Walls and Framing
Every home has walls. Without them, there could not be a roof over your head. You would essentially have a big picture window and would be exposed to the brutal weather in Wisconsin. They also give you privacy from your neighbors or from people merley driving by.
Evolution of Walls
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When people first started moving to this area and commercial building began, many structures consisted of a small, one room building that functioned as a house. This is what we would consider today "roughing it." Now we have individual rooms with power and lighting. The real question is how did the structure change so much? The answer lies in history as well. When people began building houses logging was a major occupation. Many people didn't have time to saw lumber, let it dry, and often times, the settlements were temporary as they followed work. The log cabin was a common residence at the time. It was quick to build and was cheap. The homeowner usually cut down trees where his home would soon be and those trees would be his logs. The ends of the logs would be notched together and mud, clay, and straw were packed into the gaps to provide insulation. This process was called Dubbing and it worked very effectively. At the time, there was no sophisticated knowledge of chemistry. These homes were built by the owner and their quality merely depended on the owner. There was no treated wood back then nor cut lumber. It was pretty much cut the tree down, notch it, and set it on top of the last layer.
What a typical log cabin may have looked like when commercial buildings originated in Wisconsin. Courtesy of Trip Advisor Photography and their affiliates 12/20/27
While these primitive walls were all the loggers needed in their camps, it didn't suffice for other people. They used a method called Timber Framing. Timber framing was often done with lumber from the nearby land. The logs were hand-cut to create a flat face and edges. The boards were then assembled using wood fasteners such as mortise and tenon joints, wood pegs and notches. Generally, no nails were used in the structural frame. The structural framing was then covered with wood siding. Essentially every old and antiquated barn your dive past today was timber-framed. Believe it or not, there was actually some primitive chemistry involved with this type of frame. These logs were cut the year before they were used. They were hand hewn as soon as they were cut and left to air-dry for a year. This allowed for pitch and sap to disperse and disappear from the wood, making it less susceptible to interior rotting. This allowed the wood to become stronger and less elastic. Due to this, the wood would last longer in the elements. This is why you see old barns still standing and being used today. This was a very effective method for framing and creating walls.
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An example of a timber-framed barn. It can support it's weight and some merely because of the flexibility being gone in the wood.
Courtesy of Pinterest and their photographers as well as their affialiates. 12.20/27
A new type of wall framing appeared and became quite popular. It is still used today in essentially every Wisconsin home. Wood framing originated. In this type of frame, standard sized lumber was cut and assembled as a wall frame. This is where studs come into play as well as sole plates and headers. With these, the walls could handle just as much weight, if not more, than timber framing. Without the wall framing, we couldn't have multiple-story houses. When this revolutionary type of framing emerged, exterior walls had the same size as interior walls. The lumber dimensions differ today as well as the type of wood. Maple, Pine, Hickory, Ash, and Oak were all used in walls. Now it is mainly pine and balsam. This wall framing consisted of lumber that was cut from the sawmill. There were no such methods of treatment to preserve the wood. Now and currently, there is pressure treated lumber, which is used in virtually anything related to construction. Pressure treated lumber consists of a series of chemical preservatives to fight against insects and rot. This treatment usually consists of chromated copper arsenate (CCR). This solution forces any air in the lumber out from the tiny, minute, bubbles and then replaces that space with the preservative. Due to balsam and pine's absorbing properties, and it's strength, this is the perfect form of lumber to treat. It is also fast-growing, which also contributes to its use. There are several types of treated wood and each has a different treatment refer to the tables below. Despite the different type of preservative, the chemical reactions and applications remain constant. The wood absorbs the treatment and forces air out, hence creating an exothermic oxidation reaction.
Here is some very cool information published by the University of Minnesota and their research facilities. This carries very in-depth information on treated wood. Check it out!
TABLE 1: Standard Lumber Sizes
Interior Walls
With the exception of log cabins and houses, every house would look very bare without interior walls. These are often very thin and hold insulation and outlets. The real question is what makes up these walls? Time has told us in several ways. First, there were wooden walls. These often came from the surrounding trees in timber framing. The trees weren't good enough for thin, interior walls. The only problem with this was that there wasn't stain or varnish back then. Nothing would coat the walls; therefore, would expose it to water, moisture, causing rot and insects to eat away at the wood. Almost every farmer's house had at least one wooden wall. Our whole entire house consists of wood walls. Another type of interior wall is called Panneling. Panneling is a thin sheet of sawdust and glue, also called fiberboard or pressboard, with a decorative finish on it. It is then attached to the studs on your wall with paneling nails. Believe it or not, there is chemistry behind paneling. Research indicates that it will last longer than wood in an indoor setting. It is immune to insects due to the type of treatment in the wood fibers in the paneling.
