There’s a lot to grading a stick of dimension lumber. It’s not necessarily more than meets the eye, but it takes a trained eye to judge the grain and look for any defects.
To train those eyes, a forest products specialist from the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service is coming to Wrangell to lead a one-day class Wednesday, June 4, at the Nolan Center.
Matthew Labrenz is in his second year teaching the program across Alaska; this is the first time the class will be offered in Wrangell.
The Legislature in 2023 set up the Alaska Lumber Grading Program so that small sawmill operators and others could cut dimension lumber from local spruce, hemlock and yellow cedar for home construction.
“When the conditions of the program are met, the lumber may be accepted as an alternative to grade-stamped lumber for structural applications where required by residential building codes,” according to the program’s website.
That could provide a boost for Alaska-cut lumber in residential construction.
The program applies to white spruce, Sitka spruce, western hemlock, mountain hemlock and Alaska yellow cedar.
Wood that is graded under the program can be used for personal construction or sold to an end-user but cannot be sold wholesale, Labrenz explained.
The class is free and runs from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Advance registration is required. As of last week, about half of the 25 slots were available.
People can register at http://www.uaf.edu/ces/lumber, or email Labrenz for more information at mtlabrenz@alaska.edu.
“The International Residential Code stipulates that lumber bearing a grade stamp … is required in specified structural applications,” the program’s website explains.
Most sawmills in Alaska aren’t big enough to afford the cost of an accredited lumber grading agency, “preventing the use of most locally produced lumber in homebuilding.” The new Alaska program allows “in limited circumstances the use of structural lumber that is not grade-stamped in residential home construction.”
Students will learn to judge the straightness of the grain, which is important to the strength of the wood, and “to look for defects that displace the continuity of the grain,” which can weaken the lumber, Labrenz explained.
Areas of decay, warping or splitting also can weaken the lumber and knock it down in grade.
The Alaska program provides alternatives for structural lumber grades established by the national softwood lumber industry, to enable the use of graded local lumber in code-compliant homes.
Labrenz will have lumber samples in the classroom, and students will take a proficiency exam at the end of the day to earn their certification, which is good for five years and can be renewed.
The Alaska Lumber Grading Program, sponsored in the Legislature by Kenai Peninsula Sen. Jesse Bjorkman, also provides technical support in dimension lumber grading and information on lumber drying and sawmill operations.
Wrangell is the 10th community to get a class since the program started last summer.
Borough officials worked to get Wrangell on the class list, as part of an effort to help bring back some logging and timber jobs to the community.
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