Have You Chosen the Right Timber Supplies?
Are you planning to buy some timber for your home? Timber can be used for a multitude of projects and your home and is also likely to form an important part of the structure of your home. Despite being so widely used in and around homes, it isn't always easy for people to work out which timber would be the right choice for their particular project. To choose the best timber for your job, there are a lot of different factors that you will need to consider.
How will your timber be used?
In some cases, you will want to choose a particular type of wood because of its appearance. You might like the colour or the grain of the wood in your home. That's fine if the main purpose of the wood will be decorative, such as wooden panelling, but often, the physical characteristics of the wood will be more important. Timber can be used on indoor projects to create wardrobes, shelving or kitchen units. Timber can be used outdoors to build fences, sheds or garden furniture. Structural timber can also be used as a part of the structure of your home to support walls, floors and ceilings.
What characteristics does your timber need?
Projects that will be based outside and exposed to the sun and the rain will require hardwoods that can resist decay. Typical hardwoods that you might consider using include cedar, iroko and black walnut. If you must use a softwood outside, you must ensure that it has been adequately treated to prevent decay. Inside projects are often more suitable for softwoods, and pine is frequently a popular choice for interior projects. If you are looking for structural timber, your primary concern will be whether the structural timber can bear the expected load safely. To make certain that the structural timber that you buy will be suitable for your project, you should check the timber grading.
How is structural timber graded?
All structural timber is strength graded either with a visual inspection or with a grading machine. Following the test or inspection, it will be allocated a strength class so that you can buy with confidence, knowing that your chosen wood is not going to let you down. Both softwoods and hardwoods can be used as structural timber, you might also consider using a timber laminate product, as this can often provide a stronger product since the natural defects of the wood have been removed.