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ponderosa pine for log construction

Started by sjfarkas, April 05, 2009, 08:44:14 PM

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sjfarkas

Does anyone have any experience with log construction using Ponderosa pine I've also heard it called yellow pine?  That's what we have here in California's Sierra Nevadas.  I've tinkered with a small incense cedar log shed for my daughters play house, but winter came and I didn't get it finished.  I just notched and stacked no debarking, milling or lathe work so it looks rough.  There is going to be a surplus of this pine in our area since the mill is shutting down so I'm trying to come up with new ideas to use it.
Always try it twice, the first time could've been a fluke.

Left Coast Chris

Ponderosa Pine is much less dense and less strong in bending or bearing than Southern Yellow Pine.  Ponderosa also goes blue from mold very easy which eventually starts the rotting process.  It rots quite fast when left out unprotected. 

I have sawn studs and roof sheathing boards that I built several small sheds and my shop from here in Redding.   Once the studs got attacked by borers before I enclosed the wall with sheet rock so from then on I always sprayed it with Timbor to be safe.

I have also sawn roof joists with it but had to greatly oversize them due to the lesser strength.

Since a log house would be hard to protect from the weather and the logs would be exposed, I would not use Ponderosa for a log house.

What use were the mills selling it for?  (molding?)
Home built cantilever head, 24 HP honda mill, Case 580D, MF 135 and one Squirel Dog Jack Russel Mix -- Crickett

ErikC

 I have used it quite a bit and sawed tons of it, and Chris described the situation pretty much as I see it also. There was a pine log cabin I tore down that was pretty old. The roof had been leaking for years, and a lot of rot was there. The dry areas were still perfectly good however. If I used it, I would use fir for the roof system and pine just in the walls. They use it for all kinds of interior work, from moulding to paneling according to grade.  That is probably what the mill was targeting.
Peterson 8" with 33' tracks, JCB 1550 4x4 loader backhoe, several stihl chainsaws

sjfarkas

I believe our mill here cut it and shipped to other mills for finish work.  SPI owns the 2 mills here, but one is a small cedar only mill and that really doesn't help us locals out since we can't pick and choose all species and size to be cut.  So with the pine mill shutting down I'm looking for the silver lining, so to speak.

Sasha
Always try it twice, the first time could've been a fluke.

spencerhenry

around here the preferred log for houses is Engleman spruce, second is lodgepole pine. not sure if Ponderosa rots faster than those two. I would guess it to be not much different. I actually know of a cabin built out of aspen that was still going strong 70 years later, the roof collapsed but the walls were still sound. any wood will rot if not kept from holding water.

Meadows Miller

Gday

Dad used it to build a few log homes in the late 80s through to the mid 90s its a nice timber to work with and we used it in place of Radiata and D/fir and it stands up to to being used in building well like all building timbers you have to keep it reasonably dry  ;) ;D 8) 8)
as it was what my grandfather was bringing into the mill over a few years as no one else wanted it and there was thousands of acres up for grabs here very nice logs and the price was right  ;) :D and they probably milled over 10 million bft of it before the Japs got onto it and started buying it on the cheap  :o 30' dia and 40' long A grade export logs landed in geelong (150 miles away)  for a little more than pulp prices at the time  :o :o :) :) :( >:( ::)  but thats another story  ;) :D :D ;D

Reguards Chris
4TH Generation Timbergetter

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