Hemlock Framing Lumber and Beams???

[n8hutch]

Question for all of you Saw Mill owners or people who have built with Hemlock.

I Had about 5,000 ft of Hemlock Lumber sawed this last week and 1500ft of white pine. I sticked the pine but I am unsure if I should stick the Hemlock. I have been Told that Hemlock can be hard to work with if it's Dry. So I have decided that I would stack the Hemlock Tight so it wouldn't dry out . But now I'm concerned that it might get moldy. What do you guys think? Should I stick it all or go with my original plan.

Thanks for any insght.

[mspina14]

I just built the sap house (photo above) in January, mostly from Hemlock.

I'd never used it before but I loved it! I thought it was much easier to work with than Pine. It takes nails well and never split. Supposed to be pest resistant.

Mine was from a sawmill in Vermont. Not dry, but not completely wet either.

I'm not sure what you mean by "stick" the Hemlock? Place spacers between the wet wood to let it air dry?

Mark S.

[CharlieVT]

I have a woodmizer and a small woodlot. Have done a fair amount of framing with Eastern Hemlock.
I recommend stickers for your hemlock. In my experience it doesn't try that fast and I have no problems working with it inside of a year or so.
When it gets really dry it can be hard, but after a season is it lighter but still reasonably soft.
Obviously variables will affect drying rate. My stacks are generally in a sunny location but stacks are not covered.
If you were to stack without stickers, you'd probably be okay, but I think you risk slippery, moldy lumber, especially if stacks are in a shaded area.
A good place to ask your question would be on WoodWeb's Sawing and Drying Forum: http://www.woodweb.com/cgi-bin/forums/sawdry.pl

[GeneralStark]

I too have worked quite a bit with rough sawn hemlock. It is great framing material though it can be heavy to move around. I spent the last year building a house for my wife and I with a white pine and hardwood timber frame and hemlock for the rest of the framing. We sawed the hemlock here with a band mill and then I promptly stickered it. It was all 2x8, 2x6, 2x4, 2x3 and 1x3. We didn't actually use it for 4-8 months after sawing it and it was still quite green, and did still get some mold. It was not covered and we had a very wet June.

We lost a fair bit to shake and that was one advantage to sticking and drying it a bit as sometimes it takes some time for the shake to show up after sawing it.

If you are talking about hemlock timbers (6x6 or bigger) then yes it is best to do what you are going to do with them when they are green, but even then you have some time.

[CTsap]

That's a lot of hemlock that I would not take any chances with. Definitely stick it. Projects tend to drag out and a big pile like that, stacked tight, will go moldy pretty quick depending on climate. It will be plenty green for the next 12 months.

[BAP]

I had 4200bf of Hemlock sawed a month ago for my new sugarhouse. Is stickered it all both the framing and boards. I have started building but will be taking several months. Hemlock does get harder as it dried but unless you are building a timber frame and doing a lot of hand carving it isn't that hard to work with. You don't want it getting moldy from being wet. I am building to look like a post and beam but using a nail gun because of a shoulder injury that makes it hard to do much hand nailing.