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Building with green wood

Started by Huskey, October 28, 2017, 08:05:38 PM

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Huskey

I am new to saw milling and Timber cutting......Any thoughts on building a cabin with green wood? If so, what type of wood would be best to use? And what method, I have read about Stockade style, Cants or Using the debarked whole tree or would it matter?
Huskey

Banjo picker

 

  

 

I cut these beams for a customer, and he built this cabin with them.  They will dry in place.  It would take several years to totally dry a log or even a cant this size.  These were 4 inches by what ever they would make if I remember correctly.  I think he did a really good job with the joints.  By the way, welcome to the forum.  Banjo
Never explain, your friends don't need it, and your enemies won't believe you any way.

plantman

Wow, that's incredible. What are the joints filled with ? And how does that work when you construct with green wood ? Do you have to use joinery with green wood or can it be nailed ?

Banjo picker

Don't think he uses fasteners.  He erected it an let it sit for a while before doing the chinking.  Looked like cement, but I cant say for sure.  He is a retired sewing machine mechanic.  Banjo
Never explain, your friends don't need it, and your enemies won't believe you any way.

coxy

that is neat  but way to many angles for me  smiley_dizzy  smiley_whacko smiley_alcoholic_01 headscratch

Huskey

Thank you for reply.  And I am glad to be on the forum.
The pictures of the cabin are AWESOME.... It gives me more confidence about building with green wood.  Any more advice would be appreciated.  Do you know if there was any problems with the trusses or the roof with shrinking or warping?
Huskey

teakwood

nice pics

won't the joints get pretty lose after the wood dries out? of course the will still hold together but with some serious gaps in it?
National Stihl Timbersports Champion Costa Rica 2018

rjwoelk

 No the dovetail will stay tight as long as it can move into the corners. A synthetic latex compound is used for chinking or some make their own from a lime based cement mix. It does not hold moisture like regular cement which would cause your wood to rot. We made the mistake of putting log screws in to hold each log to the other. Now as they shrink the corners can't slide into each other. Building inspector required it. Now when i told him never again he understood why.  Next time we would use a 5/8 treaded rod in a 1 inch hole and then it can be pulled tight as it drys and shrinks. The saddle notch would not have the same problem and log screws would work fine there. Just need to counter sink them some. The next log home we build will be put up let sit the next year then start interior framing. Plumbing and electrical.  The following winter start on the finishing work. It all depends on how dry your logs are when you get them. If one had all logs from standing dead trees it would be different. But a green log is or can move a lot. In a cant type log vertical shrinķ has been about 5/8 of a inch. We are doing something different for the door as well. Will see how that goes. Using a 8 inch wide c channel yo cap the end of the logs. It will be screwed to the 4 x8 buck. This will help we hope to prevent logs from twisting. Log spiral is to be watchrd for as well. NO LEFT ones. Straight prefered or slight right are ok.
Lt15 palax wood processor,3020 JD 7120 CIH 36x72 hay shed for workshop coop tractor with a duetz for power plant

mike_belben

SAE or metric.. Think it matters?

:P
Praise The Lord

treeslayer2003

150 years ago every thing was built with green lumber. alot of it is still there so it can be done. side note, i know some folks that wanted to jack their sagging house straight..........yeah that didn't work so good, pulled the chimney away. hose was built early 1800s, it was built that way.

Jeff

We built one in the backyard 12 years ago and it's holding up fine. Here is the build topic and a video of the finished cabin.


https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php/topic,14094.0.html

https://youtu.be/V1WeTuSvFZM
Just call me the midget doctor.
Forestry Forum Founder and Chief Cook and Bottle Washer.

Commercial circle sawmill sawyer in a past life for 25yrs.
Ezekiel 22:30

Jeff

Just call me the midget doctor.
Forestry Forum Founder and Chief Cook and Bottle Washer.

Commercial circle sawmill sawyer in a past life for 25yrs.
Ezekiel 22:30

Magicman

I regularly saw framing lumber that will be used without any drying.  Some from fresh felled and some from beetle killed SYP.  Also Poplar 1X12's for B&B siding, just nail it down the center.  Not a problem.

Where in MS?
Knothole Sawmill, LLC     '98 Wood-Mizer LT40SuperHydraulic   WM Million BF Club Member   WM Pro Sawyer Network

It's Weird being the Same Age as Old People

Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

Coltbodi

I'm building a cabin now with green syp. It's been air drying for about 2 weeks and is already half the weight it was fresh. And I cut it down and milled it the same day. I cut the lumber in the order I would use it,  so the stuff I use first will have been drying the longest. I cut some true 1x12's for the siding and will be useing a ship lap a 1&1/2" lap. We have done this before and it works out fine.
If I can't fix it, I don't want it.
Timberking 1600 with lots of mods, a 65hp mahindra with a front end loader, a welding shop, and sugarcane mill from 1890 for making syrup

Magicman

 

 
This is one of several whacks that I sawed for my Cabin Addition.


 
And then a Grandson came over and helped me sticker it.


 
And then within a very few months, this was happening.
Knothole Sawmill, LLC     '98 Wood-Mizer LT40SuperHydraulic   WM Million BF Club Member   WM Pro Sawyer Network

It's Weird being the Same Age as Old People

Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

Ianab

Main difference with building green is that you need to allow it to dry properly before you fully enclose and seal thing up. Modern construction uses vapour barriers that will stop green wood from drying out inside a wall cavity, and so you risk starting  a mushroom farm in there.

But because softwood generally dries pretty quick, and it takes time to build a structure, by the time you get the roof finished and are starting to think about the cladding, the framing should be dry enough that you can start that job. Log cabins are a bit different as the logs stay exposed and are able to dry out slowly over time. The whole structure will settle by a significant amount, so you have to allow for that in doorways and windows.

As for shrinkage, wood doesn't shrink significantly in length. So vertical wall studs stay the same length, and the geometry of roof trusses doesn't change. Pick your species and logs for better quality for those structural parts and they shouldn't warp excessively either.  Uglier logs can be used for panelling / cladding etc where a few knots aren't an issue, and it's nailed in place to prevent it moving as it dries.

Choice of wood?  What are your choices locally? Most areas have something that's usable, it's just a matter of matching up the species for the best end uses.
Weekend warrior, Peterson JP test pilot, Dolmar 7900 and Stihl MS310 saws and  the usual collection of power tools :)

plantman

"Cherish the cabin !" (You'll have to be a Seinfeld fan to get that joke. )
Seriously though, it's really beautiful.

Quote from: Jeff on November 01, 2017, 10:27:34 AM
We built one in the backyard 12 years ago and it's holding up fine. Here is the build topic and a video of the finished cabin.


https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php/topic,14094.0.html

https://youtu.be/V1WeTuSvFZM

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