All photos from the article

You've read many times about how they pack up quickly, are relatively cheap, require long-term stays, etc. However, the main thing is to know and understand the intricacies of construction, which we will talk about today. Let's look at the technologies and approaches.

About the golden mean

The purpose of the article is not just to give out a lot of incoherent information, but to find that golden mean that will really allow you to build your house from this material with your own hands and at an affordable price.

Let's take a look at the list of tasks that are necessary in any case:

• choice of material;
• foundation preparation;
• technology for installing a house made of timber;
• device rafter system;
• laying insulation.

Our help! Construction technologies for houses made of timber offer several options for solving the problem at each stage. We will not analyze everything, only those that are truly useful and successfully used.

Beam is not just a beam

This:

• ordinary timber, sawn from a solid trunk, having a square cross-section;
• profiled timber - everything is the same, except that the material has joining grooves, called thermal locks;
• glued analogue - very similar to the previous one, with the difference that it is glued together from wooden boards or slats.

Let's make some comparison:

• product price. Naturally, the first thing people pay attention to is cost, so this is the most cheap material – ordinary timber. Profiled is on average one and a half times more expensive. Glued is twice as expensive as profiled.

For information! Naturally, the price corridor was considered with all other parameters being equal, namely: cross-sectional area, length, humidity, material from which the timber was prepared.

• installation possibilities for various docking methods are absolutely identical for all types of goods;
• shrinkage of the finished structure is maximum with ordinary material up to 7%, minimum with laminated veneer lumber - 2-3%;
• the need to use insulation is typical for any material;

Advice! No matter how hermetically sealed the thermal lock is, even it has a groove for insulation, and connecting corner connections without insulation are unthinkable.

• build time. Although this indicator is sliding, in general, houses made of timber are assembled quickly, and it is not for nothing that the assembly process is comparable to assembling a children's construction set.

Cheapness attracts many people and very often they buy just ordinary timber. At the shipping area, the goods are in stacks, and you go to choose the fifth on the second floor, the third on the fourth - no one will give it to you, they will ship it after the fact.

Upon delivery of timber to your site, carry out the following sorting steps:

• leave the timber with a natural core in the center for solid initial and final crowns;
• if you have small but noticeable humps in the beams, they will be laid with the humps facing up;
• It is better to use beams with noticeable knot defects for sawing for small wall fragments;
• After the initial inspection and sorting, select the inside of the beam and go over it with an electric planer, mark it. From this smooth and leveled surface you will count down the placement of the dowels, as well as the connecting grooves.

Advice! Very often among normal beams there are those in which the natural core is shifted to one of the corners of the structure. This is bad, since when the structure shrinks and shrinks, the behavior of such wood cannot be predicted. If possible, it is better not to use such beams, or to use them on unimportant objects.

About fundamental knowledge

The age-old debate when analyzing technologies is about the use of two techniques for constructing foundations: tape and piles. A conciliatory option is also offered shallow foundation. Let's take them apart and compare:

Foundation	Advantages	Flaws
Pile	cheap option; will withstand the house + attic, or second floor; can be made from available materials.	dirt, garbage - everything will accumulate under the house; the water supply system requires significant insulation, as does drainage; Rodents can cause damage to a structure.
Tape	the design will last for centuries; will withstand significant weight; will allow you to build a basement under the floor.	the most expensive; There may be temporary stretch marks if you don’t have time to fill everything at once.
Shallow	cheaper than a strip base; protects the underground from debris and rodents.	more expensive than piles; does not have the advantages of tape.

Walls - techniques and capabilities

The technology of building a house with your own hands from timber involves one thing: golden rule: If you have never done construction, invite at least one experienced person. Having laid the first few crowns under his guidance, you will understand the assembly technology.

It doesn't matter what techniques you have, general rules are the same:

• there must be waterproofing between the foundation and the first crown;
• joints in the corners occur according to the tenon + groove principle, with the tenon located closer to inner corner, and a gap of no more than 5 mm is left between the beams for laying insulation;
• when using dowels to connect beams, try not to overestimate the number of storeys, that is, do not use these connections for more than three beams;

For your information! Practitioners recommend using dowels for two beams. The explanation is simple, it is difficult to fit the connecting holes, and if this is done through the insulation, then the drill bit will not so much drill a hole in it as tear it out and crumple it.

• floor and ceiling structures are formed by lags, which can be joined either with a tenon joint or with the help of corners.

Preparing the roof

Even if you don’t move in in the first year and wait for the entire building to shrink, the technology of building a house from timber involves installing a roof right away.

There are also useful tricks here:

• prepare the building so that the attic can be residential, even if you do not heat it and live there;

Metal tiles are pleasing in color.

