Avoiding Using Pressure Treated Wood Pressure preservative treated wood remains a mainstay in modern wood construction. United States’ manufacturing and sales of pressure treated wood has become a multi-billion dollar industry. Even with all of this, there are some skeptics. Reader DIANE in MORGANTOWN writes in: “ I want to avoid pressure treated wood. Even […]

Isolating Truss Connector Plates from Treated Lumber Assembly time for Hansen Pole Buildings’ client BRAD in MOUNT VERNON. Construction has begun upon his new post frame building. Brad had some great questions for Technical Support! “I’m not sure if you can answer my question or can possible point me in the correct direction.  We are […]

Today the Pole Barn Guru discusses potential DIY savings, moving an existing building, and the ideal building size. DEAR POLE BARN GURU: I am out of the area of which I can order a premade kit and have it shipped to me. If I wanted to still build it myself and buy the parts local […]

Today the Pole Barn Guru answers questions about frost protected shallow foundations, repainting metal buildings and a kit in Hawaii. DEAR POLE BARN GURU: What type of frost foundation would you use if planning on doing a finished space in part of the building? ERIC in WINTERSET DEAR ERIC: I’d do a Frost Protected Shallow […]

What Size Posts Does My Building Need and How Deep Should They Be? Reader ANONYMOUS in BENTON writes: “1. If my building has 16 posts and posts are 12 feet apart do I need 4×6’s or 6×6’s? 2. If the plan shows 16 feet above grade how much do I need underground? 3. If the […]

I had a question posed of me recently which included: “Where will the water go when the screws back out of my steel roofing”? While I answered the question at hand, I didn’t actually get into the why this might happen, or the solutions. How to avoid the potential problem completely……use the right part, properly […]

The Effects of Temperature Upon Concrete and Lumber Every time I begin to think I could never possibly hear something new, I have to be corrected as something new crops up. In this particular instance it was a reasoning to not embed properly pressure treated columns in the ground surrounded by concrete. Rot? Nope – […]

The Dual Splash Plank Dilemma I’ve never been a fan of stacking splash planks. Even when they are center matched (think tongue and grooved) the two boards never seem to want to bend, twist, warp and/or cup the same direction leading to gaps. Gaps which lead to water getting through and spoiling an otherwise fun place […]

As I keyboard this, it is the seventh anniversary of the passing of my Uncle Neil Momb. I had reminded his daughter, my cousin Amy, of how I loved her Dad’s ability to make profound statements with a smile. Back in 2014 I wrote a couple of articles about my uncle’s adventures in building in […]

My good friend John owns (among other things) Heartland Permacolumn. I’ve borrowed this from his website (https://www.heartlandpermacolumn.com/products/the-perma-column-price-advantage/): “Perma-Column products give you the ultimate price advantage. You simply cannot put up a building on a concrete foundation for less money. Yet some may say, “They’re too expensive…” HOWEVER, the only people who ever say this install buildings using […]

An Excel Formula for Calculating Wall Girts, Post Size and Hole Depth John Minor and I have been friends for nearly 30 years – since his then father-in-law (and my business partner at the time) convinced me John could sell post frame buildings. Well Rod was correct, John could sell buildings – not only for […]

Reader TOM in PURVIS shares a concept I had neither seen before nor had I even contemplated – using PVC pipe to protect post frame (pole building) columns from decay. TOM writes: “ I know your posts are treated, but I live in the damp state of MS. In recent years 3 of my friends […]

I recently had this comment from a client, “In normal construction projects I would order at least 5% overage and it looks like closer to 1% here, I have like 20 extra screws total, a foot of extra eave trim, two whole extra pieces of vinyl soffit.” Obviously this client didn’t grow up being the cutoff […]

Post frame buildings have several benefits which make them the perfect choice for virtually any permanent structure like durability, cost-effectiveness, sustainability, quick assembly and versatility. They also serve multiple purposes. They are storage and machine sheds, horse-barns as well as pre-engineered for a plethora of uses. Woodwork can last for several centuries, but if pests […]

