How to connect the beams together. Fastening timber to each other: methods of connecting materials (photo and video)

The growing interest in wooden house construction in our country has created a need to inform the population about the methods and techniques used in the construction wooden structures. Many people are interested in how to fasten timber together, how to mount it to a wall, and also what are the advantages of certain technologies and materials.

We will try to answer these questions.

Reliability wooden house or baths made of timber depends on how the timber is attached to the timber.

Beam connections

First of all, it should be said that the traditions of wood construction around the world are incredibly rich and varied, which is an obvious consequence of the vast experience accumulated by mankind in this branch of the craft. With development wood construction appeared great amount masters, schools, traditions and methods of processing parts, so there is simply an unimaginable variety of approaches to working with wood.

Moreover, each master makes his own adjustments and improvements, improving and complicating the generally accepted methods of mating, fastenings and locks. It is impossible to consider all these techniques in one article, so we will limit ourselves to only the basic and currently relevant methods of fixing parts in the construction of wooden walls.

So, joints vary in the spatial arrangement of parts relative to each other:

Crowned. These are connections between parts located in adjacent layers or crowns of the wall (top or bottom), which prevent displacement of logs in the horizontal plane, their rotation and movement under the influence of gravity of the upper layers;
End longitudinal. They are used when increasing the length of a log within one crown and prevent displacement of parts relative to the longitudinal axis, as well as an increase in the gap between them;
End corner joints. They are used for fastening logs when forming corners between walls. They prevent displacement of logs and walls relative to each other, as well as rotations and changes in the degree of angle established in the project. Prevents the expansion of gaps between parts in the corners of the building, the occurrence of drafts and cold bridges;
T-joints. Meet at docking interior walls and partitions with external walls boxes at home or among themselves. Serve for reliable rigid fastening of the internal wall and prevent its displacement and uncoupling;
Various interfaces between wooden and stone structures, which show how to attach the timber to the wall.

Important!
When considering certain methods of fixation, you should take into account the capabilities of a modern tool and the level of your skill when working with it, as well as the feasibility and labor intensity of each method.
This is especially important if you intend to work with your hands.

In each of the listed types of commits wooden parts there are many ways of fastening and various techniques making locks and bowls, so they should be considered in more detail.

Crown connections

A crown connection is a fastening between parts along their longitudinal horizontal plane, with which they rest on each other during the construction of walls. This fastening must keep the parts from moving along this plane, rotating and falling under the influence of gravity and internal stresses, arising in the design.

To implement the crown method, the following fastening techniques are used:

Using metal pins and nails;
Using self-tapping screws;
Using staples;
Using wooden dowels;
Using insert tenons and dowels;
Using special milled locks (in profiled wood).

Using metal products fastenings, it should be remembered that at the points of contact between wood and steel, increased metal corrosion occurs, which leads to premature damage to nails or pins, as well as to damage to the wood at the points of contact. This is the simplest, fastest, cheapest and most reliable way fastening wooden parts.

Most often, metal pins 6 mm thick or special nails without a head are used. The main load will be applied at an angle to the axis of the fastening element, so the presence of a cap is not necessary, especially since it will interfere with the installation of the top log.

Before installing the fastener, the log is drilled to a depth slightly greater than the depth of the pin or nail. Sometimes parts are drilled through, but these are insignificant subtleties; the main task is to fix the product in a horizontal plane.

Staples and screws can be considered as auxiliary or temporary means of fixing wall elements, since they are short-lived and unreliable. In addition, staples spoil appearance designs.

Go ahead. Wooden dowels are the most common and proven method. Everything is simple here: instead of a metal pin or nail, we use a round, polygonal or wooden peg. square section(usually round), which is hammered into a previously prepared hole in the log, and the next part is placed on the protruding part.

I must say that the method is quite simple and unsophisticated, but at the same time very reliable, strong and durable. For production, durable wood is used: oak, beech, ash.

Important!
The dowels must consist of durable wood, have a moisture content lower than that of the house parts, and also have their own fibers perpendicular to the fibers of the timber.

If you work independently and do not have extensive experience in carpentry, this method can be considered a good compromise between complexity, labor intensity and reliability of fastening. Moreover, the dowel is easy to find and buy at a hardware store or get it complete with the material.

Also, for crown assemblies, insert tenons and dowels are used, which are inserted into specially prepared grooves located along the horizontal surfaces of the logs. Today, connections using a tenon and groove, machined into the product at the factory during profiling, are more common. This is typical for laminated veneer lumber and kits for building wooden houses, since the presence of such a lock greatly simplifies and speeds up the assembly of the log house.

