The advantages of a wooden house are obvious. If you value ecology, natural materials and the fresh aroma that can only be found in a wooden house, you can’t resist building a wooden cottage. And it is not so easy to find arguments against wooden construction: modern technologies make it possible to cope with all possible problems.
A log, a beam, a carriage
Today, wooden construction is represented by several technologies. Some, such as a log and planed log, have been known since ancient times, others – for example, cylindrical logs, profiled and glued timber – appeared relatively recently.
The simplest material is a planned log, which is still used today. The logs are manually placed along the grain and are built for 6-9 months, and only then are they assembled on the built foundation. Due to the high cost, complexity and duration of work, this method of construction is less and less popular.
Today, a real log cabin is rather exotic, a tribute to the nostalgic past. The widely spread technology of cylindrical logs made it possible to reduce the cost of construction and shorten its terms.
The equipment used for the production of cylindrical logs gives the trunks an ideal shape for construction. As a result, smooth logs of the same thickness are obtained. As a rule, they are made for a certain project, that is, from the factory to the construction site, not lumber, but a set of parts of the house in disassembled form. Such a set of wall parts for a medium-sized house is assembled in 2-3 weeks. Logs fit tightly to each other, ensuring good heat retention and sealing.
A cylindrical log is suitable for both a modest house and a chic residence.
Significant savings are achieved because such a house does not need finishing – the walls retain the aesthetic texture of natural wood. The only thing to consider when creating an interior is the shrinkage of the house.
A material that is even easier to work with is a profiled beam that comes from a log, from which rounded parts are cut. A bar that has two rounded sides is called a carriage. The standard dimensions of the beam are 100×100, 100×150, 150×150, 150×200, 200×200 mm with a length of 6 m.
Just as in the case of cylindrical logs, the timber is manufactured according to a specific project, and a ready-to-assemble kit arrives at the construction site. Houses made of timber are often painted – this provides good protection and allows you to make the house brighter.
A real breakthrough in the field of wooden house construction was the appearance of glued beams. The house made of it does not shrink, that is, this material solved the main problem of wooden construction. You can build from glued beams at any time during the year.
To obtain glued timber, the log is sawn into boards, and dried to 10-12% humidity, all damaged areas are removed and glued using special glue and a press. The wood fibers in the adjacent boards must be directed in different directions, due to this, the glued beam becomes very strong. The resulting workpiece from glued boards is profiled and a beam of the required shape is obtained. The number of glued boards can be different, it depends on the required thickness of the beam; the maximum thickness is 200 mm. Beams in such a house can withstand a heavy load and a large area of glazing.
The technology, which is used to manufacture and process glued timber for construction, allows you to give wood such characteristics as resistance to deformation, lower thermal conductivity, and waterproofing properties.
In our collection you will find a large number of projects of houses made of glued beams, different in architecture and area. The house can be painted in a distinctive color. Note that tinting and paint can be applied to absolutely all wooden houses, if you are not completely satisfied with the natural color of the wood.
Wooden inside
The interior decoration of a wooden house also has its characteristics. All materials and technologies must be fireproof. If the owners do not want to hide the original beauty of the tree, then it is enough to protect the surface with special compositions from moisture, fire, insects and mold.
You can finish the interior using natural materials, for example, wooden bay area siding, ordinary or imitating log masonry, or different profiles.
In connection with the arrangement of the interior, it is necessary to remember that the installation of windows and doors, the arrangement of the floor and ceiling is carried out only in close connection with the electrical installation works, the equipment of the heating system and plumbing.
What to soak?
To care for the walls of a wooden house, you will need sealants, to fill gaps and cracks. They are made based on acrylic, resistant to the action of chemicals and UV radiation.
If earlier wooden structures were considered fire-hazardous and prone to rotting, now modern surface treatment technologies allow solving these problems at the stage of installation. For this, in the arsenal of modern builders there are special fire-resistant impregnation solutions that protect the material from catching fire.
The tree is also treated with impregnations and stains that prevent rotting. The composition of impregnations is selected in such a way as to provide long-term protection, prevent the ingress of moisture and the absorption of various odors, and emphasize the natural beauty of the tree.
Which wood should not be used to build?
Our ancestors were well-versed in the properties of different types of wood. They preferred to use larch, birch, pine or spruce to build their homes. Aspen and linden, due to their antiseptic properties, were recommended for the construction of baths along with conifers. But poplar topped the “black list” of dubious breeds.