Do the poles start to rot out after so many years? That depends on whether or not they are pressure treated. This question was recently posed to me by reader MARK in WOLCOTT. Typically my answer would include some snarky comment such as: “Most certainly, however it might not be during your grandchildren’s grandchildren’s lives!” […]

My Building Inspector Made Me….. An all to familiar tale from those who go by the premise, “penny wise and pound foolish”…. in the misguided attempt to shave a few dollars off the investment in a new building, the price of the engineer sealed plans has been deducted from the budget. Very rarely is this […]

DEAR POLE BARN GURU: Hi, I’m planning on building a ( 32’ x 60’ x 12’ ) Pole Barn with 4/12 scissor truss.  I want to price out rough cut lumber on walls and ceiling.  How do I calculate the Amount of board feet lumber I need to cover the walls and ceiling. Thanks BRIAN […]

Trying to Buy Properly Pressure Preservative Treated Lumber Reader ZACH in BLACK CREEK has been challenged trying to buy properly pressure preservative treated lumber. He writes: “Hello, I would like to get your opinion on 2×6 grade board. I read the article you wrote about lumber pressure treatment. I have been looking around for .20pcf […]

Properly Treated Poles, Ceiling Loads, and Uplift Plates DEAR POLE BARN GURU: My pole barn is approximately 25 years old. My question is, does the foundation need to be treated for maintenance to prevent rotting? The wood that is underground was originally treated wood but how long does that last? The floor inside is concrete […]

Building a Pole Barn Style Home Reader DAVID from NINE MILE FALLS writes: “I am building a pole barn style home. I am having a difficult time in finding what the requirements would be for post setting and post distance spacing in regards to a pole barn used for living spaces. I plan on using […]

Are My Columns Too Small or Too Short? We receive and answer lots of questions. Even with a Construction Guide which extends over 500 pages, covering a plethora of topics and how to’s, there is always an unanswered question (sometimes two). One of our good clients recently sent a query to the Hansen Pole Buildings’ […]

Treated Lumber – Justine Schools a Major Lumberyard Chain When it comes to pressure preservative treated lumber, ignorance from the supply side seems to be bliss and there are way too many folks out there happily selling under treated product. For your entertainment pleasure I bring you a discourse between Hansen Pole Buildings Lumber Wizard […]

In the land where I first became acquainted with pole barn (post frame) building construction, was used a term known as commercial girts. These are actually what is more appropriately named “bookshelf girts” designed so as to create an insulation cavity which would extend 1-1/2 inches outside of the columns. The commercial girt is sized […]

Hansen Pole Buildings’ Managing Partner Eric had messaged me this morning to ask if I had ever heard of FRT lumber for roof trusses.  While I had never (in my days in the truss industry) manufactured any trusses using Dricon® Fire Retardant Treated (FRT) wood, I am familiar with it. Whether you’re using plywood or lumber, […]

DEAR POLE BARN GURU: Could you tell me the pitch of the roof…for small pole barn…..front wall is 10 foot high…back wall is 8 foot high…rafter span is 13 feet. HERBERT in HAMPTON DEAR HERBERT: Roof slopes are expressed as the number of inches of rise per 12 inches of run. 24 inches of rise […]

There are plenty of bad structural things which can be done to post frame buildings. While roof only buildings can have their own set of challenges, these can be exponentially made worse by putting walls on the eave sides and leaving the building endwalls entirely open. Here is a good explanation of why this occurs, […]

What Fails First in a Fire- the Truss Lumber or the Steel Truss Plates? Part II If you didn’t read my blog yesterday, you will think me out in left field until you do.  Take a few extra minutes and go back and read Part I. You will be glad you did! Continuing from yesterday’s […]

Interpreting the Mark on Pressure Preservative Treated Lumber Pressure preservative treated lumber is a mystery to most consumers, builders and even building officials. Certainly all of the above parties understand the need for pressure preservative treated lumber when it is embedded in or in contact with the ground or concrete, or in locations where there […]

