Aspen what is made of it. Aspen is wood as a building material. Positive qualities of aspen

Aspen belongs to the family of willow poplars. Like all other members of this genus, the breed is short-lived. On average, aspen lives for about 70 years, although there are also 150-year-old centenarians.

Of all the poplar species, it is the most unpretentious in terms of natural and climatic conditions; it grows both on floodplain meadows and on dry soils. Differs in high frost resistance, it can be found even beyond the Arctic Circle. However, it has the highest productivity and resistance on rich and moist soils.

Aspen is a slender tree up to 35 m in height, with a trunk diameter of up to one meter, and sometimes even more. The root system is branched, but does not penetrate to great depths. The bark is smooth, greenish-gray.

It grows throughout the CIS, and is second only to birch in terms of area occupied.

Mature standing trees are often affected by rot, so aspen wood is harvested from trees up to 30-50 years old.

Texture

The tree belongs to sapwood, is straight-grained, has a texture without a pronounced pattern. The surface of the wood is shiny and smooth. Growth rings are visible on cuts due to the stripe between them yellow color... The core rays are very small and invisible. Only on radial cuts can they be seen as shiny stripes. The color of the wood is very light, practically white, sometimes with a slight bluish or greenish tint.

Physical and mechanical properties

Aspen is a low density tree species. In dry condition, this value ranges from 400 to 500 kg / m3. In terms of hardness, this is a very soft breed. The abrasion resistance is quite high and is close to that of oak wood. The viscosity is high; under the influence of shock loads, the aspen does not crack or split.

The wood is resistant to moisture, easily absorbs it and, also, gives off easily, well resists rot and insects. In a dry place, aspen products can serve for more than one century, and from time to time they only become harder and stronger.

Drying

Freshly cut wood has a high moisture content, and as a result, shrinkage is quite significant, it can be up to 40%. It does not crack during the drying process, but is prone to warping. Therefore, it is better to bundle aspen boards and dry them like that. This can reduce the number of warped boards at the exit. In addition, the shorter the board is, the less likely it will be "twisted". Before drying, it is imperative to remove the bark, otherwise the likelihood of rotting is high.

Treatment

Aspen processing has its own specific properties. Due to its softness, it lends itself easily to sharp instruments, but due to the fibrous structure it is rather difficult to achieve a clean surface. For the same reason, it is difficult to qualitatively polish the surface of aspen products. It is cleanly cut across the fibers, although more difficult than linden, and chipping is also possible. Small parts be manufactured carefully.

It lends itself well to impregnation with dyes and mordants, the color holds firmly. The gluing process is straightforward.

Good raw material for turning work, easy to turn.

Products

On an industrial scale, aspen wood is used to make matches, and as a raw material for pulp and paper mills. A very large amount of wood is used for chipboard production, plywood, veneer.

Aspen is resistant to moisture. In the old days, log houses of wells, cellars and baths were made from it, they cut various utensils for baths - buckets, tubs, buckets, troughs.

Due to its low thermal conductivity, the absence of resins and the light color of aspen wood, it is an excellent material for wall cladding in baths, for the manufacture of shelves and benches.

Aspen has always been considered an excellent material for making axes and hammer handles. It makes good cuttings for shovels, brooms, rakes, etc. Practical and beautiful are the dishes carved from this wood. But for the manufacture of furniture, it is usually not used, although small products (small shelves, small benches) can be made. In addition, various decorations for stair railings, balcony railings are made from aspen, and children's toys are made.

Wood carvers use aspen blanks for products, which will later be decorated with geometric carvings.

Anatoly Borisenko

Sauna made of aspen beams.

If you are going to build a bathhouse on the site, you need to choose correct material... Usually, favorite types of wood are used: pine, spruce, linden. Some people prefer aspen for building a bath. What will be the aspen bath, the pros and cons of such a construction, we will consider in this article.

