A-Z of Self Build Guides Timber Frame Houses: Oak

Date Published:

26/01/2009

Albright notes that oak is one of the best woods for house building because it is so hard wearing, primarily because it contains natural tannin, which is a preservative that keeps the wood moist. Also, as oak weathers the tannin allows the joints to tighten and get dryer.

A good oak frame will last for centuries

She says, 'Oak frame houses last for centuries. Essentially we are still using the same engineering as medieval times, and houses from that period are still standing, but we have improved the quality of the timber we use by only using the best of timber and also advances in structural engineering have made some difference to ensuring the house stays standing.'

The Timber Research and Development Association describes oak as being a medium to difficult timber to build with. 'The working and machining properties of oak vary with the mild to tough material which either machines easily or with moderate difficulty.'

'These basic properties are concerned with growth conditions, but they may be exaggerated by indifferent drying methods which allow plain-sawn boards to cup, or severe case-hardening to develop, causing excessive wastage in planing and moulding, cupped stock in resawing, and a greater degree of blunting of cutting edges.'

Albright acknowledges that oak is not the easiest of woods with which to build. 'It’s very specialised and only a limited number of people can manufacture and build timber frame homes. And there are as restrictions on what can be done with timber. For example it is difficult to incorporate huge doors into oak frames because the structure cannot cope with it.'