One of our clients, Matt from Chapel Hill, NC, sent us a few photos showing a concern of “timber checking” to Justine, the Hansen Pole Buildings Productions Wizard (she loves it when I come up with interesting titles for what she does).  Here is what Matt had to say: “Been a while since we spoke. […]

I’ve been blessed with being able to have extensive tours of two very sophisticated lumber mills. The first being the Seneca Sawmill in Eugene, Oregon. Seneca Sawmill Company is one of the largest producing single-location sawmills in the United States. Their mills are capable of producing over 650 million board feet per year of premium grade […]

DEAR POLE BARN GURU: Do you have to set laminated pole so you see the 1.5 side of the 2×6’s while looking in or out of the building? I was thinking of using 4ply 2×6 post 10′ out of the ground every 8′ while book shelving with 2×6’s in between posts. I thought it would […]

A year and a half ago, Michael Gibson had what he considered to be a brilliant idea. He and his bride, Andrea, would sell their home, move to his grandparents’ house and build a barn to live in while they invested their money in land they would one day build their forever home on. And, […]

Should I Make my Own Glulam Columns? I’ve been internet chattering back and forth with a gentleman named Chris, who is probably never going to order a Hansen Pole Building, but it is okay – we have thousands of clients a year who are knocking at our doors (figuratively) ready to place their orders. Total […]

DEAR POLE BARN GURU: Where can I find barn doors, sliding steel style? They have no internet presence, or else there is a secret name for them. Thank you! BONNY in FRANKFORT DEAR BONNY: If you are in search of a steel covered, metal framed sliding door (which is what the huge majority of sliding […]

This article by Randy Edison about cordwood masonry first appeared at www.gfwadvertiser.ca November 24, 2006 and has not been edited “When Paul Johnson first heard of the construction method from a friend it became a curiosity. He was curious enough, in fact, to turn it into a handyman project that, despite the challenges, brought a […]

Readers: This is another one of those “Dear Pole Barn Guru” questions where the answer is so lengthy it deserves an article all of its own! DEAR POLE BARN GURU: Why 10d nails? Do you know how difficult it is to get 10d nails? Every hardware store in my area has big boxes of 8d, 16d, and […]

Please Structurally Design My Pole Barn for Free This is one of those POLE BARN GURU questions which results with a lengthy enough answer I feel I must devote a whole column to it. DEAR POLE BARN GURU: Could you please help clarify, for a 40 ft. wide x 64 ft. long x 15 ft. […]

A Buggy Situation A client writes to Justine (the Hansen Pole Buildings’ Order Fulfillment goddess) this week: “I was hoping to get some advice.  I’m still working on the building having just completed rafter placement and was starting to pull apart the two bundles of lumber for the purlins.  When I started pulling boards out […]

One of the great things about post frame (pole) building construction is the ability to add interior raised spaces (think lofts, mezzanines and second stories). One of the most overlooked things about adding such space is proper engineering design. In general I have found them to be inadequate to support the loads. This can result […]

When Everything Doesn’t Go Perfect (and the sky falls) Part II To refresh your memory a bit, we had a client recently email us a letter outlining some of his challenge in getting his building project going. Read yesterday’s blog for Part I of this client’s challenges with his building project. Nothing but problems seemingly […]

History of the Development of a National Standard of Practice for Wood Design From time-to-time you might see the term NDS® (National Design Specification® for Wood Construction appear in my blogs, and it is referenced on every set of Hansen Pole Buildings plans, as well as within the International Building Codes. Me, being the curious […]

And long-time reader Vincent Phelps has another great question: “CBS Sunday morning had a segment on CLT, Cross Laminated timber. It brought timber frame construction to mind. Your thoughts on this technique for the Pole builder?” https://www.cbsnews.com/news/living-the-high-life/ Cross-laminated timber (CLT) is a large-scale, prefabricated, solid engineered wood panel. Lightweight yet very strong, with superior acoustic, […]