The question may arise from people familiar with the quality indicators of aspen. Let's talk about the different properties of wood, paying attention to the pros and cons. Let's start our review with the disadvantages inherent in aspen:

• The tree grows in wetlands. This contributes to the rapid decay of the inside of the trunk. Looseness can be noticed when cutting aspen, although it is difficult to determine this externally.
• Aspen is rarely harvested. Business aspen tops are up to 4-5 m in length. The rest of the barrel is unusable and the harvesting process becomes too expensive. Basically, the tree is cut to order.
• Aspen has a high moisture content, which softens the wood. This property is both a minus and a plus for builders. When dried, aspen gives a large shrinkage, unlike pine, linden, birch. The barrel becomes thin, if dried incorrectly, it can crack, curl.
• But wet wood is easier to process, after drying it is impossible to manipulate the tool. Aspen becomes hard as stone. This quality allows the aspen bathhouse to stand for many decades without repair. The more the log house is, the denser the structure of the log.
• Having decided to build a bathhouse from aspen, be prepared for the costs, because only the second or third tree is good. When ordering wood for building a sauna yourself, you will have to carefully select each log. If this is not done, the rotten tree will quickly infect the logs - the frame will rot in a few years.
• By selecting quality material, provide yourself with a bathhouse for years to come, if the price becomes affordable for your budget.
• The disadvantages include appearance blanks. If pine, linden does not require additional decorative processing, then aspen does not look presentable. Spots, darkening appear on it. A log house for a bath must be sanded, sanded, and given a white tint. Work is carried out in the presence of moisture in the trunk.

The seasonality of timber harvesting for the construction of the bath does not allow ordering material at any time. Harvesting is carried out in the spring with the appearance of tree sap. Aspen is easily processed from March to May. Procurement is not possible later. This affects the price of a bath from this tree.

Positive qualities of aspen

An aspen log house for a bath can be purchased ready-made.

Despite such a number of disadvantages, the tree species also has positive qualities that contribute to the demand for this construction material for a bath. Many people value aspen for the following characteristics:

• Durability. When the right choice bath material does not require replacement of logs. A dried and properly assembled log house becomes stronger every year. Moisture, pests are not afraid of aspen, it is as hard as an oak.
• Healing properties. Many bath attendants note an increase in tone and an improvement in general condition after visiting an aspen bath. It disinfects water. This is evidenced by the fact - earlier the water wells were made of aspen, the water in them did not grow cloudy. Good tree does not rot, does not emit decay products that cause the appearance of fungi, microbes, mold. There are, of course, people experiencing headaches, loss of energy. Aspen is considered a mythical tree that takes energy from a person. This is all speculation. Not many people have a negative reaction. People with weakened immune systems often visit the aspen bathhouse, enjoying the scent of the tree.
• Temperature resistant. The material does not heat up like other wood species. It is well used for wall sheathing, construction of shelves, benches, if they prefer to make a bath from another material. Aspen does not emit resin, there is no possibility of sticking or burning, as in a bathhouse cut from pine without finishing.

Having considered the characteristics of aspen, someone doubts the advisability of using such wood for a bath. Some bath attendants will nevertheless choose aspen for the construction of a bath, relying on its resistance to internal and external influences of moisture and temperature.

We build a bath from aspen

1. Choose a tree that grows in a less wetland area. The trunk should be about forty years old. These conditions will reduce the risk of acquiring heavily rotted trunks.
2. Harvest during the period of sap flow. At this time, the tree is easy to cut, it lends itself better to processing. Leave the branches and bark on the trunk to properly dry the wood. The buds will absorb moisture, the leaves will bloom, the first natural drying of the log will occur. The bark will not allow the log to deform.
3. Remove the workpieces under the canopy, out of the sun. Direct rays will quickly draw out moisture, leading to deformation or cracking of the barrel. This is undesirable during the drying phase.
4. Leave the aspen in this state until next spring, treating the ends with clay. On the first warm days, remove the bark, which will peel off easily.
5. Start processing logs and felling a log house. The longer the wood sits, the more difficult it will be to work with it. The ax or saw will fly off the hardened surface.
6. Experts recommend chopping the bathhouse into a "paw" and not into a "bowl" in order to avoid cracking the logs.
7. Grind the logs, treat with biosecurity. No additional cladding is required inside. The aspen blockhouse does not tar, does not heat up, creating comfortable conditions for bathing procedures.

When harvesting aspen material, do not be too lazy to check each tree for rot, avoiding marriage in the construction of a bath with your own hands. This business is troublesome and long, but worth it.

What is better for an aspen bath: a solid log or a bar?

A bathhouse built of rounded aspen logs.

The bathhouse is built both from a solid log and from a bar. In the production volume, aspen is harvested using both methods, thoroughly drying it in a drying chamber. Raw materials have a high humidity of up to 80%, which increases the manufacturer's costs. When completely dry, up to 50% of the material is lost. This cannot but affect the price. Labor costs for the production of timber are even higher, so the price is higher. At the same time, the quality of the wood is not reduced.

