This is a fibrous arrangement of fibers with a curl, which leads to local curvature of the growth layers. Sprouting is a defect in a certain area of ​​wood that occurs as a result of mechanical damage to the fiber. Such wood not only has a poor appearance, but also complicates the finishing process. There may also be fungal infections of wood. As a result of the formation of fungus, mechanical changes occur in the properties of wood, and the color tone also changes.

If you notice any defect, you must immediately notify the seller, but should you immediately refuse the purchase? This approach is not very rational. It is worth making a distinction for what purpose you are buying lumber. For walls, floors or trim. In some cases, for example when finishing, some defects in the form of a pattern on wood can be played out very well.

If you choose finishing profile elements, then the choice should be the most picky. The decorative functions of such elements should also be taken into account. There should be no defects on them, unless they are strong fused knots, no more than 20 mm in size, through cracks up to 10 mm and slanting up to 10% are also considered the norm. Such strict requirements need to be applied only to the front surface of the finishing element. Larger defects are also allowed on invisible surfaces, but also within the limits of the standardized sizes. Don’t forget about humidity, it must meet certain requirements. Parts used for the interior must have a humidity of no more than 12%; for the facade this figure increases to 18%. But in any case, this parameter cannot be determined by eye.

In conclusion, it is worth noting that an increasing number of suppliers are now trying to insure their consumers against low-quality raw materials. When concluding a contract, you should pay attention to the legal aspects of solving this problem, clarify the mutual responsibility of the manufacturer and the consumer.

What to build a house from? The most common and affordable option is still wood for construction. Wooden houses are energy efficient and last a long time if you take care of them. However, in order for a building to last a long time, the right choice of lumber is necessary. What is it, and what groups are lumber divided into?

Main types of lumber

Lumber is the name given to wood products obtained by sawing a tree trunk. It is carried out only on a sawmill using special tools to ensure the most economical use of wood material. From one log, several types of lumber are obtained, differing in size, density, and purpose. One of the most popular cuts will be an inch board, 25 mm thick.

The following are the most popular types of lumber:

• Timber is a type of lumber with a square cross-section, usually greater than 100 mm. It consists of a wood core processed on four sides. The properties of lumber depend on the quality of the wood: if rotting processes have taken place, the timber will be unsuitable for construction.
• Edged board is a type of lumber, the thickness of which can reach 100 mm, but the width must be at least twice the thickness. The edged board is processed on four sides, as a result, all its sides become smooth. It can be used in various types of work, including flooring.
• Unedged board is a type of lumber that will have either unsawed or partially sawn edges, the so-called wane. It can be used in making fences and in many other areas.
• Lumber is lumber of various sections, the width cannot exceed the thickness by more than twice. The thickness of the bar can be up to 100 mm; it can have a square, rectangular or other cross-sectional shape.
• The croaker is the side part of the log, one part of it will be sawn and the other unsawed. This is the cheapest type of lumber; it can be used in creating subfloors, formwork and many other types of work.

This is an incomplete list that lumber manufacturers can offer today. In addition to the types listed above, you can purchase a carriage (a log sawn on both sides), a rounded log from which the top layer of wood is removed with special tools, and much more. The list is expanding today; recently, laminated veneer lumber and several new types of wood products have become very popular.

All types of lumber are actively used in house construction. Timber and logs are common materials in the construction of log walls; boards of various thicknesses, including inch boards, are used at almost every stage of construction.

How to choose lumber for construction

How to choose lumber for building a house so that you don’t have to throw it away in the future? Wooden building materials are offered by dozens of companies, but not all of them can provide real quality products. The properties of lumber largely depend on the moisture content in it: you can purchase fresh wood or already dried in special chambers.

Dried wood is more expensive, but it is much more reliable, durable, and its purchase will not disappoint the buyer. During the drying process, ordinary lumber can crack; uneven shrinkage changes its geometry. As a result, the cracked timber cannot be used for construction, and new materials will have to be purchased.

The amount of lumber for building a house can be calculated using special calculators that can be found on construction sites. This parameter is influenced by the size of the building, the number of floors, and the features of the project. In each case, the calculation is unique, and the owner must take into account all the characteristics of the house.

When choosing lumber you need to follow several requirements:

The correct choice of lumber for the roof is especially important. Poor-quality racks or rafters will lead to a decrease in the reliability of the entire structure, and in the future this can lead to its collapse. The roof must constantly withstand high wind loads, so you need to take care of purchasing high-quality lumber.

Wood is a living material that requires careful handling and proper storage. Neglecting the norms will make it simply useless, and the task of every future home owner is to find a reliable seller from whom you can choose good building materials.