We’re in central NC and I’ve built a lot out of green wood. It’s great stuff! Cheap, strong and in my opinion looks better. I started out with exposed construction like barns, then graduated to livable spaces / houses.
I’ll give you some tips I’ve learned from our projects:
Lots of fasteners - buy big mean galvanized ring shanked nails and lots lots lots of timberlocks. You’ll need long nails, I order 3.5” galv. ring shank online for my gun nails. Timberlocks I have about every size in bulk. You’ll use 3 times the amount of fasteners as dry wood.
It’s heavy - plan ahead for that. The high lift stuff will kill you if you don’t have enough people or the right equipment. A few months ago we were putting up wet 8x12 lumber 16’ long - that’s about 650 lbs. each. It’s way harder than dry wood.
Use treated where you should - don’t skimp on this. Buy treated stuff for ground, masonry, or weather contact (not talking about siding). Wet wood does not last in those conditions.
Wait on the insulation - if you insulate or air seal around wet wood it’ll mold and rot. We do the build, finish the outside, but leave the inside unfinished and uninsulated for 6-12 months. It dries out pretty fast with air circulation and better yet a wood stove inside. Don’t worry about discoloration on the wood. It’ll happen while it dries, some of it looks bad, but it’s fine in the end. If you really care you can spray it with vinegar and scrub it with a grill brush repeatedly. We’ve done that for some exposed beams and such but it’s a lot of work.
Bracing - use OSB AND braces. Design well so you’re not making a box that will twist. True for every build but more so for wet wood. I’ve find that wood usually follows your suggestion. By that I mean, as it dries - if it’s fastened and braces properly - it doesn’t twist.
Don’t build standard - if you want a normal looking house use normal materials. If you want to use wet wood I recommend a strong interior. I mean no drywall - use wood like shiplap (or reverse board and batten if you want to produce it yourself easily). Definitely no Sheetrock. Also no tile or the like without cement board behind it - take the standard and double it because the cement board will have to do some work.
I really love building like this. It’s a lot of fun and everyone who sees what we’ve done is amazed. If you’d like to visit we are in central NC - Alamance County.