FSC® Lumber When my youngest son Brent and I were helping Eric construct his self-storage pole building (you can read about it here: https://www.hansenpolebuildings.com/2014/06/builder/ we noticed some of the lumber had FSC stamps on it. I had heard of lumber certified by the Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC) but had never seen any of it in […]

Pressure Treating Beyond CCA My friend Sharon Thatcher is the editor of Rural Builder magazine. This article, written by her, was published in the December edition of Rural Builder and is so well done, I felt it was well worth sharing. It’s been nearly 12 years since new measures were put in place to help […]

While it is impossible to get around the fact lumber is an organic substance, and therefore has inherent variability, it has always been used as the primary raw material of the residential construction industry. In fact, the growing reliance on the structural design properties of lumber by the US housing industry led to the development […]

Convoy For those of you not old enough to remember, or those of us too old to remember, the late 1970’s were a time of 55 mph speed limits and C.W. McCall’s iconic: https://search.yahoo.com/search?ei=UTF-8&fr=crmas&p=cw+mccall+convoy Interesting things can happen to pole building kit packages once they get loaded on to one of those big rigs and […]

Almost Anything Can be Sold as a Benefit Over the years I have noticed one thing about sales people (and sales organizations), almost anything can be run up the flag pole as a benefit (oftentimes it is actually a feature) and if it is touted highly enough, a certain number of people will believe it. […]

Local Lumberyard + Pole Barns = Scary Yes, the title looks to be a simple math equation. The problem with math equations is, not very many people can actually do them – at least not when they fly a desk at the local lumber dealer. Case in point –XYZ Lumberyard with multiple state locations. (name […]

This actually began as an “Ask the Pole Barn Guru” question: DEAR POLE BARN GURU: We have installed the Pressure Treated Posts  and they were straight when the concrete was poured, now a couple of weeks later we are seeing the poles twist and warp. They are straight at the ground level but about half […]

Twisting Out of Control This morning I received a voice mail message from a builder. He has arrived at a pole building jobsite where the materials have been “on the ground” for some time. It is now August, in Central Washington – where temperatures over 100 and humidity of next to nothing are not unusual. […]

Hansen Pole Buildings’ Designer Rick has been working with a client who has a nose for knowledge – and I thank both of them for sharing information with me, so I can pay it forward. This particular client is weighing the use of Perma Columns against the more traditional design solution for post frame (pole […]

MSDS In the olden days, we were taught to look both ways before we went out in the street to play for the quarter dad offered us. Basically, we had personal responsibility – if we did something stupid, it was our own fault. MSDS is the Material Safety Data Sheet which actually is more than […]

I’ll never be mistaken for either Jamie Hyneman or Adam Savage of the Discovery Channel’s popular and long running series MythBusters, however I can occasionally do some debunking of urban (and rural) legends. I do have to admit, watching MythBusters can become addicting – especially when it can be tuned in on Netflix and watched […]

Preserving Wood Columns Beyond Code Requirements The Building Codes (IBC – International Building Code and IRC – International Residential Code) specify minimum requirements for pressure treated lumber used to structurally support buildings. My previous dissertations on pressure treating are available for your reading pleasure here: https://www.hansenpolebuildings.com/blog/2012/10/pressure-treated-posts-2/ and https://www.hansenpolebuildings.com/blog/2014/05/building-code-3/ Hansen Pole Buildings Designer Kelly brought to […]

We Don’t Always Do Things Perfect, But We Do Listen Part IV Last summer Hansen Pole Buildings Supplied a pole building kit package to a client who experienced a few challenges and took the time to address them. Here is the last portion of the email I was responding to (the past three days’ blogs […]

My first exposure to tongue and groove lumber was when I managed the prefabricated metal plate connected wood truss manufacturing facility at Lucas Plywood and Lumber back in 1979. I’d relocated from Northern Idaho to Salem, Oregon to take the position. (Read more about Lucas Plywood and Lumber here: https://www.hansenpolebuildings.com/blog/2011/06/theres-no-education-like-real-life-business-experience/) The most common method of […]

