Everyone who has decided to build a wooden house, when choosing a material, involuntarily thinks: what to choose-a bar or a log? After all, both have their pros and cons.
Solid log
Thanks to the use of solid logs, you can build a classic wooden house, bathhouse, barn or some other building. The advantages of this material include durability, environmental safety, excellent appearance.
Of the disadvantages, first of all, it should be noted that the log does not tolerate shrinkage-cracks form on it, which means that caulking is required. In addition, the shrinkage lasts for a very long time — from six months to a year, and all this time you will not be able to carry out finishing work and even more so to live in the house. You can minimize the number of cracks only if you process the logs manually, leaving all the protective resins.
The log is very exposed to moisture, so you will have to use additional means to protect the wood to avoid the appearance of mold or mildew. Also, if you do not caulk the cracks, the cold will inevitably penetrate. Do not add optimism and high labor costs during construction. Only an experienced person who deals with log cabins is not the first time to build such a house. It is also bad that the log, due to its round shape, eats up a lot of internal space, especially when placing furniture.
Being a natural raw material, the log behaves differently due to external and internal influences. So, because of the difference between the temperatures inside and outside, it often cracks, and these cracks are longitudinal, along the entire length.
In glued beams, such cracks do not exist in principle. Their appearance indicates a violation of the production technology or operation of the timber, which happens infrequently. It is also convenient from the point of view of conducting hidden electrics: special channels for laying electrical wiring are already filed in it at the factory.
Round log
This material is a pre-prepared, ready-to-use, production-processed log. Due to the presence of sawn grooves in it, not a very experienced person can cope with the construction. People who work with such logs say that the process of building a house from them resembles the assembly of parts of a large constructor.
This is a big plus: you do not need to carry out cutting of grooves and manual processing. However, problems with shrinkage, cracks, and caulking of crevices persist.
Profiled timber
The main advantage of the material is an increase in the density of the joints between the structural elements, which is achieved due to the toothed surface: this eliminates problems with humidity and drafts.
The increased rigidity of the structure eliminates shifts during shrinkage, and after it, no finishing is required. We are also pleased with the improved thermal insulation — a log house made of profiled timber with a standard section of 200 x 145 mm provides the same thermal insulation that is provided by rounded logs of twice the diameter. It is also worth noting the low consumption of wood and the absence of waste after construction.
Disadvantages, of course, are also present. First, as in the case of other wooden products, you can not immediately settle the structure, you will have to wait for shrinkage. Secondly, when drying, cracks will appear on the surface, so additional treatment with special means will still be required.
Glued timber
It has also gained great popularity due to its special properties that other materials do not have. A house made of glued beams is a conscious choice of a person who dreams: a) about a house made of wood; b) about an interesting interior solution; c) wants to have a house that is technologically well executed.
Details for housing made of glued beams are made on high-precision machines in the factory shop, that is, the influence of the human factor is minimized. Such a house is built much faster, and in a building made of logs, only the shrinkage process will go on for at least a year.
We can not say that the glued beam does not shrink at all, but it is taken into account in the technological nodes when assembling the building and does not stop the progress of the project. In addition, the visual characteristics of the structure made of glued beams are quite different-externally, the walls in it are similar to furniture facades.
From the point of view of loads, glued beams are more reliable. Moreover, glued beams often have higher technical characteristics than those recommended. The advantages include the fact that the building can be occupied immediately after its construction. When using any other lumber, this is unfortunately not possible. And thanks to the excellent thermal insulation, you do not have to spend money on an additional layer of insulation. Glued material can be used in the construction of structures of complex configuration, which can not be said about a log or an ordinary bar.
There are few disadvantages: the high cost, which is 2-3 times higher than that of a standard beam, and a weak degree of environmental friendliness, which is caused by the use of special glue in the production.
What to choose?
To bring everything to the same denominator, we will assume that we are talking exclusively about pine lumber.
So, with a very limited budget, it is better to give preference to profiled timber — this option is one of the cheapest. If you follow the construction technologies, a house made of it will delight you for many years. Most likely, you will be able to build it with your own hands.
If you are a follower of old traditions and are not too limited in funds-feel free to order a whole or rounded log.
Glued timber is the most expensive, but at the same time the most durable material. Choose it if you are a person with wealth and at the same time welcome new technologies in private housing construction.
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