It has always been believed that wood is the most suitable material for construction. It's all about its environmental friendliness, low thermal conductivity, naturalness and, of course, natural beauty. This building material has very few shortcomings, and even with those that exist, people have learned to deal effectively.
New generation material - glued beams
Most people, especially the population of megacities, dream of environmentally friendly housing and better living conditions. Today, traditions coming from the depths of centuries, coupled with the latest technological processes, make it possible to build wooden houses of excellent quality. Glued laminated timber is the most demanded and popular in the construction of houses, as it is natural, durable and aesthetic. Such buildings practically do not shrink, have a long service life and are ready for operation and finishing immediately after the completion of installation work.
Production Features
The building material we are considering is done like this: logs are sawn radially onto boards, which are subsequently dried well(taking into account the type of wood), up to about 10-12% moisture, and mechanically processed, as a result of which all possible defects are removed. After a thorough drying, the wood is visually inspected to detect and eliminate areas with dead knots, tar pockets and fungal infections.
Then the boards (in other words they are called lamellas) are glued together with special compounds and according to the technology specific for such material. There can be several of them in the finished timber, the length of the blanks can reach up to 18 meters. Next, the wooden beams are dried, and only after that the glued beam is calibrated, that is, it acquires the usual rectangular shape.
Materials for glued beams
Conifers, mainly spruce, pine, cedar and larch, have long been used for the production and manufacture of glued beams. The use of valuable and, accordingly, more expensive wood species is a rather rare phenomenon. The reason is the high price. Such a cost is practically inaccessible to the builders of a private dwelling. Although such materials also find their buyers, and this happens quite often.
Advantages of glued beams
Like any building material, glued beams have advantages and disadvantages. First, let's look at its advantages:
1. Glulam houses are easy to install and assemble, and shrinkage and shrinkage are minimized.
2. The material practically does not deform and does not change its shape.
3. During operation, it is not covered with cracks. Histhe surface is flat and smooth, requiring no additional processing and labor-intensive and expensive finishing work.
4. Glued laminated timber has optimal moisture, which prevents rotting and the appearance of fungal microorganisms and harmful bacteria in it.
5. This material can be used for very complex projects.
Cons
However, it cannot be said that glued beams are distinguished by only positive characteristics. There are also disadvantages, here are some of them:
1. High price for glued material. Such a house will cost 2 times more than buildings made of non-profiled logs.
2. Due to the fact that the manufacturing technology is quite new, data on the behavior of this material over long periods of time (for example, after 30-50 years) are not yet available, since its properties have not yet been studied.
3. Use in the production process of glue. Despite the fact that the adhesives comply with the standards, in terms of environmental friendliness, glued laminated timber will lose to conventional profiled timber or logs, since they completely lack such substances. The use of glue impairs some characteristics, in any case, air exchange and moisture circulation do not occur to the fullest. In addition, the indoor climate is also disturbed.
What is the reason for the high price of building materials?
Despite the fact that the desire to live in a house made of natural materials is very strong,many are put off by their cost. Indeed, glued laminated timber, the disadvantages of which were discussed a little higher, is more expensive than all conventional analogues made of wood - rounded logs, ordinary timber, etc.
The high cost of such a material is undoubtedly affected by a rather complicated process of its production. Production costs, cycles, wood and resource consumption are increasing, which cannot but affect the cost.
Quality glued beams, of course, have drawbacks, and all of them lie where there is unfair production, irresponsibility, inattention, negligence when choosing equipment and raw materials, etc. Some use not very good materials in their work, thereby trying to save and simplify the manufacturing process. However, soon the homeowner will regret this, as his house will begin to literally fall apart and collapse. On the other hand, real glued timber is practically not subject to the deformation process, it is more durable than other lumber. It turns out that the overpriced price is fully justified. But the low cost, on the contrary, should alert.
Is glulam safe?
Often there are disagreements about the safety for humans and the environment of such material as glued beams. The reason for these disputes is the use of glue in the production process.
Here it must be taken into account that the substances used in the manufacture of such a bar consist of natural-based materials. Some kind of gluecan be compared with more durable and resistant to various effects of wood resin. But since glued laminated timber, the advantages and disadvantages of which we have already considered, consists of several boards glued together, there is no need to talk about good movement of moisture and air. Accordingly, we can draw the following conclusion: it is not as useful as solid wood, but you can’t call it harmful either, since all the materials used for its production are necessarily certified.
According to statistics, many ordinary homeowners and construction firms choose glulam. Disadvantages (reviews on the use of this material confirm this), of course, affect some properties of wood, but this is not critical.
Varieties
Distinguish different types of this material. Depending on the design and purpose, they can be divided into 2 groups:
1. Building materials for the construction of walls (for this, insulated or ordinary glued beams are used).
2. Materials for the construction of individual structures (curved glued and window beams, floor beams, etc.). The most popular are the Finnish and German types. Scandinavian glued laminated timber, the only drawbacks of which are that it requires additional sealing (and in general this is a common type of profile), it differs from the rest by the presence of two side spikes and special grooves. Such products are connected by a strong lock, and in the middle there is a place for laying a sealant. The German profile is recognized bycomb connection. It provides maximum tightness without the use of sealing material.
Building a house from glued beams
The construction of any building begins with the foundation, so under the glued laminated timber, you must first lay the appropriate foundation. This material perfectly combines all the physical and technical properties and qualities inherent in natural wood. Building a house from glued beams is an easy and fast process. In addition, a distinctive feature of such buildings is good heat and sound insulation. A special technology for the production of building material and the specifics of the construction of the structure provide such a result.
After laying the foundation, the formwork is installed, and then you can proceed to laying the waterproofing. Next comes the actual assembly. Assembling a house from glued laminated timber, the shortcomings of which do not affect the speed or quality of construction work, is very simple, thanks to the drawings made at the factory and convenient marking.
After the walls are assembled, the timber is polished and treated with an antiseptic and flame retardants. This must be done in order to protect the material from rot, the appearance of harmful insects, etc.
Next, roof rafters are installed. After the construction of the roof, you can proceed to the finishing work - painting, pasting, etc.
The final construction process is the completion of the exterior and interior decoration. Turnkey glued laminated timber is being erected in different ways. It all depends on the complexity of the project. For example, a house with an area of 50 to 120 square meters. m is assembled in a few weeks, and this is subject to a ready foundation. You can build such houses all year round, as the building material is resistant to various kinds of environmental influences.
A tree house is a great place for permanent residence and recreation. The special atmosphere inside the premises and the beauty of natural material will accompany the household throughout their lives. Building a country house from glued beams or from other wood is up to you, but you should still study all the advantages and disadvantages of the material you plan to work with.