Welcome to Ask the Pole Barn Guru – where you can ask questions about building topics, with answers posted on Mondays.  With many questions to answer, please be patient to watch for yours to come up on a future Monday segment.  If you want a quick answer, please be sure to answer with a “reply-able” […]

Standard & Btr and #2 Graded Lumber Are Not the Same Although I had a couple of years’ experience in the prefabricated metal connector plated truss industry, my first opportunity to truly “fly solo” was when I was hired, at the end of August 1979 to manage the truss plant at what was then Lucas […]

Do we grow enough wood to build a significant number of new wood framed buildings? Most people have the belief the world’s forests are shrinking. They are worried about a lumber shortage. This is one of the marketing ploys frequently used by producers and builders of non-wood framed buildings. A Yale University-led study published in […]

A Hansen Pole Buildings client recently called his Building Designer Rick. The client was concerned as three ply glulams were provided for his pole building kit package, instead of the 4×6 and 6×6 solid sawn columns which were on his plans.  He is concerned his inspector will give him trouble about this and would like […]

Craig Webb to the Rescue Yesterday I wrote about what has become known as the “Lowe’s 2×4” judgment. For those of you who have read the post regarding lumber nominal sizes versus actual dimensions – you’ve probably been left in wonderment over the article! I know I was still frothing over it. Luckily, up came […]

“Unlawfully Advertised’ 2x4s Cost Lowe’s $1.6 million When I first read this story, it was enough to cause blood to squirt from my eyeballs. My reaction was this is yet another case of government run totally amok! For the handful of American adults who have NOT ever purchased or used a 2×4 – the rest […]

What to do about Cut Ends of Pressure Treated Lumber? One of my sons works for an auto parts store. He seriously enjoys his job. However he has some misgivings about portions of it. Raises and promotions are based, in part, upon how much extra stuff (with high profit margins) the staff is able to […]

A Builder’s PET The stereotypical builder appears to be characterized as driving a four-wheel-drive extended cab pickup (of course jacked up so a ladder is required to get in), having a jobsite stereo system which can be heard for miles with the sound turned to only 30%, and of course – the ever faithful pet, […]

The Big Stick is Better than the Little Stick – Right? Those of you who are regular readers know I am fascinated by all things magical. I don’t know how they do it, but I will watch a good magician over and over. When I was in architecture school at the University of Idaho – […]

Incising My former wife (mother of my two youngest children – Allison and Brent), was by training an RDH (Registered Dental Hygienist). In order to keep her registration current, she had to obtain CEUs (Continuing Education Credits). One way to generate CEUs was to attend the annual state dental convention. One year I went along […]

In the construction of Eric’s new self-storage pole building, my son got to experience first-hand the effects of wane! What exactly is wane? When a log enters a sawmill, it is first cut into boards. Before further processing, most boards cut from the outside edges of the log exhibit wither residual bark or jagged edges […]

¼” EE In my exploration of lumber grade stamps, 1/4″ EE was one which I was familiar with, but had no idea what the history was behind it. When I remodeled my 1909 home 24 years ago – it was for the most part down to the bare studs and floor joists. The lumber, having […]

In yesterday’s article, I was explaining lumber grade stamps to my son, Brent. One part of the stamp which is not in the five “required” designations (grading agency, producing mill, product grade, species and moisture content) was the “HT”. HT designates the wood is heat treated lumber. Many countries require imported lumber to be heat-treated […]

Walk into your local lumber dealer – whether a big box store (aka The Home Depot® or Lowe’s®), a national lumber dealer (think ProBuild®, Stock Building Supply®, or 84 Lumber®) or the local mom and pop lumber seller and pickup any piece of dimensional lumber. On it will be a grade stamp – which is […]

My readers will recognize my 19-year-old son Brent’s name from recent articles on the construction of a pole building storage building here in Browns Valley. After two weeks of working together, I have learned something important (yes, 56 year old Dads can learn new things). Growing up, my brother Mark and I worked for Dad […]

