![]() Other manufacturers also make LVL engineered products, and all use similar processes for making engineered lumber. Weyerhauser referred to the product as “Microlam” for two years until then changed it to “Microllam.” Many still refer to Microlam when speaking of Microllam as they are frequently interchanged to identify all types of laminated veneer lumber. Microlam and Microllam refer to the same LVL product. Microlam is a common misspelling of Microllam, a Weyerhauser brand of engineered wood products. They are cut to size, wrapped, and prepped for storage or transportation. The process to get to a finished LVL beam starts with debarking the log, then rotary peeling the veneer to send the sheets to the jet tube dryers to reduce the moisture content to 8-10%.Īfter drying, the manufacturer grades the veneer sheets, gets a resin application, and compresses the sheets until dry. The most common wood used in LVL beams is Douglas fir. During World War II, plywood became an essential war material. ![]() There is recorded use by the Chinese, English, French, and Russians well before the 20th century, and it received its first patent in 1856. An LVL engineering process uses multiple layers of thin wood assembled with adhesives.Įngineered lumber was first seen in use as early as ancient Egypt. LVL is typically made in a factory, straighter, more uniform, and stronger than traditional milled lumber. The difference is that plywood changes the grain’s direction with each layer, and LVL keeps the grain direction the same. LVL stands for Laminated Veneer Lumber and is similar to plywood in appearance. Protect yourself, get the professional services, it's $ well-spent.Video can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: What is Laminated Veneer Lumber? (LVL) () This is typical of what they may find: contractors substituting cheaper fasteners or structural materials which are not rated for the level of weather exposure or load can cause the entire load-bearing system to fail, possibly with tragic results. In the event of a failure of a structural component, the plaintiff attorneys supoena the design documents, including the plans review, the inspections, product approvals for the components right-down to the fasteners, and then a forensic engineering team reviews them with compliance to the building code at the time of construction. I am a plans examiner and a Life Safety Code inspector, and I've seen a lot of stupid, dangerous things done by amateurs and professionals. Considering what's at stake, you don't need a catastrophic failure so using the services of a structural engineer is a matter of safety for you and anyone around the structure. Yes, you may be able to use the free design skills of your local supply store, but here in Florida, you don't get a permit for structural work like that without having a professional engineer (P.E.) submitting sealed plans for the structural calcs. I adapted a 'cherry-picker.' I'll post that up in a new thread. I even went as-far as-to buy a short-web I-beam with the idea to bolt it to the underside of the box beam at the ridge, but I discovered that between the I-beam girder, the trolley, and the rigging, I would lose precious headroom, and be unable to lift much over 3' in height onto the loft deck. If it was an I-beam girder I could use an overhead trolley on the lower surface flange of the beam, but due to the box construction, that was out. One concession I made to getting heavy things up & down to/from the loft, I thought about what would make an easy load-lifter? The roof ridge beam is also a 1/2" wall thickness box beam with plates welded to it for the ceiling joists. For access, I use an A-frame ladder, but since it's used for storage, it's not an everyday trip I make. ![]() The structure has no stairs to access the loft, not-even an attic 'pull-down' stairs. The beam is sandwiched on both sides by a 2" x10" (ripped to 8" to match the box beam dimension) wood beam to allow easier attachment of the loft floor joists, which are 2" x 8" & 18" o.c. The engineer did the calcs and gave us a front-of-the loft steel box beam, 1/2" wall thickness, 4" x 8" welded into steel flitch plates cast into the masonry side walls. We used a structural engineer, and I asked for a capacity capable of supporting the weight of multiple motorcycles. The garage is a nominal 20' x 22' & the loft is a nominal 13' x 22'. That's all we could afford to do, we kept the same roof instead of bumping it higher. I had built a loft which isn't full height above my two-car garage. ![]()
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