Hello,
given the good rot resistance and mechanical properties of larch wood,
is there any reason *not* to make windows from that? My book
("Fachkunde fuer Schreiner", a german textbook for the official
education of carpenters) does not list it with the woods for window
making...
--
Dr. Juergen Hannappel http://lisa2.physik.uni-bonn.de/~hannappe
mailto:[email protected] Phone: +49 228 73 2447 FAX ... 7869
Physikalisches Institut der Uni Bonn Nussallee 12, D-53115 Bonn, Germany
CERN: Phone: +412276 76461 Fax: ..77930 Bat. 892-R-A13 CH-1211 Geneve 23
Juergen Hannappel asks:
>given the good rot resistance and mechanical properties of larch wood,
>is there any reason *not* to make windows from that? My book
>("Fachkunde fuer Schreiner", a german textbook for the official
>education of carpenters) does not list it with the woods for window
>making...
If our larch is the same (Laris occidentalis) it is also listed for use as
millwork and doors in The Encyclopedia of Wood.
Biggest knocks seem to be lots of small, tight knots and much shrinkage in
drying.
Charlie Self
"Take care of the luxuries and the necessities will take care of themselves."
Dorothy Parker
http://hometown.aol.com/charliediy/myhomepage/business.html
I suppose someone should chime in and say that there is another American
Larch - Larix laricina, or Tamarack. It is very much like European Larch,
and it's a world-champion resin producer, which was commonly used for
timbers and mine lagging.
Is Juergen trolling?
http://www.botanik.uni-bonn.de/conifers/pi/la/index.htm
The tree has a rotating habit when open-grown, with pesky rings of branches
every foot and a half. This kind of tree would make horrible lumber, which
is why it was used in larger section as beams. When growing in competition
with other trees, it seems quick to drop its branches, and runs rapidly
toward the sky, producing straight, clear lumber which would be ideal for
window framing, though you'd be well-advised to have it kilned to try and
set the resin, and then shellac it under the paint to keep it from bleeding.
"Luigi Zanasi" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On Tue, 13 Jan 2004 20:56:56 +0100, Juergen Hannappel
> <[email protected]> queried:
>
> >Hello,
> >given the good rot resistance and mechanical properties of larch wood,
> >is there any reason *not* to make windows from that? My book
> >("Fachkunde fuer Schreiner", a german textbook for the official
> >education of carpenters) does not list it with the woods for window
> >making...
>
> Here, in western Canada, wooden windows and doors are most often made
> of Douglas Fir and/or Larch, just referred to as Doug Fir.
>
> The two species, Douglas Fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) and western Larch
> (Larix occidentalis), are graded and sold together, presumably because
> of their similar properties and almost identical appearance.
>
> Moral of the story: If you can get clear, dry larch, go for it.
> Assuming, of course, that you European Larch has the same properties
> as Western Larch.
>
Not if you lived near me, but that's a few thousand Km. As the link says,
some of the finest and most durable stuff around. My eldest kid's stationed
over in Germany, and he says wood is extremely expensive and difficult to
get in any grade above utility.
"Juergen Hannappel" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> So the answer would be "yes, it can be done, but getting wood in
> useful quality is probably hopeless".
>
> --
Juergen Hannappel <[email protected]> schreef
> No. My wifes aunt needs a new small window and can't find anyone to
> make it, since her old house is protected by code from being defaced
> by plastic windows and so i am considering making one,
+ + +
Yes, European larch has a reputation of being the best and worst softwood
around. Quality matters a great deal. In itself it is very durable, but with
the wrong grain it can twist horribly. At the moment Siberian larch is all
the rage and has a good reputation.
PvR
On Wed, 14 Jan 2004 08:07:20 -0500, "George"
<[email protected]> scribbled:
>I suppose someone should chime in and say that there is another American
>Larch - Larix laricina, or Tamarack. It is very much like European Larch,
>and it's a world-champion resin producer, which was commonly used for
>timbers and mine lagging.
>
>Is Juergen trolling?
>http://www.botanik.uni-bonn.de/conifers/pi/la/index.htm
Neat site. I didn't know larch (Larix) and Doug Fir (Pseudotsuga) were
closely related botanically, although the similarity of the woods
should have been a clue. The trees are completely different, with
larch and tamarack having sparse soft needles that grow in tufts. And
they are deciduous. While Doug Fir resembles spruce and fir trees,
except for the deeply corrugated bark in older trees.
