Timber flooring

Sunday, October 21, 2012

When you are building a new house, one of the decisions that you will have to make is what kind material you would be using for the flooring of the place. There are many types of flooring material that are available now, but one that never goes out of style is timber. Timber flooring can give the rustic feeling to a place. It has none of the coldness that stone or tiles can give to your house. It can add warmth and character. Here are some of the other advantages that you can get from using timber for flooring:

  • The natural beauty of timber can add to the value of your house. Though the cost of installing timber can be more than any other material used for flooring, it would be worth it in the long run since it can last far longer than others. Besides, timber looks better as it grows older, which is something that you cannot say for other flooring materials.
  • Wood can grow harder as the years pass by. This means that your timber flooring would become more solid through the years. That would make it a lot easier to clean the flooring.  You would not have any problems when it comes to dust and other stuff that could get embedded on rugs and carpets. This makes timber one of the most ideal flooring materials when it comes to the aspect of cleaning.
  • Those who suffer from asthma would be well advised to have timber flooring in their homes. One of the most common reason for asthma attacks are the materials that could get deposited on rugs and other soft flooring materials. You would not get any of those problems when you opt for timber instead.
  • Contrary to what some might believe, using timber is actually eco-friendly. That’s because the use of old trees for timber encourage the growth of new and stronger ones. Of course this would only apply to certain types of trees used for timber, those that grow fast.

There are many things that you should consider when you are choosing the right timber for the flooring of your home. They are available in different colours and grades. It would be best to consult your carpenter or contractor first before you buy materials because they would have different ways of behaving once they are installed. You should decide on the kind of wood finish and look that you want.

Posted in Flooring | Comments Off

Timber supplies

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Here are some useful ideas when it comes to buying timber supplies:

  • There are two main variations of timber. There’s sawn and then there is planed timber. Sawn timber is the rougher of the two. As the name suggests, this is when the piece has just been cut with a saw and is ready for selling. It is often used for construction purposes in places where it is not seen. It can also be used for outdoor purposes such as fences and posts, where fine pieces are not so crucial.
  • Planed timber is smoother of course and it is ideal to use in places where it can be seen. Its smoothness contributes to the aesthetics of the construction.
  • Wood can also be turned into sheet products. One of the most common examples of this type of wood product is plywood.  Normally plywood is rough and it is used for covering and for general construction purposes.
  • For finishing there is a different sort of plywood, one which can give a smoother finish to the interior. This is the laminated plywood. It is used most often for indoor finishes and can be made from different types of wood.
  • Medium Density Fibreboard is another wooden sheet product. It is most useful for cabinets and making cupboards. A substitute for the MDF is the chipboard which is of lower quality and so is mostly used in places where it cannot be seen.
  • When buying timber, it would be best to use inches, because that’s still the way that most of the timber supplies are measured by those who deal with them.
  • When buying timber supplies, you cannot just demand to get the exact lengths that you would like to get. Normally you have to work with the pieces that they have available. That means you should have a clear idea of the pieces that you ought to be using.  You should also have enough skill level to make do with the available wooden pieces that they have.
  • Defects on wooden pieces are not necessarily bad. If you have enough skill in woodworking you might be able to hide that defect or maybe even highlight it and turn it into a unique piece because of the defect. You should know however when a fault is serious enough to affect the quality of the piece.

These are just some of the tips that you can use when it comes to purchasing timber supplies.

Posted in Flooring | Comments Off

Carpentry flooring

Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Carpentry flooring can be an asset for any home. The only problem is that it should be done properly or it would be totally wasted. This means that a lot depends on the person who would be doing the installation for you. Whether it is going to be yourself or you would be hiring some carpenter, there are certain steps that would have to be followed. Here are some tips for floor installation which can make the task a lot easier:

  1. Most of the difficulties encountered when installing wooden floors stem from moisture. Either there is too much of it in the wood or there is too little. Both conditions would result in the flooring not being installed in the proper way. Wood that dries up a lot after it has been installed can cause gaps in it to develop.
  2. Sometimes wooden floor installations might develop some odd sound or squeaking soon after installation. What you can do is to add screws for holding it in place. The screws will hold it down even after you start walking on it.
  3. One of the most crucial questions when it comes to wood installation is, when to have it installed.  The thing with this material is that it can absorb and release moisture. The ideal time to have it installed is when it is perfectly balanced with its environment, when it is not absorbing or releasing moisture. How does one figure that out? The simple answer is to use a moisture meter.
  4. A moisture meter would measure the amount of moisture contained on the lumber material and the foundation. Ideally they should have the same reading, so they could be in equilibrium.
  5. Spring and fall are the seasons when it would be ideal to install wooden flooring. These are the periods when the level of moisture in the environment is not too extreme.
  6. You ought to be careful on the actual installation. The way that you rack the boards that you will be using will have an overall effect on the way that the floor would turn. Bad racking can cause the boards to form odd patterns that would not only look bad, but can be potentially dangerous because it can trip people.
  7. You should be careful to use the right amount of nails and fasteners for the boards. Too much nails could cause some damages while too few of them could cause the boards to become loose and can cause squeaks.

These are just some of the tips that you can use when it comes to installing carpentry flooring.

Posted in Carpentry | Comments Off

Hardwood lumber supplies

Thursday, July 5, 2012

Are you planning on buying some hardwood lumber supplies for your home improvement project? That might not be so easy if you don’t know much about wood and lumber to start with. That doesn’t mean that you would have no chance of getting the best supplies for your project. In order to increase your chances here are some tips and information that you can use in buying the right lumber supplies for your needs:

  • First of all you have to understand that of all the species and varieties of trees that are available, not all of those are used as sources of wood for furniture making and carpentry. Roughly only about 10% of all tree species are used for wood source. There are two types of wood from which you can choose from to use in your project. These are the softwoods and then the hardwoods.
  • Hardwood is derived from trees that lose their leaves during autumn. They have pores on their skin which in turn sets the kind of pattern for its grain.  They are usually classified according to the pore openings that they have. The main classifications are close grained and ring porous.
  • A defect on the wood piece or lumber that you might get is not necessarily bad. Some wood workers actually prefer to work with pieces that have certain surface defects on it. That tends to give it a certain character which cannot be found on other pieces.
  • You should create a drawing plan for the home project that you would be doing. Even a crude one can go a long way. Using the plan, you would be able to come up with a cutting list of all the wooden pieces that you are going to need.  That would make it easier for you to but exactly buy the amount of wood that you need without getting too much or too little.
  • You should look into the defects carried by certain pieces of wood. One of the defects that you should stay away from is warping. To look for signs of warping on a piece of wood you can lift it on one end and look if it is bending towards one side.  You can check also for arching. To do that you can just lay it on a flat surface. Keep in mind that a piece that a seriously arched board is going to be difficult to work on.

These are just some of the tips that you can use for buying lumber for your home project.

Posted in Carpentry, Flooring | Comments Off