Manufacturing technology of glued laminated timber and its

Building a house for your family, we try to choose high-quality materials for it. Preference is given to natural, but at the same time, produced in accordance with modern requirements for durability, reliability, exterior design products. The technology of production of glued laminated wood that appeared relatively recently renewed interest in the construction of wooden houses, which were previously abandoned by many in favor of brick, stone or block.

Of course, all of the above materials have their own advantages and are ideal for building durable, beautiful and modern houses. But, nevertheless, they cannot be compared to a tree by the level of comfort and coziness that you experience while in a wooden structure.

Can we consider glued laminated timber a natural material? How is it produced, how is it different from the ordinary, and why has it become so popular among builders and those who dream of their own home?

Production of glued laminated timber

Background to the advent of technology

To begin with, let's look at how and why the technology of glued laminated wood appeared at all, how this material differs from a similar product, just carved out of solid wood.

All well-known property of a tree to dry out and deform during operation. The houses built from it as a result of this process give a serious shrinkage, sometimes reaching 15-18% of the original height. Shrinkage in turn leads to deformation of the entire structure and its structural elements, for example, window and door blocks.

In addition, over time, external defects appear on the wood - cracks, fallen knots, blue, which requires protective and preventive measures.

Glulam is devoid of all these disadvantages. Its appearance revived wooden architecture, and the technology of assembling a house from glued laminated timber allowed to simplify the construction process itself, reduce its time and extend the life of wooden houses. This was achieved thanks to the development of a whole set of consecutive measures for the processing of natural wood. (See also the article What are the advantages of cedar glued laminated timber)

Production stages

It should be noted that for the production of glued lumber requires sophisticated high-quality equipment - to create it with your own hands in artisanal conditions is simply impossible.

The process consists of several process steps:

• Wood sorting. At this stage, there is a careful selection of raw materials: it is divided into rocks, varieties, sizes and other important parameters.

For reference. Sorting of raw materials is regulated by regulatory documents. In particular, GOST 8486-86.

• Drying. The wood is placed in special drying chambers equipped with modern equipment. In them, under continuous control, the sawn timber is dried to the specified humidity values. (See also the article Dry profiled timber: types and uses)

• Making blanks. This process consists of two stages. First, the dried wood is sent to the machines, which carefully cut out from it all the defects, damaged areas. Then it is cut into lamellae, which are spliced ​​along the length.

• Gluing. Lubricated with environmentally friendly glue blanks are connected and placed under a powerful press. Glue under pressure penetrates into all the pores of the tree, firmly fastening the lamella with each other. The number of lamellas in a bar depends on its design thickness.

Note. Most often, glued laminated timber completely consists of one type of wood. But there are varieties with one or two external lamellas of more expensive wood. Accordingly, their price will also be higher.

• Profiling. At this stage, the log blanks are cut to length and planed, and then sent to special machines, which cut locking joints in the body of the blank - precisely aligned grooves. The technology of assembling a log of glued laminated timber due to the presence of these ideally suited to each other grooves and studs allows you to do without the use of sealing materials in the seams between the crowns.

• Packaging. The finished timber is packed before shipment to the warehouse or to the trading network in order to prevent mechanical damage and surface contamination.

Some manufacturers, in addition to the timber itself, produce parts manufactured in a similar way, which facilitate the joining of walls in the corners, the installation of floors, the installation of door and window blocks.

The advantages of laminated veneer lumber

In addition to the above, glued laminated timber has other advantages that make it very popular in the construction market.

• Wood that is well dried and cut on the lamella, which is the raw material for production, perfectly absorbs the protective agents that protect it from rotting and that prevent fire.
• The production technology of glued and profiled timber allows you to create products with precisely adjusted geometrical parameters and to ensure their tight connection with each other without gaps and crevices, which favorably affects the appearance and heat preservation in homes, helps to save on their heating.

• However, this technology does not violate the natural structure of the tree, while maintaining its ability to regulate the level of oxygen in the house, comfortable humidity and temperature.
• When building houses from laminated veneer lumber, the instruction that requires a break for natural shrinkage before finishing the finishing works may not be followed. Therefore, the building can be erected and put into operation very quickly.
• Finally, a smooth and even surface allows you to do without finishing at all, leaving the walls in their original form.

Conclusion

Modern technology has given people the opportunity to build houses of high-quality and durable, and at the same time natural materials. These include glued laminated timber, which has all the advantages of solid wood, but is characterized by consistency in geometric dimensions, the absence of defects and high quality of the front surface. (See also the article How to create projects of houses and cottages of timber)

If you want to know more about this material, the video in this article will provide interesting information.