End longitudinal units

If you don’t know how to fasten timber together when lengthening it longitudinally, we present to your attention a method called notching. This method is also called a straight or oblique lock, pairing “into the paw”, “into the floor of a tree”, etc.

In addition, there are the following methods:

Fastening with a longitudinal tenon on dowels;
Fixation using a longitudinal molar tenon;
Combined nodes.

Important!
In the case of straight and oblique locks, the parts should be additionally secured with wooden dowels at the points of contact between the surfaces.
To do this, make two holes in the middle of the castle and insert pegs into them.

When working with glued profiled timber, longitudinal extension is not required, since the parts are selected for a specific project and have the required length. Although the price of this material is high, sufficient quantity Such advantages make it very popular.

Corner joints

Corners are the most critical areas of the structure of a wooden house. Therefore, special attention is paid to fastenings.

There are many ways to implement a mate such as an angle:

Residue-free butt joint using a straight lock or “into the wood floor”;
Residue-free using an oblique lock or “in the paw”;
Butt fastening on the main tenon;
Butt-butt fixation on an insert key;
Bowls with remainder are one-sided, two-sided and four-sided.

Important!
They practice end-to-end fastening with nails or plates, but we do not recommend this method due to its unreliability and fragility.

The most common and reliable method of butt fastening is the use of a root tenon. This is a regular straight or trapezoidal tenon and groove with which the parts are connected.

The methods for tenons and dowels, in general, are not particularly different. The “into the paw” and “into the floor of a tree” methods are also similar in characteristics to each other; the connection “into the paw” is somewhat more reliable.

When working with profiled timber, connections using special bowls, or “with remainder”, are more common. To do this, a special piece is cut out at the end of the product. seat, into which the next part is inserted. The bowl can be one-, two- or four-sided.

Admiring the examples of wooden architecture that have come down to us, assembled without a single nail, no one even realizes that they were built using simple and reliable methods of fastening beams or logs of a building to each other, which have not weakened their “grip” for many centuries.

The growing popularity of construction wooden houses determines the interest of developers in the methods and techniques that have been used since ancient times in the construction wooden buildings. Some people are simply interested in how to fasten the beams together and why the built house does not fall apart, while some are looking for useful information to try to do some work yourself or competently assign a task to the builders and monitor its implementation.

I would like to note that the diverse traditions of wooden architecture and the accumulated wealth of experience determine the presence of many in various ways fastening beams together, used in the construction of a house.

In order to consider in detail the features of all possible types connecting beams during the construction of a wooden house will take a lot of time, so we will focus on the main, most commonly used types of fastenings:

Crowned. Fastenings that prevent the displacement of logs located in the upper or lower crown at home or in adjacent layers, compensation of torques from the weight of the upper logs of the frame;
End longitudinal. They are used in the construction of a house when the length of the timber is not enough. Reliably fasten adjacent logs of the same row to each other and do not allow them to move along the longitudinal axis;
End corners. They are used when forming corners, pulling adjacent logs inside the log house, preventing changes in the specified angle parameters;
T-joints. Used when binding internal partitions to the external walls of a building or when constructing an extension to the main wall of a building;
Adjacent. Used when connecting dissimilar materials and adjoining wooden walls to stone structures located on the same level.

Crown joints

In order to prevent the wall from turning into a pile of rolling logs under its own weight, it is necessary to fasten adjacent rows of timber in a horizontal plane, for which a crown connection is used, running along the entire length of the log. And if in round log If a special recess is made, then for profiled products the crown connection is laid by the manufacturer in the shape of a profile.

Crown connection during construction various buildings implemented in the following ways:
Using metal pins or special nails;
Using wooden fastening dowels, tightly driven into pre-drilled holes;
Using metal brackets;
For dowels and tenons made of hard wood of a certain moisture content.;
Locking elements of profiled timber.

It is best to use homogeneous materials when implementing crown fastenings. Is it possible to fasten the beams together with nails? Yes, it is possible, but you should only take into account that when connecting wood and metal, the rate of destruction of both materials increases many times over, which leads to rapid wear of the fasteners, and no anti-corrosion measures will help.

Metal pins, staples and nails are most often used as a convenient temporary connection for securing elements. If the dimensions of the wooden parts do not exceed 100x100 mm, it is possible to fasten the beams together with nails when constructing yard buildings, but the most reliable and durable fastenings are obtained when wooden elements are used as fastenings. Pins, tenons and dowels reliably hold the crowns from moving, ensuring the strength and durability of the fastening.

End longitudinal fastenings

Very often, when building a house, the length of the timber used is not enough to fill the entire wall space. In this case, there is a need to build up logs and ensure their reliable fastening relative to each other. It is in this case that some types of longitudinal fastenings are used:

Several ways of “cutting”;
Root tenon and groove at the end of the beam;
Keyed connection;
A combination of several types of fastenings.