Advice! You will still have to insulate the ceiling. Installation of metal tiles using technology involves sound insulation and insulation. So why waste the room, use it!

• the rafters are prepared in such a way that the roof is a tent with an angle at the top of less than 90 degrees;
• for modern roofing materials The sheathing is prepared frequently; for slate, you can save money by increasing the sheathing pitch to two times the width of the board.

You'll have to warm yourself up

A log house using energy-saving technology involves external insulation.

This is done like this:

• bars with a cross section of 5x10 cm are placed on all walls of the house as guides;
• mineral wool is inserted between them and the entire structure is covered with a windproof membrane;
• a 1-1.5 cm thick strip is placed on the logs to fix the facing material, it can be: external lining, siding and other materials.

Advice! The technology for building a house from timber with your own hands involves several solutions for external insulation, but the instructions we proposed have stood the test of time.

In conclusion

The result is that technology + construction of houses made of timber have been dismantled. We hope our advice will help you in building a reliable structure. The video in this article will show everything clearly.

28.02.2016 0 Comments

Construction of houses from timber is an activity that is gaining increasing popularity not only in Russia, but also in Belarus. To achieve maximum durability, you must first familiarize yourself with the technology of building a house from timber with your own hands. Below you will see key rules and tips that will help you when performing work.

Classmates

Main features

Compared to simple logs, timber has a significant advantage - lower costs. Of course, there are other advantages, but there are some disadvantages. For example, seams between adjacent products must be treated, since they are initially poorly protected. The building can be sheathed with any comfortable material, but in the absence of such a desire, it is necessary to chamfer each beam 2x2 cm, making a preliminary calculation.

Timber can also warp from time to time as a result of shrinkage, but more expensive products have their own protection. Its essence lies in special drying, which makes it possible to avoid further shrinkage.

There is another variety on the market - laminated veneer lumber, which has improved strength characteristics. An important advantage of this building material is the stability of its geometry. Even under direct exposure to moisture, the material retains its original shape.

How to assemble?

At the timber production plant, you can purchase a ready-made kit intended for assembling a house. After delivery to the site, you just need to assemble it using a special plan. During the installation process, metal studs are used, protected with an anti-corrosion coating. They are required in order to fix the bars in certain places.

Assembly is carried out in the following sequence:

1. The foundation is created;
2. Geometry is checked;
3. Waterproofing is laid, after which the first level of timber is installed;
4. To improve the attractiveness of the building as a whole, the material is fastened using cross technology (using the appropriate tool);
5. The beams are assembled on wood dowels, and insulation is simultaneously laid between them;
6. Upon completion of the assembly, the walls are installed interfloor ceilings, which also includes beams;
7. A set of rafters is being installed. When performing this operation, it is necessary to pay attention to the fact that laminated veneer lumber gives a two percent shrinkage. During construction, sliding-type fastenings can be used, with the help of which the effects of shrinkage become almost invisible;
8. Laying the roofing with your own hands;
9. The interior space of the house is being arranged. To do this, partitions are installed, the floor and walls are insulated, and a number of other works are performed. These construction phases also include the installation of utilities;
10. If the house has a terrace, the first step is to lay the floor using an impregnated board. It must be created taking into account difficult conditions operation over a long period of time;
11. Installation of doors and windows.

Foundation Features

In itself, the technology of building a house from timber may include construction using various types of foundation. The following types are available on the market:

• Columnar. This is the simplest variety. For the arrangement, you need to install asbestos-cement pipes in pre-prepared holes. The existing pillars do not have any connection, so this property is a significant drawback. More practical solution there will be a choice of pile analogues, since here the piles are connected using a reinforced concrete slab;
• Slab. In fact, slab foundation types are a series of reinforced concrete slabs on which construction work will be carried out. Please note that arranging such a foundation requires a large amount of reinforcement and concrete;
• Tape. At the moment this is the most popular variety. The reason is simple - there are a large number of its types that boast different functionality. If a large load is concentrated on the foundation, a foundation with an identical cross-section will be required. Light houses will stand quite well on shallowly buried types of foundation. Despite the fact that their level of reliability is much lower, the cost is often half that.

Watch the video material about the features of the foundation in houses made of timber.

Features of wall construction

Under no circumstances should the assembly of walls be carried out anywhere other than on the construction site. The timber, as a rule, can be connected at the corners using one of two options - with or without a protrusion. The strapping crowns are initially laid on a pre-prepared base, and then mounted in half a tree. This type of fastener must be used regardless of how subsequent rows are connected. The height of the 1st floor should be approximately 3 meters. After laying the walls to the optimal level, specialists need to make the ceiling. Only after this does it begin phased construction 2nd floor, if its presence is provided for in the relevant plans.