You can choose a ready-made, well-dried aspen for a bath in order to avoid the problems inherent in this wood species. How to choose the right aspen for a bath, look at the photos and videos presented in the article.

One of the aspen baths can be seen in the video:

If you can't afford a log house made of aspen?

Aspen is often used in bath decoration.

Many people choose pine or spruce to build a bathhouse on the site. It is more accessible and less problematic. It is not necessary to give up aspen entirely. Use it for the lower rims of the bathhouse. They are more exposed to external environment and internal fluctuations in humidity / temperature. Over time, the logs will become as strong as concrete.

Decorate the interior with a pair of clapboard or aspen board, creating a comfortable environment. Aspen does not emit resin, exudes a pleasant aroma, relieves fatigue and stress.

Purchase aspen furniture. This will allow you to avoid the hassle of harvesting wood for a felling, will make it possible to enjoy pleasant and useful properties aspens for many years.

Aspen barrels for cold water will allow you to disinfect it from microbes. Even water left for a long time will not sour in such a container.

Having received information about the pros and cons of an aspen bath, make the correct conclusion on the choice of building material. In the old days, this tree was prized for its hardness and durability. Many used it to build baths. Become the owner of an aspen bathhouse if you are ready to bear the costs, which may be higher than when choosing coniferous trees. Such a choice will be justified by long-term operation.

For wood, known in Russia as "trembling poplar", there are many controversial opinions. You cannot build a house from aspen, the tree is inhospitable, cold, crooked. You can cut down a small bathhouse. Only is it necessary in modern realities? The aspen's look is too unprepossessing. It is undesirable to be guided by beliefs in antimicrobial and disinfecting properties (this is with a persistent smell of rot).

Aspen tree - comes from the poplar genus (willow family). Its value at the root, as a commercial timber, is questionable. The quality is very different even on the same soil. Every other tree is rotten from the inside. Therefore, aspen is bought at the price of firewood. The cost price of a cube is 700-1000 rubles. A significant number of trees suitable for construction (30-40 years old) have rotten trunk from the inside or damage in the process. For example, for a small chapel by Lake Peipsi in 2004, carpenters took aspen timber for a month. An insignificant plus of aspen - the moderate tapering of the tree trunk due to the strong curvature is not very happy. This breed, unlike conifers, is never straight.

We must pay tribute to the aspen - a felled tree does not become weaker over time. Provided that it was initially healthy. Aspen can be buried in the ground. Not very afraid of water, just covered with a slimy bloom with unpleasant odor... The walls in the aspen bathhouse will need to be scraped from time to time. In fairness: under the seemingly unsightly "protective coating" that appeared when exposed to moisture, white, poorly flammable wood is hidden. The aspen log house does not need fire protection... Street walls acquire a characteristic gray-silver shade over time. An aspen blockhouse cracks in the same way as a pine / spruce blockhouse. Needs caulking. After grinding, the log looks much more attractive.

It is believed that it is better to harvest aspen for a felling in the spring, when the buds swell, meaning the beginning of sap flow in the trunk. Moreover, first to blast the logs in the shade or in stagnant water for a month. Aspen, in contrast to oak (which is also stained, albeit without oxygen), this only makes it stronger. A carpenter's ax bounces off, so the tree stiffens. The chainsaw dulls quickly on a fresh aspen, dust rather than sawdust flies from under the tire.

In practice, log cabins of this breed look much more profitable (more neat, snow-white, smell of grass) in winter time... In winter, by analogy with conifers, it is easier to stitch aspen than to debark. The debrucker barker takes it badly.

There is a misconception - supposedly pests do not spoil the wood. In aspen and poplars, the Great Aspen Barbel Xylotrechus rusticus (pictured) and the Great Aspen Squeaky Saperda carcharias specialize. With their larvae.

There is no resin in the aspen trunk... Which is good only for the operation of a freshly cut bath. In coniferous pine / spruce, some time after the first heating, the contents of the resin pockets are melted. The result is a strong smell of turpentine. There is no such smell in an aspen steam room. Therefore, the atmosphere of the steam room is regarded as soft, the steam is not burning, enveloping, as if warm duvet covered.

This breed does not conduct heat well along the walls. The bathhouse does not warm up for a long time, independently distributing heat from the heating zone along the fibers of the wood throughout the log house. But the aspen canopy does not burn the skin. The tree does not breathe, in order to avoid dampness of the premises, you need to be well ventilated after visiting... What are the advantages of a spruce log house for a bathhouse in contrast to aspen - the ability of wood to independently remove excess moisture to the street + natural air convection through the walls.

