Eastern red cedar beams

[nativewolf]

for @Don P @Brad B and others what do you guys think of ERC for beams.  We cut some pretty nice logs the other day and I thought of milling some beams.  

[moodnacreek]

For decorative beams they would be excellent. The problem that I have had is that  people won't buy cedar for beams because they have never heard of it.

[nativewolf]

So they'd be for a greenhouse, cover is to be solawrap.    Span would be about 20'.  

Solawrap is pretty cool stuff, basically strengthened bubble wrap, much cheaper and stronger and more efficient than poly or glass.  

[Southside]

Do you want cedar beams? I ask as you could sell those and probably buy 4 times as many pine beams.

[nativewolf]

Do you want cedar beams? I ask as you could sell those and probably buy 4 times as many pine beams.

I don't necessarily need cedar beams but I don't have a market for cedar.  I am sure there is one but I would have to look for it.

[Don P]

I don't think of ERC as beam material, it's not very strong and it's hard to get good grade material out of it.

[Magicman]

I would not use it for a load bearing beam, but I would certainly wrap a beam with it.

In my instance on the Cabin Addition I used axe hewn ERC beams to tie my walls together.  I used a simple lap joint because there is no downward pressure on them even though it looks like it is.



 
She wanted the exposed beam look.

[nativewolf]

@Don P I was only considering the cedar because of the humid conditions in the greenhouse, it will be a 4 season Greenhouse and like most it will be pretty conductive to molds/fungus.  Going to have to be locust or cedar for organic farm reasons.  

[Don P]

Locust or white oak for the spanning members would be a better choice, the cedar for posts. I've soaked both locust and white oak in borate but not under organic certs, not sure how they would view that. They do list borate if the soils require boron which yours will so it might be worth checking and doing all depending. I'm not sure that organic prohibits treated in the non soil contact parts of the frame. For cost and convenience it might be worth checking with NRCS on a high tunnel grant. I think this is year 4 on ours, we have the cover off this year and are doing repairs and mods and letting the soil leach/weather. You will probably need to do that periodically through the life of the house so it will be exposed to full weather during that time although one nearby farm made his moveable, he drags the entire tunnels back and forth every year or two.