For reliable longitudinal fastening, the need for which arises only when using solid wood logs, combined fastenings are almost always used, providing the greatest strength in fastening the parts together. When using specially manufactured glued profiled timber, such fastenings are rarely in demand, because the building parts are manufactured according to a design that takes into account all the necessary dimensions and types of connections.

End corner fasteners

The most important fastenings, on which the strength of the structure depends, and compliance with its geometric dimensions, are located in the corners and at the junction of the partitions. To secure corners wooden structure There are two main types of corner joints used with each other, with and without remainder.

The corner connection of the beam with the rest has almost absolute tightness and incredible fastening strength. Moreover, with this method of fastening, there is no need to additionally fasten the connecting logs, which are so tightly fastened together that the structure can easily withstand even small earthquakes. Looking at these fasteners in more detail, we can distinguish several main types:

One-sided locking groove, when the wood is selected from one side of the log;
Double-sided locking groove, a more complex connection when the selection is made from both sides of the log;
The four-sided locking groove is the most complex connection made in the factory in the manufacture of profiled timber for specific house by order.

For attaching corners to each other, especially when using prepared wooden products fastenings are used without residue:

Butt connection is the simplest of connections without any residue, it implies the presence additional elements and is most often used in the construction of an extension for utility purposes;
The connection with dowels, although it is a variation of the previous type, is significantly more reliable and devoid of many of its disadvantages;
Mostly the corner parts of courtyard buildings are connected to the floor of a tree or to a paw, since the reliability and tightness of such fastening leaves much to be desired, and the use of additional dowels complicates the work;
Connection into a root tenon located vertically, colloquially called “ warm corner» provides mutual fixation of elements to each other and excellent tightness.

Adjacent fastenings are used when it is necessary to fasten wooden elements to stone or metal structure. As shown in the video, in this case it is used standard set dowels required size or anchor bolts providing reliable fixation. Moreover, there is absolutely no difference in how the elements are positioned relative to each other vertically or horizontally.

In order to correctly fasten the timber to each other when using some connections, especially with a large sample of material, you should remember that when using timber with dimensions less than 100x100 mm, some fastenings are not recommended, in order to avoid a critical reduction in the cross-section of the material and loss of the necessary strength.

For an uninitiated person, even numerous photos of connections will not give an accurate idea of how to fasten wooden elements together to achieve maximum strength, tightness and reliability of the connections. But it’s worth watching how to fasten the beams together in the video and many of the nuances of these operations become extremely clear.

Connecting timber is not the most difficult and difficult task. But you should prepare. To do this you will need:

A measuring tool (tape measure, carpenter's corner, level) and a pencil, with their help the marking of the forming surfaces of the fastening is carried out.

Saw, possibly a hand saw

or chain with electric drive,

but it is better to use a mechanism with a gasoline engine;

Hammer, drill and screwdriver.

Methods of corner connection of timber

Now that everything is ready, we determine in what cases it is necessary to resort to connecting the timber. There are two such moments:

when arranging corners in the future log house;
if the length of the purchased timber is insufficient.

And the methods of such fastening are very diverse. The choice of one or another fastening method depends on the specific situation and the decision of the master. Joining timber differs in many ways from joining log structures. Nowadays modern technologies Old-fashioned methods of fastening lumber are constantly being improved. The most popular are two methods of fixation: with a residue and without.

Let's consider both options.

Connecting a corner with the remainder “into the boulder” or “into the bowl”

This method involves using key grooves. They can be one-, two-, or four-sided.

Four-sided groove

A one-sided groove is obtained as a result of a perpendicular notch on the upper side of the beam. The width, which should correspond to the cross section of the beam.

Double-sided groove

The technique of cutting a double-sided groove involves cutting the timber from two opposite sides, top and bottom. The depth of the cut is equal to a quarter of the side perpendicular section. This method provides a high-quality connection, but requires highly qualified performers.

Four-sided groove

The name of the four-sided groove speaks for itself. In this case, cuts are made from all sides. This method provides reliable fixation; log houses made in this way are incredibly durable. The presence of grooves simplifies the installation of the crowns; they are assembled like a Lego set. Only professionals can perform fastening using this method.

Connections without residue

Butt-butt

The most elementary in complexity is the method of fixing the timber end-to-end. It consists of joining the beams to each other and fastening them with studded metal plates and further fixing them using self-tapping screws. \In this case, the strength and density of such a connection depends on the flawlessness of the surfaces of the timber, and they are rarely perfectly smooth, and on the qualifications of the performer. Careful adjustment of the compatible ends is so labor-intensive that even professionals cannot do it. Therefore, the use of this method is unlikely to be appropriate in the construction of a residential building, but it will be useful in the construction of utility rooms, where the tightness of the corners is not important.

