The Role of Timber in Construction: Why It’s a Timeless Choice for Builders
Timber has been one of the primary materials in construction for thousands of years, and for good reason. It’s dependable, affordable and sustainable, meaning that not only can you make a house from it, you can use track down more of it to repair the house at a later date if you really need to.
To ensure that your building projects are as top-notch as possible, buy timber at McBlair – skilled experts will be able to help you select the best timber products for you and then give you guidance on the best tools and other materials you might need to make your dream a reality.
Renewable
While the eco-friendly nature of wood is undeniably great, perhaps the true convenience of wood is that it’s not something humanity is ever likely to run out of. It’s a plentiful resource that skilled forest managers are always ensuring is in good supply. As such, it’s always a good investment of time to learn the skills necessary to work it and create things with it.
This renewability also means that builders can use it for several projects, safe in the knowledge that the aesthetics can be consistent across several things that they create. For instance, a carpenter can feel free to use exposed beams as a signature on his work for his entire career.
Versatile
Because there are many different kinds of wood, it can fill many different roles during the construction process. This is commonly seen during the framing of a house, where hardwood is most commonly used for the superstructure, and softwood may be used for internal studs and wall supports.
Enhancing this versatility is processes like pressure treating wood, whereby potent chemicals are added to the wood under extreme pressure to make it more resilient. Following this, the wood can be used in further locations and use cases, including being used outside, even in harsh weather.
Cost-effective
Because of how plentiful timber is, it continues to maintain a fairly steady price. This means that it’s been a cost-effective solution to building problems for an awfully long time, and it will likely continue to be so.
This is another place in which human ingenuity has made wood even more effective. In times gone by, scraps and offcuts of wood would be thrown out or otherwise disposed of. Now, they can be pulped and used to make composite boards or other forms of engineered wood. By reducing the amount of waste that carpentry generates, you can charge lower prices all around. Most notably, a cheap range of engineered wood products can be released since they are little more than repurposed scrap. This makes the work more approachable to all concerned.
Insulating
Something that a great deal of people don’t realise is just how insulating wood can be. The structure of wood is composed of many fibres made from cellulose. These fibres are essentially ‘glued’ together with something called lignan, leading to a very strong overall structure made from individually not very strong items.
This structure is much the same as many other insulating materials. For example, a quilt stuffed with wool is essentially several layers of material pressed together around tightly packed wool. This process is also an example of many fibres being pressed together into a small space.
Both of these processes are ideal for insulating, most notably for insulating heat. As you may know from experience with a quilt, they’re very effective at retaining heat and ensuring that while you’re warm underneath it, the top surface of the quilt is cool.
The same can be said for top-quality timber – the fibres act to insulate a space very well and can even use these same properties to prevent the spread of fire. Of course, they will only do that as long as they have been treated not to catch fire themselves.
The role of timber in construction is very likely unchallenged since there are no other materials that match it for quality, versatility, and utility. Making sure to buy top-quality timber is the best way to ensure that your projects are getting off to a good start – make sure to visit a local timber yard next time you’re searching for the perfect materials.