Pay attention! It is prohibited to build a house from timber on a turnkey basis! Don't repeat other people's mistakes. First, specialists need to install a log house to perform shrinkage, and only after six months it is recommended to begin finishing. Otherwise, you risk violating the correct technology for building a house from timber, since shrinkage will greatly damage the interior and exterior.

Beam: types, advantages and disadvantages

At the moment, a potential client has the opportunity to choose such types of timber as profiled or solid. We invite you to read about the positive and negative sides.

Profiled timber has a structure consisting of a profile. It, in turn, includes crown grooves or tenons in the design. Fastening elements can be created along the entire length of the beam, and after their production the surface must be sanded. After the timber is fully prepared, it is delivered to the construction site, after which the building is assembled from the resulting building material.

Compared to other varieties, profiled timber has the following advantages:

• These houses have an increased level of resistance to deformation destruction;
• Construction takes less money;
• The technology of building a house from timber is considered extremely simple;
• Due to high precision product shape obtained by processing manufacturing enterprises, the building material becomes much more harmonious appearance. It is also worth highlighting the increase in the thermal properties of each wall as a whole;
• The surface of the walls will always be smooth, so they do not require mandatory cladding;
• The source of rot that occurs as a result of exposure to snow, condensation and rainwater is completely absent. The reason is simple - the profiles are created so that water does not get into the crown joints;
• As soon as the shrinkage of an object created from profiled timber is completed, you will not have to additionally caulk each wall;
• Guaranteed high level protection against drafts and heat loss. This is because the crowns have an increased level of fastener density.

But there are also disadvantages:

• Since profiled timber is a flammable material, which can also be affected by adverse weather conditions;
• To increase fire retardant and bioprotective properties, treatment with special substances is required;
• Due to the presence of natural humidity levels, summer season Cracks may form as the wood dries out. Thus, optimal solution there will be a choice of timber that has previously been dried in chambers, and in which the moisture content of the timber has been reduced to 20 percent;
• The thickness of each wall of a house made of profiled timber is not suitable for full use of the building in winter. In this situation, it will be necessary to insulate the walls of a wooden house from the outside, but in no case, not from the inside;
• After the construction of a house made of timber has been successfully completed, it will be impossible to change the size, add new rooms or redesign existing ones.

Now let's get acquainted with houses made of solid timber. Despite the very mediocre beauty of the appearance, the construction of this type of building has a large number of advantages:

• Since the procedure for creating this building material is relatively quick and simple, the final cost is an order of magnitude lower;
• The material is very popular - you can buy it both in a hardware store and in specialized markets. The client receives an additional benefit, since no additional costs are required for transportation - usually delivery is free;
• After purchasing the timber, the client receives the order within ten days, due to the simplicity of construction technologies;
• To perform construction work no additional special equipment is required.

The disadvantages of this material are the following:

• Mandatory allocation of additional funds for finishing. To complete the appearance of the building, additional siding is required, or clapboard can be used for this purpose. The material must be selected extremely carefully, and you need to make sure high quality its structures. If you don't do this, you may run into problems. Failure to comply with GOST requirements may cause uneven walls;
• Wood is quite easily affected by fungus. The material has a natural moisture level; it does not undergo additional drying. To reduce the level of humidity, you can also use special antiseptics, but in this case you need to be prepared to spend a lot of time, as well as allocate an impressive amount of money;
• Inter-crown seams are less protected from cold air getting inside. Such buildings do not retain heat inside well;
• Possible cracking of the timber structure. Once shrinkage is complete, cracks may appear. Interior and exterior cladding can solve this problem, but again, this work additional money and time are required.

Finishing

If you think that the construction of houses made of timber will end with installation doorways and window frames, then you are deeply mistaken. Each instruction states that it is necessary to additionally lay a subfloor and install thermal insulation coatings. After this, the finishing is arranged, and then the finishing coating is applied. Ceilings are also required to be furnished.

Pick up external finishing the owner of the house can do it on his own. Depending on the aesthetic preferences and characteristics of individual taste, the house may be left without any finishing at all. outside. But only on condition that the quality facing materials and their appearance give this opportunity. If you want a different look, you can paint the house. However, a more profitable option is cladding with clapboard, siding or a number of other materials presented. This is the best option.

In itself, building a house from timber has its own characteristics and difficulties. In this case, you need to learn how to select building materials correctly, taking into account how the house will be used, with what frequency, how many people will live, and so on. By following time-tested technologies, you are guaranteed to build a durable, comfortable and reliable structure without the active help of specialists.

For detailed analysis technologies for building a house from timber, we recommend watching three educational videos. We think they will be an excellent tool for you in the process of building a house from timber with your own hands.

