Glulam Building: Start to Finish - Part 11D

 Welcome to our "Glulam Building: Start to Finish" series. Our goal is to provide an overview - from idea to completion - of a glulam building from the perspective of a glulam manufacturer and designer.

Part 11D: Closing in the Building

While some exposure to weather is unavoidable on projects, it should be minimized to protect the appearance of the wood. The most important step for this is to get a waterproofed roof in place - one that can protect members from direct weathering and controls the flow of that water away from glulam framing.

Winter construction - snow typically isn't a problem if it can be cleared before melting.

Tar paper installed on decking will go a long way to preventing moisture problems during construction.

Once the building is fully enclosed, the interior conditioning should be heated or dried in a controlled manner. Rapidly drying the building interior can cause checking in glulam framing. While this does not affect the glulam structurally (except in extreme cases), it can be an aesthetic concern. So, it is best to change the interior environment as slowly as possible, and to avoid any sources of hot, moving air near glulam members.

Enclosed building under construction.