In everyday life, ordinary aspen - a cursed tree (possibly due to the characteristic whisper of leaves) during its use has overgrown with a train of plausible and not very myths and superstitions. From the ability to take away mental anguish and draw out ailments from the human body, to the fight against evil spirits (aspen stake). In the old days, people ruled in aspen baths, wondered, steamed to protect themselves from damage and the evil eye. They got rid of melancholy, depression. As actually happens in any Russian bath. It is considered useful to lean against an aspen tree.... Pain, anxiety go away. Still, every tree itself was healthy ...

Aspen (Populus tremula). This tree is the closest relative of poplars. The Latin name of aspen in translation into Russian means "trembling poplar". Aspen does indeed have quivering leaves. A small breath of breeze - and all the foliage on the tree starts to move.

The tree can reach a height of 30 meters, has a very extensive root system. The trunk is covered with gray smooth bark, wood white with a greenish tint. The tree has small buds brown color... The leaves are alternate, heart-shaped, rhombic or rounded. In autumn, the leaves turn a rich golden-red hue. The tree blooms with earrings, on which are located small flowers... The fruits are small boxes containing seeds with a puff. The tree grows quickly, but is quite painful. Average age - 85-90 years old.

History reference

Since ancient times, the Slavs did not like this tree. Many bad beliefs and legends circulated about him. They did not plant him near the houses, they did not heat the stove with wood from a tree, and did not even use the shade from its crown. In Ukraine, wood was not used to build houses. However, aspen was used to fight all kinds of evil spirits, they made charms from it. It was believed that she relieves of impure thoughts and fear. And in wells with an aspen log there was always the purest water. Today, wood is mainly used for practical purposes. It is planted for beauty in settlements, parks and gardens. The bark is used to obtain dyes and tanning leather. Plywood is made of wood roofing materials, matches and containers. Houses are built from aspen logs.

Aspen properties:

• Its wood is practically wormhole-resistant.
• Aspen wood in a dry state has a high elasticity and in this indicator surpasses not only conifers - pine, spruce, larch, but also deciduous ones - oak, ash, hornbeam, poplar, etc. Beams and rafters made of aspen sag much less than, for example , oak, and at the same time much lighter.
• Aspen boards are distinguished by their whiteness, so builders willingly use them for flooring and ceilings.
• Aspen wood, upon contact with water after drying, does not collapse, but becomes even stronger, therefore in Russia it has traditionally been used for making shingles on roofs, water pipes and for finishing cellars and building baths. The juice protruding on the surface of the raw material shingles, dries, makes it as if varnished, due to which rainwater slides off such shingles better.
• When heated to 100 ° C, aspen does not emit resin, like conifers, and also does not heat up much like birch, oak or beech wood, therefore it is the best material for the construction and decoration of saunas and baths.

Scope of application of aspen wood:

Used in rural construction - log houses of wells, cellars. Roof shingles (shingles) are made from aspen. In addition, aspen wood is used for the so-called ploughshare - a special form of plank in Russian wooden architecture to cover church chapters. Along with linden, aspen is widely used for interior decoration Russian baths and saunas, for turning and carved products. Aspen wood has a very low weight after drying, becoming very buoyant, and therefore aspen was a popular choice for making oars. Aspen wood is widely used for the production of barrels, containers for those food products, which should not be allowed to get impurities. Aspen found wide application in the past and is now in the production of various consumer goods - furniture, window frames, dishes, garden tools, toys, ornaments and other products.

The properties of aspen are varied, but as a specialist in this industry, I am only interested in construction. This is what this article will discuss.

Starting to describe and give the characteristics of aspen as a building material (edged board, timber), I will start with the fact that many builders who build wooden houses dislike and try to avoid given view wood, because aspen has a number of negative properties. The negative properties are as follows:

As a rule, this type of wood grows in Middle Lane RF in wetlands, or in areas where there is a lot of moisture. Hence, aspen has a very strong moisture and, as a rule, in most cases, a rotten texture (core). Select for cutting 1? high-quality aspen is very difficult, because out of ten trees, only one comes across not rotten and ready for sawing and further processing. A cube of freshly sawn edged boards and beams weighs 1: 1 or 1m3 \u003d 1000kg and is very heavy when loaded. This becomes especially obvious when loading a timber, say 150x150x6000mm. On
this aspen vices do not end, but only begin.

