[Greenbuilding] Charring wood (was Nansulate Insulation)

[Gennaro Brooks-Church]

Charring wood is done a lot in traditional japanese building with a lot of
success.

Gennaro
347 244 3016
 On Jan 23, 2011 12:31 PM, "natural building" <naturalbuilding at shaw.ca>
wrote:
> Charring wood to preserve it - or other materials that come into
> contact with it - is a very old tradition. It can be seen -
> accidentally - in old timber framed buildings which survive fires
> because the beams and posts form a protective layer of carbon which
> retards incineration during a fire. A definite advantage of larger
> timbers over current 2x systems.
>
> It was also used by coach-builders when working with Oak and other
> caustic woods. Surfaces that would come into contact with ferrous
> metals were deliberated scorched in order to create an inert layer and
> protect iron from the corrosive effects of tannic acid in the wood.
>
> Regards,
> Steve Satow
>
> www.naturalbuildingsite.net
> naturalbuilding at shaw.ca
>
> On 23-Jan-11, at 8:27 AM, Benjamin Pratt wrote:
>
>> the floor joists of my 1929 house have a charred appearance. at first
>> i thought this may be evidence from a house fire, but I've since
>> decided that they have always been that way. Was it a technique to
>> preserve them?
>> Ben
>>
>> On Sun, Jan 23, 2011 at 10:16 AM, JOHN SALMEN <terrain at shaw.ca> wrote:
>>> When I was a kid I made money dismantling barns for the barnboard. I
>>> remember it as old and tough - but relatively 'woodlike' beyond the
>>> scoured
>>> surface.
>>>
>>> Wood on average loses about a 1/4" a century - depends on density
>>> less for
>>> hardwoods, more for softwoods. Initial weathering robs the surface of
>>> various lignins leaving a relatively pure cellulose covering that
>>> is highly
>>> uv resistant.
>>>
>>> There are historical techniques of accelerating that process and
>>> creating an
>>> even colouring for wood. Shou-sugi-ban is a Japanese technique of
>>> burning
>>> (charring) the surface of the wood and polishing it. It is quite
>>> beautiful.
>>> There are contemporary finishes that simply oxidize the surface to
>>> an even
>>> grey (lifetime?).
>>>
>>> The problem with shakes and shingles is that they typically require
>>> 1st
>>> growth softwood material with fine grain structure. These are the
>>> forests we
>>> are trying to preserve locally. They are also hard to reuse (other
>>> than as
>>> kindling). I don't mind 2nd growth siding untreated(used as part of
>>> a 100
>>> mile diet)as it does have a long life. I prefer board and batten
>>> but current
>>> rainscreen code requirements make this difficult to do.
>>>
>>> Best
>>> John
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> JOHN SALMEN ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN
>>> 4465 UPHILL RD,. DUNCAN, B.C. CANADA, V9L 6M7
>>> PH 250 748 7672 FAX 250 748 7612 CELL 250 246 8541
>>> terrain at shaw.ca
>>>
>>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: greenbuilding-bounces at lists.bioenergylists.org
>>> [mailto:greenbuilding-bounces at lists.bioenergylists.org] On Behalf Of
>>> bill.allen at verizon.net
>>> Sent: January 23, 2011 5:07 AM
>>> To: Green Building
>>> Subject: Re: [Greenbuilding] Nansulate Insulation
>>>
>>> John,
>>>
>>> I applaud your efforts.
>>>
>>> My uneducated question is: Why use paint at all? Don't well
>>> installed, bare
>>> wood shingles last a pretty long time (as siding) if you use the
>>> right
>>> species?
>>>
>>> I am making these choices now for my own house and keep gravitating
>>> toward
>>> natural wood (shingles or siding). With the correct roof overhang
>>> (eves and
>>> gables), don't they last a while? I just dismantled a 150+ year
>>> old barn in
>>> climate zone 6 with the original, naked hemlock siding (vertical).
>>> It's got
>>> plenty of life left.
>>>
>>> Would love any comments...
>>>
>>> Bill
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: "JOHN SALMEN" <terrain at shaw.ca>
>>> Sender: greenbuilding-bounces at lists.bioenergylists.org
>>> Date: Sat, 22 Jan 2011 12:36:32
>>> To: 'Green Building'<greenbuilding at lists.bioenergylists.org>
>>> Reply-to: Green Building <greenbuilding at lists.bioenergylists.org>
>>> Subject: Re: [Greenbuilding] Nansulate Insulation
>>>
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>>
>>
>>
>> --
>>
>>
>> b e n j a m i n p r a t t
>>
>> professor art+design
>> the university of wisconsin stout
>>
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