wood walls built like brick walls

Purely curiosity. Every one knows how brick walls are built and why. But what if you were to replace that brick with wood? Kind of like the way they do log cabins. Would such a wall be as sturdy as brick?

I've only seen a few homes built in this style. Trying to google for a wood built wall gets zillions of hits on brick walls.

Reply to
richard
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It's call "Wood Frame Building" key word: frame

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Hot-Text

Thanks but that is NOT what I am talking about. That's the way 99.9% of standard homes are built.

Reply to
richard

How to Build a Wood Frame Cabin

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key word: frame

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Hot-Text

Reply to
richard

I saw that method described in a book many years ago. It was very interesting. I think they started with 2x6x8s laid end to end and then more 2x6x8s staggered on top of those and so on. I believe they eventually decreased down to the 4 foot lengths. The fellow that had built his house that way had done it all with lumber scraps that he collected from building sites. Pretty ingenious, very inexpensive and probably pretty solid. The way the corners were staggered seemed to make the house into a large one piece box. I guess the thought was that it would all hold together if it was blown over. I think it would be a great way to build a house if you had the time to collect what you needed.

Reply to
Independent old cuss

Richard,

You might be thinking of something like the StackedLumber house:

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I can see a number of problems with this building method, including:

  1. Cost. Unless you can get a lot of 2x scraps for free, it would take a lot of wood to build even a small house.
  2. Air leakage. All those gaps between boards would leak a lot of air. Real log cabins use chinking between logs and most modern log homes also use tongue and groove joints to better align and seal between logs. I suppose you could add some kind of sealant between each course of boards, but then you're back to the cost issue.
  3. Potential rot. It would be very easy for water to seep in between all those boards and start rotting. You could always add siding on the outside of the building, but that would negate the reason for stacking lumber in the first place.
  4. Insulation. Wood is not the greatest insulator. I don't remember the R-value, but I'm pretty sure it's less than 2 per inch. A wall made of
2x4's would be less than R8 and a wall made of 2x6's would be less than R12. Real log homes usually use logs that are 8" or 10" around.
  1. Construction Time. It would take a long time to cut, stack, and nail all those courses to build a wall.
  2. Strength. I don't think a bunch of stacked 2x4's would offer much lateral strength. You could be in real trouble in an earthquake or with strong winds (tornado or hurricane). Normal log homes are essentially large beams spanning from corner to corner.
  3. Shrinkage. Just like a traditional log home, you would have to account for shrinkage in the lumber. Leave spaces above windows and doors for the building to settle and that sort of thing.
  4. Utilities. As with a normal log home, it would be difficult to run plumbing, electrical, and other utilities in the stacked lumber walls.

You might also search Google for "Cordwood construction". This method basically uses wood logs embedded in mortar. I've seen similar methods that use bottles, cans, old tires, and just about any other filler materials. If I were going to that trouble, I think I would use actual rocks in the mortar. Just be sure to add rebar reinforcement to keep things together in an earthquake, or due to settling. I've built some mortared stone retaining walls, and it's a LOT of work. It gave me a new respect for those Mayan temples and Egyptian pyramids.

Hope this helps,

Anthony

Reply to
HerHusband

I have seen this construction and mainly it is from one who has worked at a lumber mill or is able to get pieces of material free or at low cost. Her Husband pretty much sums up the whys and why not's.... Interesting enough though, many are now using recyclables and mortar as mentioned in another post and stacking the units. Now for the Building Code, this is another question and how it would "fly"

Purely curiosity. Every one knows how brick walls are built and why. But what if you were to replace that brick with wood? Kind of like the way they do log cabins. Would such a wall be as sturdy as brick?

I've only seen a few homes built in this style. Trying to google for a wood built wall gets zillions of hits on brick walls.

Reply to
jloomis

As for cost, I have checked a few mills for prices on 2x8's. $4 for an 8 ft board. Delivered. (#2 SYP).

Assume a 60x60 footprint 10ft high. that's 240 continous feet. requiring 30 8ft boards. It takes 16 2x8's stacked on edge to create 10 ft.

16*30=480 480*4=$1,920.

Buy two bundles from the mill and have plenty of lumber for interior walls.

Reply to
richard

Richard,

2x8's on edge might work OK for sheathing (houses were sheathed with 1x boards before plywood was around), but 2x8's on edge would make for a VERY weak wall with no other structure.

That's a wall only 1-1/2 inches thick. That's only around R-2 or so for insulation? Hope you live in the tropics.

And how will you fasten the 2x8's together? Toe nailing? Any sideways force at all would simply buckle the stacked 2x8's and the whole wall would come crashing down.

