Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Apr 16, 2014 6:43 am Was on site yesterday and noticed our frame got delivered. I'm a bit surprised to see that not all of the roof truss is treated timber. Our contract states "Supply of Treated Structural Pine material as requested to the Wall Frames and Trusses. No Allowance for any other material to be treated has been included." To me the contract would mean ALL the roof truss should be treated- it almost looks like it is made of leftovers or is there only a minimum amount of treated timber they have to put in? I did a forum search to see if people had similar concerns but couldn't find anything. See pics below for what i'm talking about. Any comments would be appreciated Re: Treated pine frame- did yours look like this?? 2Apr 16, 2014 8:41 am I'd be concerned too just on the difference in appearance. On the timber there should be stamps with code letters which specify what the timber is in terms of strength grading but also if it has been treated. Stewie Re: Treated pine frame- did yours look like this?? 3Apr 16, 2014 8:52 am I'd be reporting this to your site supervisor and CSO by phone and email. Ask them to confirm that it is in compliance with the contract. Quote the relevant section and include photos. Act fast! Re: Treated pine frame- did yours look like this?? 4Apr 16, 2014 9:35 am Not all the wood used in the house will be treated - but it looks like some of the main stuff is not treated when it should be. What does your contract say re this ? Re: Treated pine frame- did yours look like this?? 5Apr 16, 2014 10:12 am Our whole frame was treated for walls and roof You can call me Chris! Altona 4bd Media Ent by Allworth @ Bonnells Bay NSW Check out my attempt at a blog! http://bonnellsbayaltona.blogspot.com.au/ Re: Treated pine frame- did yours look like this?? 7Apr 16, 2014 3:28 pm It has been chemically treated so that termites or borer won't eat it. Some treatments are for borer only ( cheaper obviously ) and some timber isn't treated at all. This guide here is a good reference for the different types... http://www.timber.net.au/index.php/treated-timber.html Stewie Re: Treated pine frame- did yours look like this?? 8Apr 16, 2014 6:58 pm Maybe it is me but I have never noticed a treated frame before in Adelaide... "Supply of Treated Structural Pine material as requested to the Wall Frames and Trusses. No Allowance for any other material to be treated has been included." As requested by who? Did you request the treated frame, or is there something in an Engineers report saying you need it? You'd also wonder if the truss manufacturer re-treated all of the cut ends too. It looks like a mish mash of treated and un-treated. Put it in email to your SS with the photos, then follow it up with a phone call. Get the response via email. Re: Treated pine frame- did yours look like this?? 9Apr 16, 2014 7:26 pm Hi Konrad Im taking a stab in the dark here, but from my experience there are certain parts of a truss roof that are critical and i would consider structural. Looking at the pics you provided, things like bottom cords, webs, girder trusses and certain top cords of truncated trusses, (the ones that dont go to an apex) are all made using treated pine. By all means i'd contact the builder and ask the question. But i find it unlikely a truss company would try to cut corners on something so obvious and critcal. Re: Treated pine frame- did yours look like this?? 10Apr 18, 2014 5:42 am Hi everyone, Thanks for the advice. Saint mike-the contract stated "Supply of Treated Structural Pine material as requested to the Wall Frames and Trusses. No Allowance for any other material to be treated has been included." Building the dream- was requested by us (not a structural requirement)- living in qld,near bushland it was a no brainer upgrade for a bit of extra protection against termite damage....or so we thought. We do have a barrier product (termiglass) the builder provides as standard ontop of that. An update - the builder admits they made a mistake on ordering- for some reason they ordered our wall frames treated but roof trusses non treated, the truss manufacturer just used offcuts of whatever was available for the roof trusses hence why its a missmatch. The builder is unwilling to get the trusses remade (as this will cost thousands- its a custom build so they cant exactly reuse them) and instead are saying they can put the frame up then treat the untreated wood on site! Of course I am extremely unhappy with this as from what I know to treat timber properly they would use vacumn/pressure to get the preservative into the wood, so any protection that is painted on would be far less effective (wouldn't be surprised if its just some watered down green paint!)