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Sawn wood for structural purposes?

Started by Rob in NC, February 11, 2016, 09:58:27 AM

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Rob in NC

Do you guys ever run into any problems regarding building inspections with wood sawn on a personal mill for use in load bearing applications? Its my understanding that all wood used in a structural/bearing application must be stamped with an engineers stamp to approve its ability to withstand certain loads (in all reality its to take the liability off the state inspectors and put it on the engineers they don't care if it holds up or not).

I don't see this being relevant in a pole barn type structure used for personal use on a farm but in lumber you sold to be used as timber framing etc. or you used to build your personal house that required a permit with a framing inspection it may come up.
2012 Lt 35 manual

terrifictimbersllc

Pretty sure in the end it's between you and your building inspector.
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ncsawyer

Rob,

I am in Wayne County, NC.  Back when hurricane Fran came through (1996), everybody around here had all their trees milled and used it to build their houses.  Now NC follows the universal building code that requires graded and stamped lumber for framing structures that require a building permit. 

I've had people call and want to mill framing lumber for a house or garage.  I always tell them to talk to their building inspector first.  I don't know of any inspectors that will allow rough cut lumber for framing. 

As long as your building does not require a building permit (agricultural structure) you are fine.
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JRWoodchuck

Out  in Oregon you can use rough cut timber as long as it has been stamped by a grader/engineer. Usually you can go out to a mill in your area and they will have a grader that you can hire to grade and stamp your timber.
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longtime lurker

Timber used for general construction here mostly needs to be graded.

I've had problems with building inspectors before... Always ugly boards questioned on grade...But at the end of the day one of us is a timber grader and the other tis but a lowly building inspector.
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Brucer

In BC all wood used in structural applications has to have a grade stamp. With our high snow loads, it's more than just a liability issue. Structural engineers use  design strengths that are based on the grade. The grade stamp ensures that a piece of wood meets the minimum standards for that grade. To complicate things stamps are normally issued to sawmills (provided they have qualified graders) rather than to individuals.

I was lucky in that many inspectors would accept a letter of inspection issued by a qualified grader, even if he did not possess a stamp.

I was lucky in that I always bought high grade logs and nearly all my timbers met the requirements for #1 structural. I also kept current on the grading standards so I could set aside any questionable pieces for fences and other non-structural applications.
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Rob in NC

well in todays world of lawyers and sue happy home owners I can all but guarantee it will never be a "judgement call" with a building inspector. I am actually a project manager for a custom home builder here in southeastern NC and I deal with them everyday. They don't care - they tell me to my face that im right a lot from a common sense POV but that they don't care - "I need proof that will hold up in court should it go that far - I agree with you 100% but I still wont pass it because that's our opinion" is pretty much what I get on "grey" areas.
Next time I have an inspection im gonna ask him about this specifically and see what he says because he wont be my inspector for where I would be building (different county - and I don't want to raise any eyebrows on a future project should I plan to go that route). I had never thought about lumber stamping being an issue until I thought about some designs I want to do on my own home that would involve the sawmill. I was just curious what you guys ran into b/c I know some of you have used sawed beams for load bearing applications.

I guess I would have to carry all the wood I would plan to use to a certified grader or inspector and have him stamp it - then the inspector would be covered and the liability would be on the grader.

The world is changing - there is nothing done on anyones word anymore in my line of work. Its either in writing or it didn't happen from homeowner selections to any kind of engineering or inspection. Work on a handshake is a thing of the past. a hustle without insurance is a thing of the past too.
2012 Lt 35 manual

scsmith42

Rob, in most counties if you have a set of PE stamped prints that specify rough sawn, non-graded timbers for a timber frame structure the building department will accept them and allow you to construct.
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Rob in NC

Quote from: scsmith42 on February 11, 2016, 11:40:53 PM
Rob, in most counties if you have a set of PE stamped prints that specify rough sawn, non-graded timbers for a timber frame structure the building department will accept them and allow you to construct.

Good to know - thank you sir
2012 Lt 35 manual

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