For the construction of country cottages, various wall materials, each of which has its own characteristics. Many private developers who want to have environmentally friendly and comfortable housing that does not require large construction costs choose timber. Build today timber house You can use modern advanced materials and technologies, resulting in a beautiful, reliable and durable cottage. What types of houses are made from profiled timber, photos and descriptions of the construction process are in our article.

If you are thinking about how to build a house in the forest, then timber is the best option.

What is timber

This is a building material that is made from wood by hewing. It has a square or rectangular cross-section. Minimum size in cross section - 10 by 10 cm, maximum - 40 by 40. It is quite durable and “warm” natural material, allowing you to build houses on light, inexpensive foundations. Timber made of resinous wood saturates the cottage premises with phytoncides (useful bactericidal substances). In addition, it belongs to vapor-permeable materials. Thanks to this, a microclimate favorable for humans is formed inside the house.

The correct geometry of the timber facilitates the process of assembling a log house and allows you to build walls without cracks and gaps. During manufacturing, the timber is processed special compounds, protecting it from moisture, insects and rodents, while making the wood fire resistant. After completing all stages of manufacturing, the material is dried using special equipment, as a result of which it shrinks by about 10%. There is also timber natural humidity, which dries (settles) under normal conditions for several months.

Professional developers use the following types of timber to build a house:

profiled;

• insulated.

Profiled

This wood material with a rectangular cross-section, which has recesses designed for the most tight joining of individual bars with each other. The front side of such a beam can be round or flat. The inner side is usually flat. Profiled material eliminates the possibility of cracks in the wall. Thanks to the notches, the construction of the log house is very quick and easy.

Glued

Glued laminated timber is made from individual lamellas, which are pre-dried and then glued together with non-toxic glue. Thanks to the different directions of fibers in the lamellas, the glued material is very durable. It hardly shrinks. This material can be longer, which increases its versatility in use.

Insulated

This version of the timber is distinguished by the presence of a hole between the front and back sides. This hole is filled with cellulose. The result is a material with improved thermal insulation characteristics.

On our website you can get acquainted with the most popular projects from construction companies, presented at the exhibition of houses “Low-Rise Country”.

Wood type

Timber for building houses is made from species that are less susceptible to rotting and rodents than others. Mostly it is larch, spruce or pine. The tree with the most attractive characteristics is larch. It is durable, fireproof, and does not rot even in sea water. The resin secreted by larch acts as a natural antiseptic that protects it from insects. The only disadvantage of this type of wood is its high cost.

Spruce and pine are considered more economical options. Spruce is looser in structure and has many knots. However, when the right approach high quality is made from it construction timber. Pine is more practical in all respects. In terms of its characteristics, it is second only to larch.

Which material to choose

Currently, profiled and laminated timber are especially actively used. The choice between these two options is based on their differences. Thus, laminated wood is produced in a wider range of standard sizes. Due to the fact that the lamellas can be “joined” in length, laminated veneer lumber can reach 18 linear meters, while profiled material has a length of up to 6 meters.

The thicker the wall elements, the better than walls it retains heat. However, solid profiled material with a cross-section of more than 200 cm is rarely used, since thick beams are difficult to dry. Glued has fewer restrictions here too. If desired, you can purchase laminated veneer lumber with a cross-section of 275 mm.

In terms of environmental friendliness, profiled material, which is made without the use of glue, is considered more attractive. But in this matter it should be remembered that responsible manufacturers use adhesives only from the class safe compounds. In addition, profiled timber also does not remain completely environmentally friendly, since it must be coated with protective substances.

The level of vapor permeability of profiled timber is higher. At the same time, glued material gives minimal shrinkage, has higher strength and is a more fire-resistant type of construction wood. In addition, a house made of laminated veneer lumber can be prepared for moving in immediately after assembly, while a building made of profiled material should last about six months until the shrinkage process is completed. In general, the performance of laminated wood is more acceptable, but profiled wood costs about 30% less, so it is no less in demand.

Recently, insulated (or double) timber has been increasingly used. Houses made from it are warmer and stronger than from glued ones, since it is a structure made of wood, insulation and cross joints. Insulated timber weighs less than glued timber and is cheaper. However, before building a wooden house from this type of timber, you need to think carefully about its disadvantages. The main one is the rapid destruction of insulation, which cannot be replaced.

double timber

Video description

Laminated timber and thermo-timber, differences and cost of a turnkey house made of thermo-timber - see the following video:

Construction stages

The technology for building a house from timber is not particularly different from building a cottage from other building materials. But there are still some nuances.

Project

Engineering basis timber house should be a high-quality professional project created by specialists who know how to properly build a house from timber. In architectural development, all characteristics of the material are taken into account, and solutions are used that enhance the advantages of wood buildings.

