The Benefits of Using Sustainable Timber in Modern Building Projects
Sustainable timber has gone from being a buzzword to being a vitally important part of any construction process. Not only are people more concerned about the health of our planet generally with time, but we’re also concerned with ensuring that the wood we’re using isn’t actively harming our forests and woodlands.
Since sustainable timber is more relevant now than ever, let's run through three key benefits of using it in a modern building project.
Availability
To some extent, the cornerstone of sustainable timber is the fact that it can be replenished with time. As such, the availability remains fairly steady, with it sometimes increasing as more and more sustainable forests are planted to ensure consistent supplies of lumber.
While the best builders merchants like https://www.macblair.com/ will always keep you apprised of any changes in availability for the materials you favor, it’s reassuring to know that sustainable timber is very unlikely to have a sudden decrease in availability.
This is also reassuring in a more short-term sense. Sustainable lumber is often softwood, which grows more quickly than hardwood. This wood is available more often because it grows more quickly and can, therefore, be chopped down more often. In extreme cases, this growing and processing can take less than a year, with softwood drying out much more quickly than hardwood.
Tensile Strength
As sustainable lumber is growing in popularity, growers are finding ways to ensure that the strength of their rapid-growth softwood can increase. While there’s only so much a grower can do to make a softwood into a hardwood, the work that’s being done is impressive and non-stop.
Some studies have actually shown that quality timber can be stronger and more reliable than steel or concrete for some applications. The reason for this is that timber can often be used in a compliant manner, as discussed below.
Compliant Building
The process of making any given project compliant is fascinating. Essentially, the concept is that rather than making a rigid structure that has to withstand weather, seismic activity, and wear and tear, you create a more flexible structure that can interact with those things to some degree.
A great example of this is the use of bamboo in places that experience seismic activity. Bamboo, a very sustainable type of grass rather than wood, can bend and flex during seismic activity while also remaining rigid and strong after the activity has ceased.
While bamboo is an extreme example of flexibility, other types of wood are commonly used in compliant construction. Wood can ‘breathe’ to some extent, taking in water during more humid moments and releasing it in drier ones. This shifting, changing nature of sustainable wood means that the structure made can withstand a much wider variety of events, from natural disasters to leaks, and everything in between.
Sustainable timber is a great way to ensure the projects you’re working on will stick around for years and that they can be repaired for years to come too. Consider checking out the most sustainable options the next time you’re shopping for timber.
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