Building with Green Lumber
A few thoughts on using freshly sawn lumber for construction framing. January 27, 2008
Question
Has anyone out there framed a house using green/non-dried lumber? (I mean freshly milled lumber, not Home Depot "Green" lumber). Is this feasible?
Forum Responses
(Sawing and Drying Forum)
From contributor P:
I framed my house out of fresh sawn white pine rough-cut. Besides the boards spitting pitch at you when you pound nails and the heavy weight of the lumber, it worked okay. The lumber dries out quick after it's nailed up, but I would wait at least 6 weeks before sheet-rocking.
From Professor Gene Wengert, forum technical advisor:
It was widely done with Douglas fir, but the warping of Southern pine has limited this species use. What species do you have? Of more concern would be the grade of the material. We have discussed in the past the problem of getting a building inspector to approve.
From the original questioner:
Thanks for the responses. I have large Douglas fir, and the studs will be mostly knot-free, top-quality wood. I have a grader lined up for when the wood is milled. I also plan on making all of my interior trim with vg fir.
From contributor A:
I use a lot of SYP in timber frames and stick frame homes. Most is used within 3 weeks of being sawn. Knowing construction tricks and letting the home dry as you build is not a bad thing. But I have felled a tree and sawed and nailed a board all in the same day.
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From contributor X:
Did you fabricate your metal connectors, or are they ready-made?
From contributor A:
I weld them up myself and the steel yard cuts them to my specs. I make all kinds of sizes and shapes. With the price of steel it is getting high to do it this way. But it looks really neat and is easy to put up.