The timber is ideal for the construction of small and medium-sized houses. But if you wish, you can build a large wooden mansion with complex architecture. In any case, the length of the walls is calculated taking into account the standard length of the timber (6 meters). In order for the designed log house to be built quickly, while leaving a minimum of waste, the length of the walls, a multiple of 2 or 3 meters, is included in the design.

Purchase of materials

Materials are purchased in accordance with the architect's calculations. It is very important to purchase all necessary timber single purchase. This is especially true for profiled wood, where the percentage of moisture content can vary significantly between batches.

Site preparation

Any construction begins with site preparation. At this stage, old buildings are dismantled, trees and shrubs that may interfere with construction are removed, and the ground is leveled.

Foundation

Timber cottages are built on strip foundations. Such a foundation is built in several steps. First, they dig a trench around the perimeter of the future building. Sand and crushed stone are poured onto the bottom. All this is compacted well. Next is installed wooden formwork and concrete is poured.

Subfloor

The construction of the timber building itself begins with laying the lower crowns and arranging the subfloor. At this stage, it is very important to know how to build a house from timber so that it turns out warm and dry. The first step is to ensure effective waterproofing foundation. After this, the first crown is laid from carefully processed beams. Next, the floor is installed.

For the subfloor, logs are first laid - usually with a cross-section of 150 by 100. To increase the reliability of the structure, they also lay a subfloor made of more wide beams. Floor boards are laid across the joists. Waterproofing, insulation and vapor barrier are placed on top. After this, the subfloor is laid with 40 mm thick boards.

Box assembly

The walls of the log house are laid out by layering crowns. All crowns are pulled together using dowels. Internal and external wall structures are erected simultaneously. For attaching internal partitions to inside of the front walls, cuts are made through the row, into which the ends of the partition beams are recessed.

Roof

The roof consists of a rafter system, sheathing for attaching the roofing covering and the covering itself. First, the upper crown is pulled together by laying solid beams with a section of 100 by 150. Then the rafter legs are made from boards and installed. After this, the pediments are laid out.

To lay the covering, a sheathing is constructed. After this, the roof is insulated and the covering is laid.

Windows and doors

Door and window openings are framed by racks. It is very important to provide around the openings competent system grooves and technological gaps so that double-glazed windows and doors do not interfere with the natural shrinkage process. Otherwise, the wooden elements may become deformed and crack.

Video description

Installation of plastic windows in a timber house

Insulation

In the construction of log houses, a practice is often used in which the walls are erected from a material with a small thickness, and then an insulation system is installed. You can insulate a house from the outside or from the inside. To make wood last longer, it is better not to cover it with insulation from the outside, but to insulate it internally. In this case, the wooden wall is insulated with hydro and vapor barrier, then insulation is installed, and another layer of vapor and waterproofing is installed on top. The insulating pie is covered with plasterboard, after which you can decorate the walls with any facing material.

Communications

All communications are connected to the house, according to a previously prepared project. Special attention is paid to safety precautions when laying the electrical network and arranging the heating system.

Video description

Communications in a timber house

Finishing

Timber walls do not require facial finishing. The exception is houses with insulation. Usually after construction insulating pie the walls are decorated with panels imitating natural wood, so that the facades of the house and its interior walls formed a single harmonious composition.

The floor in the house is covered with any floor covering. Usually the floors are timber cottages turn out quite warm. However, if desired, you can install a “warm floor” system.

The ceiling can be left open or decorated with tension fabric. Other options ceiling decoration undesirable due to shrinkage.

Video description

Let's talk about materials, about the whole cycle production process, pros and cons of technology:

On our website you can get acquainted with the most popular projects of houses made of laminated veneer lumber from construction companies presented at the exhibition of Low-Rise Country houses.

Conclusion

Every year in the Moscow region they are increasingly building houses from timber. Such houses are built quite quickly. But if you yourself don’t know how to properly build a house from timber, then professional builders can complete all stages in a couple of months. The main thing is to take into account the characteristics of the materials and provide everything to ensure that it lasts as long as possible.

August 28, 2017
Specialization: facade finishing, interior decoration, construction of cottages, garages. Experience of an amateur gardener and gardener. We also have experience in repairing cars and motorcycles. Hobbies: playing the guitar and many other things that I don’t have time for :)

The construction of log houses from timber and logs is very different from traditional construction. Therefore, many beginners, when faced with a similar task, make a number of mistakes. To avoid them, I suggest you familiarize yourself with the main nuances and subtleties of building a house from timber.

Construction technology

The construction of a timber house can be divided into several stages:

Design

The process of designing a timber house is no different from drawing up a project for any other type of building. On at this stage you need to decide on the following points:

• Dimensions of the building;
• Layout;
• Type of foundation and type of roof;
• The amount of building materials.