The next two types of walls consist of the most chemistry. One of these is found every day and the other is very popular in older buildings. They are plaster and drywall. Each is essentially the same chemistry, except one involves antiquated practices. Plaster is seen in homes before 1950's. Plaster is a mixture of limestone, sand, with either gypsum, lime, or cement. Regardless of its contents, it works the same way. You buy plaster by the bag and add water. Once you add water, it acts like cement, forming a paste and is applied to the wall. There is usually a skeleton that it is applied to for support, such as chicken wire. When you apply the mixture, the paste hardens and Hydration occurs. Hydration is a chemical reaction in which the major compounds in cement form chemical bonds with water molecules and become hydrates or hydration products. Hydration is considered an exothermic reaction, along with concrete. Once this happens, the wall becomes firm and hard. The exterior is then sanded smooth. Drywall is basically a universal sheet of plaster that comes in standard sizes and in enveloped in a paper. Drywall is screwed to your walls and then is taped and mudded. A worker applies a special tape, which is essentially a small, adhesive grid, and it will hold the plaster you will apply. In order to hide all of the screws and joints, you "mud" the wall. This process consists of placing a commercial plaster on a wall and trowelling it so it is smooth with the exterior paper on the drywall. It is then sanded smooth and once painted, you won't see a screw or crack in the wall. Since 1950, drywall has been used because it is easy maintenance, less of a mess to install and is more cost-effective. Essentially every house contains drywall.
What a typical wall panel may look like. T This image is provided by the courtesy of Lowes and their photographers and affiliates. 1/1/18
Exterior Walls
Exterior walls have changed the most in the whole wall assembly process. They consisted of many things, and have undergone the biggest changes. It first started out when the first houses were being built in the area. They were originally logs from around the area, hand sawed, and nailed on the house. The siding eventually changed when sawmills came around. Logs were universally cut in standard sizes and were milled with tongue and groove, so the adjacent boards would connect with each other. This reduced heat loss when the wood would contract and make gaps in the outer walls. Exterior walls were built with tongue and groove for a very long time and were eventually treated as well. A new building material came about that revolutionized the way people built walls. Chipboard ( also called OSB) emerged and tongue and groove soon became antiquated. Chipboard is woodchips from "rejected" wood (wood that can't be made into lumber) and is chipped up. It is then placed in a press with an adhesive and undergoes an extensive heat. Chemicals such as pesticides and preservatives are added to keep the wood from rotting, warping, and insects. The idea that the wood couldn't warp as easily was crazy as well. When wood is exposed to moisture, the long carbon-carbon bonds have no strength to resist the weight of water in the wood. They then warp and take a new shape, often forming a "crook" in the wood. OSB is nailed to all of the exterior parts of the wall. It is then wrapped in house wrap (see insulation tab) and then is sided. You see many types of siding today. There is brick paneling, vinyl, and fiber cement. Brick Paneling is merely an interlocking plastic that keeps out water and it looks like bricks or stones. Vynl is also plastic. It is a channeled section that interlocks with another piece. This also repels essentially all water. Vinyl is the most common siding in this area, with the exception of commercial buildings. There are many different forms and colors of vinyl. Another type of siding is fiber cement. This is essentially plastic coated particle board, in which wood fibers are glued and pressed together, creating an exothermic reaction. This repels water and is more durable to sunlight and the elements. Unlike the other two forms of siding, this is thicker and doesn't wear as easily. This is the most modern form of siding and is currently the most expensive. It has a longer lifespan, but vinyl is often used because of the cost.
This house consists of one of the many forms of vinyl siding. Courtesy of today's homeowner.and their affiliates. 1/1/18
Sustainability
The sustainability of walls and frames poses a very big question. You want to balance price with quality. The good news is that if all are properly maintained, all three types of framing will last a very long time. Log cabins, if maintained can last 100+ years. They can also last as little as 5 years, depending if they're properly maintained. You must apply stain to the logs in order to preserve and protect them from mother nature. There is evidence of the sustainability of timber framing all over. Have you ever looked at a barn? Timber frames can last over 100 years as well, as long as it's kept out of the elements and maintained. If not maintained, you will see them collapse, like many barns around the area. There is also wood framing. This is by far the most sustainable form of wall framing. The frame itself is kept out of the elements and has pressure treated wood. This will last for 200+ years and is the cheapest form of framing. The walls too must be sustainable. For the interior walls, drywall is the cheapest and most sustainable, being that it can last the lifetime of the house. Plaster is not as sustainable, being that it averages 100 years. Wooden walls will average about 25-50, again being properly maintained. Osb and particle board walls will last about 50-75 years as long as no moisture gets to them. Exterior walls must have the most sustainability. They deal with all elements, rain, hail, snow, wind, and the sun. Vinyl siding lasts anywhere from 20-40 years. This is the cheapest form of siding. The brick panneling is equible to vinyl siding, but not in price, as it is more expensive. Particle board/ fiber cement siding last over 100 years properly maintained. Vinyl siding the the most effective in price and lifespan, if your looking for the bargain for your buck.