Some days it seems there are nearly as many possible design solutions for pole barn “poles” as there are pole barns! Here is a brief overview of the organic (think coming from trees) ones. For the sake of brevity, I will limit this article to only applications where the columns are embedded in the ground. […]

The recent National Frame Building Association (NFBA) 2014 Frame Building Expo was a reunion event for me with several long-time friends. One of these is Ferg Evans. In the 1990’s I was elected to the first of five terms I was to serve on the Board of Directors for the Machine Stress Rated Lumber Producers […]

Welcome to Ask the Pole Barn Guru – where you can ask questions about building topics, with answers posted on Mondays.  With many questions to answer, please be patient to watch for yours to come up on a future Monday segment.  If you want a quick answer, please be sure to answer with a “reply-able” […]

Great Ideas May Not Always Bring Great Results Much ado has been made about alternatives to CCA (Chromated Copper Arsenate) pressure preservative treated lumber. CCA has been used to pressure treat lumber since the 1940s. Since the 1970s, the majority of the wood used in outdoor residential settings (as well as pole buildings) has been […]

I Woodn’t Use It (pun intended) For those of you who are unfamiliar with LVLs (Laminated Veneer Lumber) here is a good primer: https://www.hansenpolebuildings.com/blog/2013/01/lvl/ For the thousands of my regular daily readers, you know Justine well – she is the one who makes sure all of the good stuff arrives at client’s jobsites when they […]

As a teenager I worked for Blaine Johnston Construction in the Spokane Valley twice, the summer after my freshman year of college, and again after I was out of school. The second time around, I was the “change order guy” – if a client wanted something changed on their house, I got to go do […]

Welcome to Ask the Pole Barn Guru – where you can ask questions about building topics, with answers posted on Mondays.  With many questions to answer, please be patient to watch for yours to come up on a future Monday segment.  If you want a quick answer, please be sure to answer with a “reply-able” […]

Welcome to Ask the Pole Barn Guru – where you can ask questions about building topics, with answers posted on Mondays.  With many questions to answer, please be patient to watch for yours to come up on a future Monday segment.  If you want a quick answer, please be sure to answer with a “reply-able” […]

Plywood or OSB; OSB or Plywood? Oriented strand board (OSB) long ago became the market leader, in relationship to plywood. As much as 75% of all sheathing is now OSB, thanks mostly to cost conscious buyers. OSB versus Plywood Prices Prices for commodities like structural panels are notoriously volatile, and plywood can often be nearly […]

I’m always on board (pun intended) for new, interesting and different ideas. This one certainly qualifies! German researchers are working on a quick-setting construction tape which can bond lumber members together. They’ve developed an adhesive tape, which sets in under a minute to reliably and durably bond together individual components. The construction tape doesn’t dry […]

Typically post frame (pole) buildings have a pressure treated board at the base of all enclosed walls. Known also as a Bottom Girt, Grade Girt, Skirt Board or Splash Plank, it is a decay and corrosion resistant girt which is in soil contact or located near the soil surface. It remains visible from the building […]

Particulate (micronized or dispersed) copper preservative technology has recently been introduced in the USA and Europe. In these systems, the copper is ground to micro sized particles and suspended in water rather than being dissolved in a chemical reaction as is the case with other copper products such as ACQ and Copper Azole. There are […]

Most of us – both those who specify wood treating and those who use it, look upon the litany of possible wood treatments like alphabet soup. Or maybe more like Scrabble – where my 19 year old daughter always seems to either draw the right letters, or make otherwise incomprehensible words (to her Dad anyway) […]

Nail It Up, Call It a Problem Eric, one of the owners of Hansen Pole Buildings, was contacted by a prefabricated roof truss manufacturer recently. They weren’t interested in selling just trusses; they wanted to provide their nail-laminated posts as well. Among their selling points were the columns were, “stronger than even the glu-laminated columns”. […]

