A Closer Look on House Construction Materials: Lumber

 

Lumber is a collective term for harvested wood. It can be classified as hardwood or softwood and can be cut into logs and heavy timbers or processed into different forms. The softwood type is commonly used in light-frame construction such as balloon-frame or platform-frame housing. On the other hand, hardwood lumber boards are used for making cabinets and other furniture pieces. Being a handy material to house builders, lumber is now considered one of the versatile house construction materials available in the Philippines.

MAKING PROCESS

1. Head Rig – cutting the tree into logs or boards

2. Edging – removal of irregular edges and defects from logs and boards.

3. Trimming – squaring off the ends of lumber into uniform pieces.

4. Lumber Sorting – classifying pieces based on dimensions and final product production

5. Spacing – stacking lumber with spacers/stickers to allow air circulation

6. Drying – drying of wood to speed up the natural evaporation of the wood’s moisture content (MC)

7. Smoothing – smoothing woods’ surfaces and ensuring uniform width and thickness

8. Grading– assigning a “grade” to each piece of lumber indicating its quality level and MC

ADVANTAGES OF USING LUMBER IN CONSTRUCTION

1. Affordable

Lumber is a natural and renewable building material. As long as the housebuilders practice the correct and legal process of woodcutting and forest regeneration, lumber will continue to be available at a reasonable price. 

2. Good Fire Performance

Lumber is combustible but it burns slowly. During fire events, a charcoal layer is formed on the surface of the lumber, then this layer will contribute to the fire resistance of the material. As a result, it slows down heat penetration and overall combustion rate.

 

3. Natural Insulation

Compared to other house construction materials such as steel and plastic, lumber has a higher insulation rating. It helps in regulating humidity levels and requires less energy to maintain heating and cooling. 

4. Lesser Carbon Footprint

The lumber manufacturing process uses substantially less fossil fuel energy per unit volume than steel, concrete, or aluminum: minimizing the number of pollutants created during the process because of its natural cellular structure. 

5. Versatility

As stated earlier, lumber is one of the versatile house construction materials in the Philippines. House builders can easily process them into forms according to the homeowner’s preference.

These uses and advantages of lumber ensure that you get your money’s worth. Are you planning on building a house this 2021? Add lumber to your house construction materials must-buy list!