For in-depth processing, only the top of the entire tree trunk with a length of only 3 to 4.5 m is suitable, since the core has not yet had time to rot and has few knots. It is for this reason that you will never find an aspen lining 6m long.
Due to its moisture content, aspen has a very high shrinkage coefficient and it reaches about 40%. Cube dry edged aspen weighs about 500-600kg. Based on my own experience, I will say that any drying of edged boards and beams from aspen is a lottery (natural or chamber without a difference), since 60% and maybe all 80% of the boards will necessarily be rejected because they will necessarily be driven or? , that is, they will be curves. Only 20% -40% of the board remains ready for further processing. There is even a pattern: the longer the board is, the more likely this event will occur.
When building, say a roof (lathing) where an edged board with a thickness of 25 mm is used, builders prefer to work with a coniferous board, and this is understandable because what will happen to the roof after a little time when the boards of the aspen lathing are unscrewed is not required to be explained, I think to disassemble the example of the rafter part of the roof not worth it.
These are actually all the main reasons why builders avoid working with aspen as a building material.

Let's turn to the origins of the Russian Building Architecture, history wood construction has more than one thousand years. Indeed, even a century ago there were no such huge drying chambers, chainsaws and sawmills. The work was painstaking and time-consuming, the construction foremen were less selfish, were not familiar with modern technologies and all the work was done by hand (from procurement, processing to construction). Consequently, the craftsmen were more aware of how and with which wood to work, and what kind of approach is needed for this particular wood. It was for this reason that knowledge was passed on to the master? Through hands? with experience or by inheritance? from father to son?, therefore this profession was respected and in demand throughout Saint Russia.

Aspen edged board properties:

* the material is very durable, and dry practically has the property of concrete (monolith). With age, this material only gains its weight, that is, it becomes stronger. Whoever worked with dry aspen can tell how often it is necessary to sharpen the chain of a chainsaw (it gets stuck in the dense texture of wood, the chips are very large, flakes off in flakes the size of "popcorn"), how difficult it is to work with an ax or a hammer. That is why selected, large, dry aspen was used in the manufacture of inter-storey floors and roof truss.

Example:
I myself was not familiar with this property of aspen until I was 25 years old. Until I began to remodel the roof of my parents' house from a gable to a broken one. I decided to saw through the rafters with an ordinary hacksaw, after sawing a little, I realized that neither I nor the tool is suitable for this work. Later, I learned from my grandfather that the rafter part was taken out of edged aspen 150x50 and costs 30 years. When asked how he dared to put the aspen on the rafter part. They explained to me clearly in Russian that before putting this board on the rafter part, it went through "natural selection". That is, the board in a pile on the gaskets lay dry for six months, after which the normal boards went into business and carried out for rough work.

* the material is not afraid of moisture, and being in a humid environment is not subject to decay, in addition, once it gets into a naturally dry environment, it restores all its properties.

Here's a prime example:
i had aspen boards laid in the lower rows of the pile almost on the ground and lay for about 2 years in the open air. I could not get to them due to the fact that the goods are renewed all the time. Having pulled out and laid out in the sun, they turned white and took the same shade as they were when they were brought to me.
That is why it is used for the manufacture of tables, chairs, benches, wells, flooring that will be all year round open air.

* After going through all the stages of sorting and processing, the Russian craftsmen used it, oddly enough, it sounds in the flooring (shingles). Aspen, even not planed in good sunny weather, has a silvery white tint. And in the rays of the sun shimmers like paint? Silver metallic? (this can be seen in the photo of the well structure). Those who have not seen, are you welcome to visit the city open-air museum? Suzdal, where houses and temples of wooden Russian architecture from all over Russia are collected.

* has a subtle pleasant odor which is not? like needles and does not hit the nose when the temperature rises with its sharpness. It is for this reason that aspen and not needles are used to decorate a steam room, or to build a bath.

* very cheap, due to its massive growth. At the moment, the price for 1m3 of an ordinary edged aspen board in Moscow is 3900-4200 rubles, while needles does not exceed 5500 rubles. for 1 m3. It is mainly used for roughing, formwork, scaffolding, rough floor. Selected aspen is very expensive and perhaps not worth comparing with needles.

* aspen firewood used as a chimney cleaner. That is, soot is removed. And they are often or as a rule mixed with birch bundles.

Based on the above, I strongly recommend that the first crowns of a log house (a bar or a chopped log) be made from aspen. It is expensive and will take a long time to find the right aspen in sufficient quantity, but it is necessary, because this house will outlive you and your children will get it without major repairs.

OOO "TorgLes" Sergey