Buying & Using Native Lumber
Original text by Robert DeGeus & Ginger Anderson

Introduction:

Wood is a highly versatile material. Some people view wood as a "low-tech" material, but the wood-producing industries have made great strides in applying research advances to this wonderful natural material. This allows today's commercial sawmills to create products from the whole of each log they purchase. Gone are the days of burning sawdust and bark just to get rid of them. Sawdust is supplied to farmers for animal bedding, slabs are chipped for fuel and pulp, and bark is sold for landscape mulch.

The local sawmill is part of the rural, working landscape. The mill's purchase of logs provides income to loggers who in turn pass some of the dollars on to forestland owners. The local furniture craftsman or building contractor uses the sawmills' products to supply quality products to consumers. Without satisfying the consumer who governs this economic cycle, the wood products industry cannot survive.

We are accustomed to acquiring our wood products from retail lumber yards with a wide variety of products and services. The wood products available at most large volume yards are usually from forests in other parts of North America; particularly the southern and western US and Canada. Yet local sawmills produce many of the same products as their counterparts elsewhere, at favorable quality and price advantages.

Should you use locally produced, native lumber to satisfy your wood needs? The choice will depend on your personal requirements. We hope that learning more about quality wood products available locally at competitive prices will broaden your options and help increase the vigor of the local economy.

How Do I Find Local Sources of Native Wood Products?

Most state forestry agencies or university extension systems produce directories of sawmills and wood manufacturers for their respective states. In Vermont the Department of Forests, Parks & Recreation has its Vermont Directory of Sawmills and Veneer Mills and Vermont Wood Product Manufacturers and Crafters available on-line. The individual company listings provide information on available products and availability of retail services. In other states, contact your local state forestry organization for information.

What Kinds of Native Wood Products are Available?

The directories listed above provide a great deal of information on the range of products and services available. Besides construction lumber, local sawmills can often supply specialty products such as extra wide boards, extra long planks, large long timbers, posts & beams, and lumber of odd dimensions. Lumber from local tree species whose wood is not widely available, or custom cutting of logs provided by and for landowners, may be offered by some small mills.
Milled wood products such as tongue and groove, v-groove, shiplap, flooring, and siding may also be found at local mills.

What Type of Lumber Should I Buy?

The most common species of lumber imported to the northeastern US for construction purposes are produced from Douglas fir (from the western US and Canada), and several species of pine known collectively as the southern yellow pines (from the southeastern US). The trees from which this lumber is manufactured are known as "softwoods" because they are coniferous trees and the wood from them is relatively softer than that of most deciduous trees. The wood from these imported species, demonstrate several working properties that make them desirable for a variety of uses. Most native woods may not have as broad a range of desirable qualities, but for specific jobs may perform as well or better.

The chart below lists properties commonly desired from manufactured lumber, by species and ranks them.

Three classes were used for ranking:
A= Superior
B= Intermediate
C= Fair

The charts are provided or both hardwoods and softwoods. Properties such as shrinkage and warpage are highly dependant on storage and handling conditions, and as such are not included in the charts. A complete listing of wood properties is available in The Wood Handbook.

Working Properties of Various Woods

Hardwood Species Ease of Working Resistance to Splitting in Nailing Nail Holding Resistance to Splitting in Screwing Ease of Gluing

Measuring Lumber: Board Foot Dimensions

Native lumber may be sold by the piece, but is more likely to be sold by the "board foot", a measure of the volume of the piece of lumber. A board foot is a standard measure of lumber, which contains a volume of 144 cubic inches. This measure is also given as an imaginary board 12" X 12" X 1". Any other combination of dimensions that yields 144 cubic inches qualifies as a board foot. It should be noted that the board foot volume of any product is usually measured on the green un-surfaced piece. A dried, planed, piece will necessarily be somewhat smaller, while carrying the same designated volume.

The table below shows the board foot contents of various sized sawn products. To calculate board foot volume, multiply the width and thickness in inches and then the length in feet. Divide this product by 12.

Example: Board is 10 feet long, 8 inches wide and 2 inches thick.
8" X 10'= 80 X 1"= 80 80 / 12 = 8.33 BF

Board Foot Volumes of Boards of Various Dimensions:

Lumber Grade

Premium quality lumber products are available throughout the US and Canada. Working with local producers, the consumer has the advantage of knowing the source of the lumber, as well as being able to choose or specify the most appropriate product for the job.

Most of the hardwood lumber produced in the eastern US and Canada is sorted and sold by "grade". Commercial mills employ trained lumber graders who are certified through independent trade associations. Hardwood lumber is graded on the basis of the size and number of "cuttings" or pieces, which can be made from a board when it is cut up and used to manufacture a product such as furniture. Cuttings must normally be "clear", that is free of defects such as knots, splits and bark pockets so that they do not appear in the finished product.1 The most appropriate and cost effective grade of lumber should be chosen based on price, yield, and the size of the cuttings needed for a particular project or application (for instance kitchen cabinets may not require a piece longer than 30").

Grades for softwood dimension lumber are based on the presence of defects, which potentially affect the strength of the piece in a load-bearing application. These defects include such things as knots, cracks or splits and the "slope-of-grain". Smaller softwood sawmills may or may not grade their lumber. Consumers should check local building codes before using ungraded lumber for residential or commercial building.

For more information on lumber grades and grading, the mill owner or lumber grader can be very helpful. Another source of information is the grading agencies themselves. In the northeast, the Northeastern Lumber Manufacturers Association is the recognized grading agency for white pine and northeastern softwood species. The National Hardwood Lumber Association maintains the grading rules for hardwood lumber throughout the country. Check out the links to the associations for detailed information on lumber grades and grading.

Green or Dry Lumber?

Local sawmills may offer green, air-dry, or kiln dried lumber for retail sale. Choosing the right product is a matter of the final use of the lumber and the time and facilities a consumer has for drying. As it dries, all lumber shrinks to some extent until it reaches a balance with its environment, making the use of green lumber in interior applications unacceptable.

Green lumber may be a good choice if the consumer has the means to adequately store lumber for drying. Air dried lumber is fine for most outdoor applications or for indoor projects if it can be stored in a heated space for a time prior to use. Kiln dried lumber is best for immediate use in interior applications and has the advantage of being a closely controlled process which minimizes the occurrence defects which are associated with drying.

Air drying can be done by carefully piling green lumber as soon as possible after milling. The layers of piled lumber must be separated from one another with thin strips of lumber called stickers, which are placed perpendicular to the boards. The stickers should be aligned vertically for best results, and the pile should be placed in a protected place such as a bard or garage. If indoor storage is not available, the top of the pile must be covered with a roof of metal or plastic. For specific instructions on air drying, check out the link to Drying Native Lumber.

Kiln dried lumber is typically more expensive than green or air dry material because of the cost associated with operating a kiln, but it may be the best value to the consumer, particularly if time and facilities for drying are not available.

1) An Introduction to Grading Hardwood Lumber; National Hardwood Lumber Association; 1994. 17p