FAQ
- What is Timber Framing?
- What is the difference between a Timber Frame and a Post and Beam?
- How much does a Timber Frame cost?
- Is it true that Traditional Timber Frames are more fire resistant than stick built homes, post and beam homes with metal connectors and/or manufactured trusses with steel gusset plates?
- Where can I learn more about Timber Framing?
- What kind of tools do Timber Framers use?
- What kind of wood can you use in a Timber Frame?
- What architectural styles are Timber Frames built in?
- What is the coolest Timber Frame joint?
- What is hewing?
- What is drawboring?
What is Timber Framing?
Simply Put, Timber Framing is the craft of fastening timbers together structurally with wooden joinery (mortice and tenon, etc) to create shelter. The earliest surviving examples from Northern Europe include houses, barns, cathedrals, and abbeys from the twelfth century. These structures were built by highly skilled and trained guild carpenters. However as industrialization and lower building standards began to permeate society, this craft tradition nearly came to an end in most areas of the British Isles and North America. The oldest surviving example of a Timber Framed house in the United States is the Fairbanks house of Dedham, Massachusetts, circa 1637.
What is the difference between a Timber Frame and a Post and Beam?
During the revival of Timber Framing in the late 70's/ early 80's the two terms were synonymous among many Timber Frame companies. Today Post and Beam typically means that complicated wooden joinery is avoided and replaced with simple metal fastenings. Timber Framing however has only meant one thing which it was known for then and today; heavy timbers joined together structurally with wooden joinery, wooden pegs, etc.
It is not that Timber Framing cannot use metal but that a Timber Framer applies wooden joinery in a deliberate and skilled fashion and may utilize metal to reinforce particular wooden joints if deemed necessary. Traditionally this only occurred on large span trusses.
How much does a Timber Frame Cost?
There is no stock answer. Timber Framing is a premium. Proven longevity, labor involved and skill level required to execute it are all factors. Each Timber Frame is customized to your architectural taste, preferences and budget. As with any home square footage, complicated roof designs, bump outs and cathedral space increase cost. That said I have build modest Timber Frames for individuals who were willing to simplify in order to have the quality that a Timber Frame offers. Timber Framing is the least expensive home over the long run due to its longevity, which is proven by centuries of continuous use from the 12th century to the present. Many financial institutions recognize their superior quality and value them accordingly.
Is it true that Traditional Timber Frames are more fire resistant than stick built homes, post and beam homes with metal connectors and/or manufactured trusses with steel gusset plates?
This question was recently answered in a letter to Timber Framing; Journal Of The Timber Framers Guild, by Ryan Gilbert who is a firefighter in Bellingham, WA.
"Timber- Framed construction is significantly more resistant to fire damage than common stick framing and considerably more resistant to fire damage than construction using unprotected steel support members" (i.e. post and beam). "Solid wood is very stable at high temperatures and creates its own insulation upon contact with fire. As a result, heavy timber construction is given a two hour fire rating by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)." He goes on to say that "the beauty of Timber Frame joinery under fire load is that, as the outside of a beam chars, it turns mostly to carbon. Carbon is a great insulator, so the load-bearing portions of the joinery and members remain intact for much longer than in lightweight truss construction. He goes on to say that steel gusset plates fail rapidly in a fire, and engineered wooden I-beams will delaminate and collapse while the fire is still in the growth stages and temperatures are relatively low. "I always breathe a sigh of relief when arriving on the scene of a fire to find out that the building is of heavy timber construction. There is a much better chance of finding living occupants, and the officer in charge is considerably less hesitant to send in firefighters to search for victims."To summarize: Traditional Timber Framed homes may give you and your family the extra time needed to escape that late night fire.
Where can I learn more about Timber Framing?
The Timber Framers Guild is an organization dedicated to education about the craft of Timber Framing and is open to everyone: phone: 888-453-0879, www.tfguild.org. The Timber Framers Guild publishes two periodicals and their website advertises many workshops, rendezvous, and conferences in that take place in the United States, Canada, and abroad throughout the year.
The Carpenters Fellowship is a similar organization but centered in the UK. The best way of course is to study the old buildings both here and abroad. Barns are especially valuable because their structural framework is visible. Walla Walla, WA has a multitude of Timber Framed barns from the last quarter of the 19th century. The panhandle region may harbor a few hidden Timber Framed structures, but so far I have only seen heavy timbered structures fastened together with large spikes rather than wooden joinery.
What kind of tools do Timber Framers use?
There are basically 2 schools. Most Timber Framers today use a variety of dedicated Timber Frame power tools. These tools are designed for the size and power needed to perform the task. Commonly they include 10", 13", 16" circular saws, 12" hand held planers, portable chain and chisel morticers, housing routers, etc. Basically they are beefed up carpentry tools but a few like the chain morticer are specific to the trade. In a power tool shop a variety of hand tools are also needed, but are typically relegated to clean up tasks.
Beyond that there are a handful of craftsman who have the know how to utilize hand tools purely or predominately in their work. These tools include crosscut and rip hand saws, framing chisels, slick, mallet, froe, draw knife, spoke shave, hand plane, broad axe, adze, boring machine, brace and bit, etc. A variety of Japanese hand tools may be utilized depending on the craftsman's preference.
What kind of wood can you use in a Timber Frame?
Depending on your bioregion there are typically a variety of suitable species. Care has to be taken in the processing of the wood from tree to Timber Frame. Function of timber, joinery utilized and aesthetics are all taken into consideration. Many Traditional Timber Frames used a variety of species in a single home.
As a craft tradition, Timber Framing has used green wood since its inception. Throughout the ages carpenters refined a system of joinery to work with "live" wood. Millions of Timber Frame structures from the Twelfth century onward have been joined in green wood and are still in active use today.
In addition to "green" timber Radio Frequency Vacuum Kiln Dried and reclaimed offer a more consistently stable option where desired or necessary.
What architectural styles are Timber Frames built in?
Timber Framing is a structural system; therefore Timber Framing can be built in any imaginable style. The craft has a long history in both the east (China, Japan, Korea) and west (Eastern and Western Europe, USA, etc). Many examples abound from colonial farmhouses, cathedrals, tea houses to more recent styles such as Arts & Crafts, and contemporary. Ultimately it is about loving trees and the strength, beauty and healing they impart.
What is the coolest Timber Frame joint?
One of my favorites is the "Triple Bypass":
What is hewing?
Hewing is the craft of squaring up a log with an axe, in this case a felling axe and finally a broad axe. Contrary to popular belief hewing was not done with an adze but rather a broad axe. An adze is designed to work with the grain where as a broad axe is used across the grain. When a broad axe is employed properly it is used as a finish tool and creates a very nice finish. Though it is often attempted, it is impossible to replicate a true hewn look with adzes, or other mechanized tools. To an educated eye it is easily picked out as an imposter.
What is drawboring?
Drawboring or drawpinning is the process of offsetting the tenon peg hole from the mortice peg hole. Typical offset is 1/8 inch. By offsetting the two peg holes and using a rived, tapered peg, you can incrementally pull the joint together. Even as the timbers shrink and or distort the peg acts like a spring to keep the joint tight as it dries. Drawpinning is also used in traditional furniture joinery with the same results.