Southern retailers selling

Many retailers are selling more engineered wood beams to their contractor customers as solid wood beams become less available. Although laminated veneer lumber and I-joists have become popular in the past five years, the first engineered lumber was glued laminated beams, introduced back in the 1940s.

The engineered wood trend has created opportunities for special retailer services, since many builders are not as familiar with these new, larger products.

Engineered wood beam distributor Furman Lumber, Tucker, Ga., for instance, provides engineering and estimating assistance as well as training seminars for retailers and contractors.

"We set up a special classroom for our engineered wood seminars. They help make our customer more computer literate about structural engineering for glulams and other beams," says Furman's Les Day.

Many of the glulams sold by ninelocation Furman are window and garage door headers. Unlike solid wood or LVL beams which sometimes sag under heavy loads, glulams have built-in cambers which level out when they carry floor loads, according to Day.

Typical measurements for the headers are 3-1/2" to 5-118" wide, 9" to 16" deep and up to 40' long.

Arnold Thacker, Building Materials Supply, Tucker, Ga., says the majority of glulams sold by his com- pany are for bonus rooms over two-car garages. These beams support a second floor office or bedroom.

He says the extra strength of glulams is needed to help carry the heavy load of the bonus rooms. Builders frequently use 26' glulams to support the rooms, avoiding the need for posts or columns in the garage.

"We find the glulams can carry heavy loads. and are more economical because we don't have to bolt two or three LVL beams together to get the strength we need," Thacker says.

Also, the glulams are cut to exact sizes and are easier to handle than steel. he notes.

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