Don't believe me? Go grab three 2x8's, set them on top of each other, than stand on the top edge. Hope you don't injure yourself... :) Now image stacking 16 of those and putting thousands of pounds of roof structure on top. Good luck with that...

If the stacked lumber wall is to have any merit, you would have to lay the 2x8's FLAT, and nail each course together (overlapping joints and corners).

A 10 ft wall (120 inches) would take 80 courses (1.5" for each 2x8 laid flat).

You wanted a 60 foot wall, so 80x60=4800 lineal feet per wall.

Four 60 foot walls times 4800 lineal feet = 19200 lineal feet.

19200 lineal feet divided by 8 (the length you quoted) = 2400 boards. 2400 boards times $4 each = $9600

You would probably use a little less due to window and door openings, but you would probably make up for that with the gable ends, or interior walls. And, you would still have all the issues mentioned earlier.

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Compare that with a traditional 2x6@16" OC framed wall.

About 46 studs for a 60' wall, 16 boards for the top plates, and 8 for the bottom. That's 70 studs per wall. I'll round up to 80 for the sake of corner blocking, window framing, extra studs, etc.

80 boards times 4 walls = 320 boards

Assuming your quoted $4 price per board, that would be $1280 for the 2x6 lumber.

Now you need sheathing. 15 sheets per wall = 60 sheets total. Rough estimate of $20 per sheet, that's $1200.

$1280 for the lumber, plus $1200 for the sheathing = $2480. That's about one fourth the cost of the stacked lumber method.

To be fair, you now need to add insulation and interior finish, but you have an extra $7000 left over to more than cover that. If you use a textured plywood sheathing (such as T-111 Siding), you could skip the siding on the exterior of the building.

You also have a nice space to run plumbing, electrical, and other utilities inside the wall as well.

Reply to
HerHusband

I did not detail the joining method as I wanted to know if there was any significant difference between brick and wood stacked in the same manner. Log Cabins are built with either square, flat timber, or tongue and grooved "D" timber. My version would probably employ T&G for joining. Or, drive stakes between the rows for side movement support. Or, use a framing system behind the wall inside the home, which would then be used for insulation purposes.

From what I've been reading, there is virtually no difference between the two as to which is better. It's a matter of whether or not you want termites. And there are tons of ways to deal with them critters.

Reply to
richard

Richard,

We don't have much brick construction in my area, but to my knowledge, brick walls are usually built as a decorative face in front of the structure that actually supports the wall (concrete walls, concrete block, wood framing, etc.). In that instance, yes, you could use wood for the same function as it's not structural. In fact, 2x lumber would be a waste of material, you could just go with 1x6 T&G boards.

A single row of brick (i.e. 4" thick) as the building's support structure would not be all that strong either. It wouldn't take much effort to bring down a single thickness wall. As with the stacked lumber, it would just buckle in the middle where it is the weakest.

Essentially post and beam construction, with the lumber stacked as infill between posts? I think many old colonial houses were built like that. It was a way to build log homes using shorter logs.

In other words, your stacked T&G 2x8's are just sheathing. The framing is supporting the structure and resisting the various loads. What is the benefit of using 2x material for sheathing as opposed to 1x or plywood sheathing?

Take care,

Anthony

Reply to
HerHusband

So you have like a million 2x4s that are a bit too short? Remember that many brick buildings are built with two rows of bricks, and were you to use wood, you'd probably have to do the same.

Reply to
PeterD

No. I am going to use a 2x120.

Reply to
richard

You should have posted this on April 1st!

Reply to
PeterD

And I said that brick walls are double layer brick, and you are thinking (for some insane reason) that you can have a wall that is 1.5 inches thick...

WTF?

Reply to
PeterD

And I said that brick walls are double layer brick, and you are thinking (for some insane reason) that you can have a wall that is 1.5 inches thick...

WTF?

Reply to
jloomis

No doubt it was written by a "mason". Long before geodesic domes were known. I'd like to see you build a geo-dome out of brick.

Reply to
richard

If you look at ancient architecture many domes were built with the arch form. It may not be a geodesic dome, but it comes very close. Many Cathedrals were built with this concept also. Buttresses, flying buttresses, aqueducts, You know a dome could be built with proper support. You need to support the archway until all is connected and then pull out the form.

Look up this....

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Amaz> There is a "Great Engineering Novel" that has been out for some time.

No doubt it was written by a "mason". Long before geodesic domes were known. I'd like to see you build a geo-dome out of brick.

Reply to
jloomis

When I was a kid I worked in a metal-working shop that my Granddad and my Uncle built by themselves. It was built of 2x4s laid flat on top of one another and nailed. Three and a half inch thick solid wood walls! (Wood was a lot cheaper in those days)

Reply to
jabber

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