Construction of a house with an attic will increase usable area almost doubled with minimal financial costs.

To avoid racking your brains over design, take a look finished projects houses and timber on our portal, and choose among them suitable option. After this, you can calculate the amount of building materials you will need by performing a few simple calculations.

After calculating the amount of materials, you can prepare an estimate and find out what the price of the future home will be.

A few words about materials

When choosing lumber, beginners usually first of all pay attention to the choice of wood type, but this is not entirely true. Thanks to modern impregnations, the type of wood has virtually no effect on the performance properties of the timber. Therefore, first of all, you need to pay attention to the type of timber.

If, for example, you are building a house for a summer residence, you can use a regular flat beam. If the house is intended for permanent residence, it is better to use profiled timber, which ensures that there are no gaps between the crowns.

It is even better to build a house from laminated veneer lumber, since this material is less susceptible to deformation and cracking. True, its cost is also the highest.

It is not necessary to choose the best types of wood for timber construction - knots and minor cracks are quite acceptable. But rot and other serious flaws must be excluded.

One more interesting solution is the construction of a house from double timber. Its principle is to use imitation timber, which is mounted in two layers. In this case, the space between the layers is filled with insulation.

As a result, the house turns out to be as warm as a frame house, but is erected with crowns like an ordinary log house.

What base to use

Since wooden houses are much lighter than, for example, brick ones, they do not need strip foundation. Therefore, if you are not going to make a cellar or basement under the house, it is more advisable to columnar foundation. If the house is being built on unstable ground or on a slope, the optimal solution is a pile-screw foundation.

The only thing is, regardless of what type of foundation you build, be sure to do horizontal waterproofing to protect the walls from moisture.

Walling

Now we proceed to the main part of the construction - the construction of walls. The instructions look like this:

Illustrations	Description of actions
	Laying the crowns: A beam of 150x150 mm is laid on the foundation and joined together in half a tree or in any other way shown in the diagram; Check the angles - they should be 90 degrees; Secure the first crown to the foundation using anchors or special pins; You can immediately embed the partition beams. To do this, a tenon and groove are cut out in the parts being joined. The second and third crowns are laid according to this principle. Between the crowns, be sure to place a special thermal insulation material, due to which the joints will be “warm”.
	Installation of dowels. Additional fastening of the crowns is carried out using wooden dowels, which are installed as follows: In the third crown, holes are drilled along the diameter of the dowels in increments of one and a half to two meters, and with a depth to the middle of the first crown; Dowels are inserted into the holes. They should fit fairly easily, as shrinkage of the house will subsequently occur. If the dowels “bite” in this case, gaps may form between the rims; Then the pins are installed through the crown in a checkerboard pattern, i.e. with an offset relative to the first row of dowels. This is the principle used to build a house box.
	Cutting openings: Mark the location of the openings; Fasten the crowns of the house to the left and right of the opening with boards; Cut your own openings using a chain saw; Install a box that will fasten the crowns together; After this, you can remove the boards to temporarily fasten the crowns.

The construction of the box is completed. After this, you need to lay the floor beams. True, if the house is two-story, interfloor beams are cut in during the process of building the box.

Erection of the roof

The roof is erected according to a standard scheme, without any special features. If it is an attic, broken rafters are installed, which rest on racks. The latter are connected by purlins.

If attic floor will be used as residential, be sure to insulate it mineral wool. At the same time, ensure high-quality vapor barrier from the inside so that the mineral wool does not become damp.

A few words about finishing work

The walls of timber houses look attractive on their own, so they do not need to be finished. It is enough just to open the wood with varnish or other protective and decorative agent.

Finishing may be necessary if you decide to insulate the house. In this case, you must wait until the house shrinks, and then finish it frame method using ventilated facade technology.

It is better not to insulate the inside of the house, as this will reduce the durability of the structure.

That's all the main nuances of building a log house.

Conclusion

Now you know how to build a house from timber, and you can cope with this task yourself. But, be sure to watch the video in this article first. If you have any questions during the construction process, write comments and I will be happy to help you.

August 28, 2017

If you want to express gratitude, add a clarification or objection, or ask the author something - add a comment or say thank you!

Despite the emergence of increasingly sophisticated building materials, natural wood is still highly rated among Russian developers. Profiled timber is very technologically advanced in this regard, especially if construction needs to be carried out at an accelerated pace. Let's talk about building a house from profiled timber.

How to choose the appropriate type and grade of timber

Profiled timber is classified according to two criteria: the shape of the side edges and the profile of the joint connection. And if the choice between a flat or semicircular edge is made purely for aesthetic reasons, then the method of joining the crowns entirely determines the strength, stability and energy efficiency of the log house.