- but the builder has all the power, I argued the point for ages with them but essentially they feel that by treating on site they meet their contractual obligations, will still offer their structural guarantees etc. and there is nothing more I can do. I asked them if they would allow me to seek the advice of an independent building inspector to run it past them as an acceptable solution to the problem which they said they are happy with (guessing I would say their report would mean nothing them anyway regardless of what it said). Sigh.... Trying to see a positive side- good thing is at least the wall frames are (supposedly) treated pine, and we have the barrier product they will be using so I guess it is better having untreated timber in the roof as opposed to the walls, but of course way more expensive to repair any damage if termites got up there. At least the builder is trying to retreat the wood with something (I will ask what product they intend to use (whether it is green paint by dulux,taubmans etc lol) guess they could have just said too bad and put it up as is. Gotta love how you specify and pay for something, then you just have to take what you get in the end. Re: Treated pine frame- did yours look like this?? 11Apr 18, 2014 8:05 am How annoying. If treating onsite was as effective I am sure all builders would do it. Their structural warranty probably would not have anything to do with termites, so maybe get in writing from them a guarantee from termite damage. As for the truss manufacturer reusing the trusses, I am sure that they could be pulled apart trimmed and re used on houses with smaller spans than yours. Who knows, maybe that's how you ended up with offcuts. Good luck for the rest of the build. Re: Treated pine frame- did yours look like this?? 13Apr 18, 2014 8:14 am What you have done is good - treated timber is better IMO. But - all wood in the house won't be treated unless you specifically asked - AND PAID for it. I'd say just the structural important stuff. Then you see them cut the wood etc ... Bit like termite barriers where the builder moves the barrier as it is in his way ... Re: Treated pine frame- did yours look like this?? 14Apr 18, 2014 8:48 am Depends how important this issue is to you. To me it sounds like what you are being delivered is materially different to what is stated in the contract. How will you be compensated for this unauthorised variation on their behalf? If it really matters to you, get a lawyer to draft a letter to them ordering it to be brought inline with the contract. Refuse to allow further construction until it is rectified and threaten to involve the bank as it varies from the agreed product. Or you could threaten all this and demand compensation in other ways. How forgiving do you think the builder would be if you just randomly changed things during the build post contract? Re: Treated pine frame- did yours look like this?? 15Apr 18, 2014 8:57 am Hi Konrad, Even if you don't want to get too confrontational - this should at least be treated as a variation IMO. This means it needs to be documented as a change to the contract and it may affect the contract price and completion date. I'm afraid that having had a bad experience myself I'm not in favour of allowing builders to change things without going through the proper channels. Re: Treated pine frame- did yours look like this?? 16May 08, 2018 10:29 pm JUST JOINED. INTERESTED IN THIS TOPIC AS I HAVE A NEGATIVE THING ABOUT TERMITES, ESPECIALLY IF THEY WANT TO EAT YOUR HOUSE, SOMETHING YOU HAVE PAID A LOT OF MONEY FOR. I RECENTLY BUILT A HOUSE USING THE TREATED TIMBER FRAMES AND TRUSSES ) WHICH THEY USE NORTH OF THE CAPRICORN H2 RED (IT HAS A FULLY COMPRESSED TREATMENT) SO CUTTING THE TIMBER WILL NOT EFFECT IT, THAT MEANS UNLIKE THE ENVELOPE GREEN AND BLUE NEEDS THE ENDS RE TREATED ONCE CUT. HAVE A LOOK AT THE BUILDING SITES AND YOU WILL SEE ALL THE PRE MADE UP FRAMES AND TRUSSES ENDS OF THE BLUE AND GREEN TIMBER HAVE NOT BEEN TREATED AND THEY WONT BE UNLESS THE OWNER DOES IT THEMSELVES. THESE FRAMES ARE ONLY ENVELOPE SPRAY TREATED, ABOUT 1 TO 2 MILS THICK, NOT TREATING THE ENDS SAYS TO THE TERMITES COME IN THIS WAY, DOOR OPEN. THE FRAME ETC WILL VOID WARRANTY BECAUSE IT HAS NOT BEEN CUT TO MANUFACTURES STANDARDS MEETING THEIR WARRANTY REQUIREMENTS , SO YOUR 25YEAR WARRANTY JUST LEFT THE BUILDING. I LIVE IN BRISBANE SOUTH. I USED H2 RED FULLY COMPRESSED TREATED TIMBER. I DON''T KNOW WHY THEY DONT USE IT ALL OVER AUSTRALIA, COST ME $1,600 MONEY WORTH SPENT. Re: Treated pine frame- did yours look like this?? 17May 08, 2018 10:34 pm JUST JOINED. INTERESTED IN THIS TOPIC AS I HAVE A NEGATIVE THING ABOUT TERMITES, ESPECIALLY IF THEY WANT TO EAT YOUR HOUSE, SOMETHING YOU HAVE PAID A LOT OF MONEY FOR. I RECENTLY BUILT A HOUSE USING THE TREATED TIMBER FRAMES AND TRUSSES ) WHICH THEY USE NORTH OF THE CAPRICORN H2 RED (IT HAS A FULLY COMPRESSED TREATMENT) SO CUTTING THE TIMBER WILL NOT EFFECT IT, THAT MEANS UNLIKE THE ENVELOPE GREEN AND BLUE NEEDS THE ENDS RE TREATED ONCE CUT. HAVE A LOOK AT THE BUILDING SITES AND YOU WILL SEE ALL THE PRE MADE UP FRAMES AND TRUSSES ENDS OF THE BLUE AND GREEN TIMBER HAVE NOT BEEN TREATED AND THEY WONT BE UNLESS THE OWNER DOES IT THEMSELVES. THESE FRAMES ARE ONLY ENVELOPE SPRAY TREATED, ABOUT 1 TO 2 MILS THICK, NOT TREATING THE ENDS SAYS TO THE TERMITES COME IN THIS WAY, DOOR OPEN. THE FRAME ETC WILL VOID WARRANTY BECAUSE IT HAS NOT BEEN CUT TO MANUFACTURES STANDARDS MEETING THEIR WARRANTY REQUIREMENTS , SO YOUR 25YEAR WARRANTY JUST LEFT THE BUILDING. I LIVE IN BRISBANE SOUTH. I USED H2 RED FULLY COMPRESSED TREATED TIMBER. I DON''T KNOW WHY THEY DONT USE IT ALL OVER AUSTRALIA, COST ME $1,600 MONEY WORTH SPENT. No the fireplace doesn’t work. It’s been enclosed. I’m not sure what was removed, as it was done quite some time ago - well before what I can see with photos online… 2 11589 This is 100% true. You can not hang anything on steel frames. very frustrating 8 8057 DIY, Home Maintenance & Repair Are you going to have the frame exposed or are you cladding it with something. Usually if you are making an exposed frame you would use solid legs around 100x100 or… 3 6592 |