Help is at hand

Glued laminated timber, also called glulam, is a structural timber product comprising a number of layers of dimensioned timber bonded together with durable, moisture-resistant structural adhesives.

At a basic level this means sticking pieces of timber together to make bigger pieces. It is a way of manufacturing timber elements that cannot be easily sourced in solid sawn timber due to their large size or unusual shape.

Glulam is used for a range of purposes from joinery timber through to large span structural beams. Large glulam beams can often be seen in swimming pool or sports hall roofs – basically wherever a steel or concrete structure is needed for a building, glulam can also be used.

SG8 and G8 refer to solid timber grades of strength and stiffness. GL8 refers to a specific glulaminated standard of strength and stiffness.

Pre camber refers to a small factory made curve in a beam to allow for any settlement under load.

Generally yes, as long it has been dried to a suitable moisture content.

LVL refers to a manufactured timber product made from thin veneers (often 3mm) glued together to form large structural members, often known as Hyspan or similiar. Glulam is made from thicker sections of timber, generally 15-45mm thick, glued together to form a large variety of products.

Particularly where glulam is in an exterior situation, it is highly recommended to use a timber protective coating such as paint or stain. See our data sheets on the Downloads page.

A post is normally a square section with the expectation of 4 clean faces. A beam is normally larger in one dimension than the other, and is often only seen on 3 faces.

These refer to specific hazard levels of timber end use, and are used to classify timber preservative treatments. Timber must be treated to the particular hazard class specification to be used in an application where these hazard risks apply.