Welcome to Ask the Pole Barn Guru – where you can ask questions about building topics, with answers posted on Mondays.  With many questions to answer, please be patient to watch for yours to come up on a future Monday segment.  If you want a quick answer, please be sure to answer with a “reply-able” […]

Welcome to Ask the Pole Barn Guru – where you can ask questions about building topics, with answers posted on Mondays.  With many questions to answer, please be patient to watch for yours to come up on a future Monday segment.  Email all questions to: PoleBarnGuru@HansenPoleBuildings.com DEAR POLE BARN GURU: Will the poles y’all use […]

Steel wrapped poles Hansen Pole Buildings Designer Alan came up with a new client concern recently. His client lost his last barn to a fire, so the client’s idea for his new pole barn is to wrap the poles with light gauge steel, in order to keep them from burning. Of course Alan and I […]

Is it a Glulam? Usually the process works this way – check with the Planning Department to confirm the desired building can be constructed on the property, have pole building plans prepared by a registered design professional (RDP – engineer or architect), apply for and be granted a Building Permit, then build. The photo of […]

The first time I was exposed to finger joints in wood and actually noticed them, was when I was working for Lucas Plywood and Lumber of Salem, Oregon in 1979 (yep, back in the Dark Ages). I will digress momentarily…. My son recently turned 18, but when he was younger he had some interesting questions […]

In prior posts, I’ve mentioned phenol-resorcinol glues. When it comes to putting two or more pieces of wood together (like a glu-laminated column), this combination just can’t be beat for both performance and cost effectiveness. For those who want to be “in the know”, here is the straight scoop! WARNING: Failure to have aced high […]

Glu-laminated columns are a laminated composite product manufactured from high-strength lumber. By using multiple plies of materials, natural defects are randomized creating greater column strength and a higher degree of reliability. Hansen Pole Buildings provides glulam columns manufactured by several different companies, so there are some slight variations. This article will speak more to the […]

Got Wood? While very few consumers visit retail lumberyards or big box home improvement centers nearly as often as I do, if it has been over a year since your last visit, prepare for some serious sticker shock. The sheet of 7/16” osb (oriented strand board) which retailed for a five spot and change last […]

Coriolis Affect on Lumber My oldest step-son, Jake is a very smart lad and teaches high school physics. He does his part to keep students involved, including having created a Facebook page “Mr. Roarks Science Group”. In a recent post he wrote: “One of the science “facts” I always hear is that water spins down […]

I’ve been having back and forth discussions involving board and batten siding. The opposite side of my discussion (who has been considering using yellow poplar) writes: “I too was Worried about board and batten, however our barns are 60-100 years old and still are in good shape.  At least ones that still have a good […]

A prospective client recently posted this question about block foundations: “Our family farm was started around 1850. During this time there were 12-14 barns and 1 house. Most barns deteriorated due to bad roofing. But we’re talking about stuff that lasted 100 years and some longer. We still have 4 barns left and the house […]

This article was a recent Internet rage: Subway customers are whipping out their measuring tapes after Internet postings that claim a short-shifting of the worldwide chain’s famous footlong sub, putting the Milford, Conn.-based company in the hot seat. The controversy began Tuesday in Australia, when a very precise customer, identified as Matt Corby of Perth, […]

Is 2×6 lumber heavy? This is actually fairly important, not just to determine how many boards can be toted around a jobsite by one person, but also in calculating the dead loads which must be carried by structural members such as roof trusses and rafters. Like most things played around with by engineers, and other […]

What I Learned Today – Wood Preservative Hansen Pole Buildings’ Designer Rachel had an interesting story today. She reported, “A builder says he uses Borax around the bottom of the steel.  I thought this was strange and he didn’t say why he was using it.” Being the naturally curious sort, Rachel started researching on the […]

Lumber prices are expected to soar in 2013 before hitting all-time highs the following year, according to a report by the Vancouver consulting group International Wood Markets. Wood Markets president Russ Taylor said the dynamics have been in place since 2008 for a so-called “supercycle” which will push lumber prices into the stratosphere. The only […]