Practicing woodcutters often agree that there are three preferred timber profile shapes: comb, tongue-and-groove and double groove with oblique edges. All three types are very convenient to work with; the difference lies in the caulking method and the insulation material used, or the lack thereof. So, when laying timber with a comb, the seal is either not used at all, or a pre-compressed sealing tape (PSUL) is rolled out between the rims. For other types of connections, jute fabric or felt is used.

It is advantageous to use these types of profiles due to the minimum values ​​of the divergence of the crowns during the shrinkage process. Wedge-shaped tenons and grooves, unlike rectangular ones, are capable of compacting on their own. Another key difference between the comb is the impossibility of sealing the inter-crown gaps after shrinkage, while the tenon-groove is more tolerant of cutting flaws and can be subjected to repeated caulking.

The quality of profiled timber is determined not so much by the origin of the forest as by the season of its cutting and the correctness of the cut. The timber is usually cut from the core of the trunk, which can be easily seen from the arrangement of the growth rings. The more accurately the longitudinal axis of the beam corresponds to the location of the core, the less likely it is that through cracks will occur in it. By the way, their presence is not at all a sign of poor quality wood. Cracks are a typical phenomenon for profiled timber, especially for lumber that has undergone intensive drying.

Humidity, aging and wood processing

It is possible to inhabit a log house without seasoning only if it is made of laminated veneer lumber. Unfortunately, the price tag for this type of lumber can be 2-2.5 times higher in cost than ordinary solid timber, so many developers have no choice but to independently select, deliver and prepare the wood before construction.

Based on relative moisture content, lumber is divided into natural (50-80%), construction (20-25%) and low (less than 15%) humidity. The catch here is that the thicker the material, the more difficult it is to dry it to the very core. It is thanks to the initial removal of moisture to 10-15% that the timber loses its tendency to intensive warping and twisting, although shrinkage phenomena are still characteristic of it. This is the benefit of laminated veneer lumber: it consists of thoroughly dried lamellas, which, moreover, are oriented with fibers in opposite directions.

Solid timber can be natural or kiln dried. In the latter case, dehydration with superheated steam and microwave irradiation will be most advantageous. Both of these methods lead to the guaranteed destruction of organic matter that can develop over time and spoil the tree. For pre-dried timber, humidity at the time of delivery to the construction site and the start of cutting is completely unimportant, since the primary processes of deformation have already passed in it.

You need to understand that the timber is usually dried before profile milling, which eliminates bending during subsequent storage and transportation. You can distinguish damp-planed wood by the smallest pile, which, when passing through cutting tool drawn from raw fibers. And if side surfaces If profiled timber is usually sanded to hide this defect, such processing is not possible inside the grooves. Timber of this quality must be delivered to the site in advance, placed in a stack or well with ventilation gaps and stand for 6-12 months. During this period, the wood will gain and lose moisture several times and go through various temperature conditions and will take its final form.

After curing, the timber is sorted by curvature, treated with fire and bioprotective compounds, after which they proceed directly to cutting. When using pre-drying timber, tricks with exposure will not play a significant role, but protective impregnation can be applied after assembling the frame. Glued laminated timber is usually not impregnated: if one of the lamellas in the entire log house is damaged, blueness and rot will not be able to spread beyond it due to the presence of an adhesive partition.

Foundation of a modern wooden house

Unlike a log house made of rounded logs, where one or more crowns are made of wood of increased thickness, a house made of profiled timber is placed on a rigid concrete base. Most suitable for wooden buildings can be called slab foundations. Due to their high stability, there is no need to allow time for settlement in the ground before accepting the design load.

Tapes and grillages on shallow piles require curing from several months to a year, depending on the intensity of precipitation. Construction wooden house or bathhouses made of timber on an unsupported foundation are fraught with the risk that due to the uneven density of the soil and the significant weight of the walls, the tape will warp and the frame will have to be rebuilt. The exception is pile foundations, resting on a deeper, denser and more uniform layer of soil, the tape must pass through 4-5 periods of prolonged rains, which will uniformly erode the soil both from the inside and outside.

Is there a better chopping method?

Due to the relatively small thickness of the profiled timber (again, due to the difficulties of deep drying), it is chopped into a bowl with the remainder. Thus, bandaging at corners and cuts occurs according to the standard half-log pattern.

Similar to trapezoidal spikes connecting profile, for a bowl the Norwegian shape will be optimal, and if the thickness of the beams is more than 150 mm, the Canadian shape will be optimal. A characteristic feature of cutting rectangular lumber is the absence of notches, although they may be present on the outer edges of D-shaped beams.

