Alternatives to Solid Wood in Construction

One of the main components of green construction is the materials used. With the primary construction material in residential construction being wood one of the biggest impacts with regards to the construction of the home can be made by using environmentally friendly wood products. Alternatives can be found in the framing phase of construction all the way to finish. With a wide choice of materials available all one has to do is look. There is even a more environmentally friendly choice when looking at traditional options.


Framing:


FSC material: FSC stands for Forest Stewardship Council and by now many people have heard of them. They cover many areas of wood use; everything from framing material to the paper print material is printed on. FSC oversees the management and harvesting of material to ensure it is done in an environmentally friendly way. While FSC material is not different fundamentally than comparable material it is an indication that the wood products with the FSC stamp was harvest and manufactured in an environmentally conscious manner.

Finger Jointed Studs: Dimensional lumber can be made out of smaller pieces by joining the pieces into longer lengths. These studs follow the same mentality of engineered wood in that they are able to be made from smaller pieces or even waste. The studs are typically used in vertical applications but there are grades available for roof framing applications.

Engineered Wood: Engineered wood comes typically in two forms when looking at framing members, trusses and I-joists. These are usually used in floor, ceiling and roof applications. Trusses are made in the same form as bridge trusses. They use smaller pieces of wood to form a large load bearing structure. They are typically very strong and able to span longer distances than traditional wood framing members. I-joists are made from laminate wood and OSB (Oriented Strand Board). Like trusses they are able to span longer than comparable traditional lumber. They are also able to use waste material or smaller sections of material by being constructed of laminated wood material.

Finish Material:


Sorghum and Bamboo plywood: This is plywood manufactured from the stalks of sorghum or bamboo. Bamboo is of course made from the bamboo reeds and is very similar to bamboo flooring. It is used as a finished product and can be used in a wide variety of applications from flooring to wall panels. The sorghum plywood is constructed from the waste products from the cultivation of the edible sorghum grass. It is also able to be used in paneling, furniture, cabinetry, flooring and much more.

Wheat particle board: These boards are visibly very similar to particle board but they are made from wheat straw. There are various grades depending on the application but they can be used in the same applications as particle board. They can be used to construct cabinets, as the subsurface for flooring and in furniture. The material can be finished as one likes depending on the grade.

Cork Boards: Cork is widely known as flooring material but boards of the material is also available. The cork boards are primarily used as countertops to furniture, cabinets and more.