Luigi
Note the new email address.
Please adjust your krillfiles (tmAD) accordingly
Replace "nonet" with "yukonomics" for real email address
On Tue, 13 Jan 2004 20:56:56 +0100, Juergen Hannappel
<[email protected]> queried:
>Hello,
>given the good rot resistance and mechanical properties of larch wood,
>is there any reason *not* to make windows from that? My book
>("Fachkunde fuer Schreiner", a german textbook for the official
>education of carpenters) does not list it with the woods for window
>making...
Here, in western Canada, wooden windows and doors are most often made
of Douglas Fir and/or Larch, just referred to as Doug Fir. Not the
absolute best in terms of stability, but still pretty good. Western
Red Cedar (Thuya plicata) or, if you're in the east, Eastern White
Pine (Pinus strobus - Yellow pine, Jeff) are more stable.
The two species, Douglas Fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) and western Larch
(Larix occidentalis), are graded and sold together, presumably because
of their similar properties and almost identical appearance.
I remember my father exclaiming: "Now I know what Doug Fir is in
Italian, it's 'larice'!" This was after he brought home a bunch of old
dock timbers from a port on the Saguenay River that he had got milled
into smaller timbers. Really nice stuff. Actually, as this was in
Québec, he called it "BC Fir". While Douglas Fir plywood was
ubiquitous, I don't think he had ever examined actual Doug Fir timbers
before. The rotary cut plywood has really wild grain.
A few months later, he called from Chicoutimi telling my brother and I
to build a dock at our cottage in the Laurentians north of Montreal,
as he had bought a motorboat. When I asked what wood to use, he said
there had to be a bunch of 2X4 lying around. My brother and I couldn't
find anything except the Doug fir, so we used that to build a 100-foot
long floating dock. He was a little pissed at us for using the nice
clear wood that he was reserving for interior finishing. The next
spring, I spent many unhappy hours belt-sanding the grey weathering
off the Douglas Fir which was eventually used for its originally
intended purpose. The memory of that experience was probably the
reason that a thickness planer was among my first purchases when I got
shop space.
To confirm my father's observation, about six years ago in Italy, I
was visiting a friend's father's country house in the Maritime Alps
north of Genoa on the Piemonte side. I noticed the stair railing and
commented that I was surprised they could get Doug fir. I was
corrected and told it was actually "larice" or larch.
Moral of the story: If you can get clear, dry larch, go for it.
Assuming, of course, that you European Larch has the same properties
as Western Larch.
Luigi
Replace "no" with "yk" for real email address
On Tue, 13 Jan 2004 20:56:56 +0100, Juergen Hannappel
<[email protected]> wrote:
>given the good rot resistance and mechanical properties of larch wood,
>is there any reason *not* to make windows from that?
It's very prone to twisting. Don't use it unless it's straight
grained, and until it's _really_ dry. Even then I'd be wary of it for
moving parts of a frame. It's OK for sills and the like though.
Some larch is extremely resinous, such that it's almost translucent.
This stuff never rots.
--
Do whales have krillfiles ?
"George" <[email protected]> writes:
> I suppose someone should chime in and say that there is another American
> Larch - Larix laricina, or Tamarack. It is very much like European Larch,
> and it's a world-champion resin producer, which was commonly used for
> timbers and mine lagging.
>
> Is Juergen trolling?
No. My wifes aunt needs a new small window and can't find anyone to
make it, since her old house is protected by code from being defaced
by plastic windows and so i am considering making one,
> http://www.botanik.uni-bonn.de/conifers/pi/la/index.htm
A nice link, thank you, but it doesn't really answer the
question. BTW, i work *for* the physics department of Bonn university,
but not *at* Bonn, rather in Geneva.
[...]
> toward the sky, producing straight, clear lumber which would be
> ideal for window framing, though you'd be well-advised to have it
> kilned to try and set the resin, and then shellac it under the
> paint to keep it from bleeding.
So the answer would be "yes, it can be done, but getting wood in
useful quality is probably hopeless".
--
Dr. Juergen Hannappel http://lisa2.physik.uni-bonn.de/~hannappe
mailto:[email protected] Phone: +49 228 73 2447 FAX ... 7869
Physikalisches Institut der Uni Bonn Nussallee 12, D-53115 Bonn, Germany
CERN: Phone: +412276 76461 Fax: ..77930 Bat. 892-R-A13 CH-1211 Geneve 23