Canadian and Norwegian bowls are capable of settling and compacting under the weight of the upper crowns as the wood shrinks. Notching a hidden tenon at the bottom of the bowl is not necessary when using a tongue-and-groove profile, but is highly recommended when laying beams with a comb. To prevent water from flowing between the rims, the bowl should be chopped in top position, fortunately, the low weight of the logs allows them to be manipulated freely.

What time of year should I build?

Traditionally, a wooden house made of timber is cut in winter, and there are a number of reasons for this:

1. Construction of the foundation is planned for late spring or early summer, when it is easier to carry out excavation work in thawed soil. Over the summer and autumn, the foundation has time to settle and endure the first manifestations of heaving without load.
2. In winter, wood does not attract moisture and, on the contrary, it reaches construction humidity levels in the cold.
3. In a frozen state, damage to wood by insects and harmful organic matter is impossible.
4. After assembling a log house from timber, its shrinkage occurs under changing weather conditions, making it easier for the tree to adapt to its shape, and residual warping and twisting are almost completely eliminated.

There is also a more practical reason to schedule felling for the winter: most contractors at this time take a break from the summer construction rush, and accordingly, the cost of their services decreases.

Cover crown and floor

Although the frame of a log house made of profiled timber does not serve as a foundation, its design has serious specific features, on which both the durability of the house and its simplicity depend interior design. You should start with the fact that for the first 2-3 crowns of the log house there is a timber made of dense and hard coniferous species, for example, larch or fir. They are laid on concrete, having previously spread several layers of waterproofing. The remains of the frame beams are usually 15-20 cm longer than in the other crowns.

Another characteristic feature cover crown made of profiled timber is its fastening to concrete base using anchor bolts. Embedded studs can also successfully play this role, but this approach requires better organization and precise marking. It is only important that the ends of the studs or bolts are recessed into the timber by 10-15 mm, for which wide recesses are drilled under them. It must be remembered that to cut half a log, two directions for laying the logs must be observed, that is, on one side there is a whole beam on the frame crown, and on the other there is a “ski” spread in half.

In houses on a tape or grillage, the beams of the first and sometimes the second row are often laid after cutting grooves on two opposite sides of each room. The grooves are designed for installing floor joists, thus the upper edge of the foundation has the smallest possible thickness, equal to the thickness of the beam, and accordingly, concrete consumption is minimized.

Construction of a box at home

In addition to the process of cutting bowls in beams when building a wooden house, there are several additional tricks. The process of assembling a log house from profiled timber is extremely simple: a sealing tape is placed in a groove or on a ridge, then the next row of timber is placed on top and hammered down with a sledgehammer.

To prevent twisting and warping, the crowns are fastened together with dowels. Steel reinforcement should not be used for these purposes, because there is a high risk of moisture formation at the interface of dissimilar materials. Also, do not allow the dowels to fit too tightly: their diameter must exactly match drilled hole(14-16 mm), while after driving the dowel is additionally recessed by 15-20 mm. The installation pitch of dowels can vary between 1-1.5 meters, while different rows need to be fastened with an offset of 30-40 cm.

Cuttings are carried out to strengthen a building with a wall length of more than 6 meters. They do not have to be stacked with leftovers; it is much easier and more efficient to cut the dovetail joint, avoiding additional gaps in the thermal protection of the house. Also in this case, it is necessary to splice the beams, which is done according to the tension lock scheme with oblique edges.

As you build walls, you should correctly form windows and doorways. Before laying the next beam adjacent to the opening, its open end must be trimmed to a quarter. If the frame is installed during assembly, the ends of the beams are cut into a tenon. It should be remembered that when installing glazing during the shrinkage period, the top gap of the frame must be at least 100 mm to ventilate the house.

Ceilings and roof

Covering a house made of timber is quite simple to do, similar to installing floor joists. The difference may lie in the fact that the floor beams are cut in with a remainder. In this case, it is advisable to place the axis of the beam in the center of the inter-crown seam so as not to violate the integrity of the beams. Notching the grooves should be done no more than 2/3 of the thickness, firmly fastening both crowns with dowels, between which the beams are sandwiched.

Depending on the steepness of the slope and the length of the overhangs, the Mauerlat for the rafters can be either the upper beam with which the beams are pressed attic floor, or any of the following. In this case, hemming is performed exclusively in rafter leg, which is installed offset with respect to the floor beam with the expectation that it will then be fixed to it from the side. It is widely practiced to gradually increase the length of the upper crowns to form a wider eaves overhang.

Releasing the remains of the beams outside does not have a very good effect on the thermal insulation of the house, but may be required when there is a significant load on the floor. Otherwise, this problem can be solved by attaching the beams to the walls using special metal brackets.