For residential buildings, it is better to use other, more reliable methods of fastening timber.

Corner joints using dowels

Keyed connection

The strength of such fastening is achieved by using a special wedge made of hard wood, called dowels.
Installing such a part into the groove of the beam eliminates shifts in the joints.
Please note that the strength of the connection is ensured by a type of wedge, which can be longitudinal, transverse or oblique. The oblique wedge is difficult to manufacture, but to its credit, it guarantees maximum strength and thermal conductivity of the corner.

Lock "in the root tenon"

This connection is considered the most effective in terms of heat conservation. There is a popular definition of it as a “warm corner.” Therefore, it is considered the most popular in the construction of houses made of timber.

The technological process consists of making a groove in one of the mating beams and a tenon in the other, of similar dimensions, and then combining them.
When making a house, laying insulation, which can be linen or jute fabric and felt, is mandatory.
In this case, the main condition for minimal heat loss is the tight alignment of the connection elements.
Additionally, to increase the strength of the house structure, it is necessary to alternate tenons with grooves in the corner crowns and fasten them with round wooden dowels.
When using dowels, undercuts and fat tails in fastenings, it is necessary to leave vertical gaps between the elements of the lock; they will serve as a compensator for shrinkage of the house.

Half-tree fastening

This is a fairly simple way to cut corners. It is carried out by transversely cutting half the thickness of the timber, which is what gave the name to the method. Before assembly begins, a hole is drilled at points near the corner joints to install a dowel or key. The dowel must cover several crowns of the log house at once.

Fastening "in the paw"

Similar to the half-tree fastening, but the cut is made at an angle, which helps retain heat.

Dovetail connection

The most reliable, durable and practically free of heat loss is the T-shaped “Dovetail” notch. In fact, this is a root tenon, just not rectangular, trapezoidal in shape. The grooves are made in a similar way. This is a rather labor-intensive and expensive method of fastening timber.

In addition to the traditional dovetail, there are a number of other T-shaped beam connections:

locking groove on an insert tenon;
symmetrical trapezoidal tenon, or “frying pan”;
rectangular spike, or “half-frying pan”;
asymmetrical trapezoidal tenon, or “blind frying pan”;
straight groove on the main tenon.

Longitudinal connection methods

In construction, sometimes you need longer timber standard size, which is equal to 6 meters. Therefore, there is a need for longitudinal splicing of the timber. In these cases, the already familiar “half-tree”, “tenon” and “dowel” methods are used. However, the most durable and reliable method of longitudinal connection is considered to be an oblique lock. It is more labor-intensive and difficult to make, but it's worth it.

Metal fasteners for timber

Fasteners for timber are special elements made of alloy alloys, used to connect wooden structures. They can be either domestic or foreign made. Among the many fasteners, one can distinguish complex parts: supports, angles, couplings and washers, and simple elements: anchors, screws, nails and staples.

Complex fasteners

Support – a perforated fastener made of steel profile from 2 mm thick and subjected to application of an anti-corrosion layer of zinc. It is an angle-shaped structure and is used to fasten floor beams to the wall of the house. Based on the type of structure, the support can be divided into open and closed type. It is connected to the timber with screws, self-tapping screws or nails. Supports are available for all sizes of timber.

The coupling with washers consists of an M20 nut with a stud welded to a metal plate. The main purpose is to compensate for timber shrinkage.

Connecting angles are made from rolled sheets with a thickness of 2 mm and are galvanized. Corner fastener Available in a perforated version with a length from 120 to 175 mm. The choice of products is carried out depending on the weight of the structure.

Simple fastening

Pins can be metal or wood. Reinforcement is used as a material for production. They are used to fasten crowns of timber to each other. Metal dowels have high strength and is able to prevent any deformation of the timber. However, due to the corrugated surface, which can disrupt the structure solid wood, and the incompatibility of metal and wood, it is more advisable to use wooden dowels.

They are usually made from birch or other hardwoods. Strength wooden elements almost as reliable metal products, while being ideal for a house made of timber, preventing its deformation. Dowels are made from round and square wood.

Spring unit “Strength”

The product is a bolt with a spring and wood carving, made of high-strength anti-corrosion alloy. Fastening the beam with such an element as the “Force” Knot ensures the strength and stability of the connection, and the absence of deformation and torsion. In addition, the product additionally loads the rims themselves, which prevents the formation of cracks and gaps during the shrinkage process. The recommended installation of fastening units per beam is at least 4 pieces.

Nails, metal staples

Nails, as well as metal staples, are good fasteners, but not for timber. Using them to connect timber is a mistake. Nails corrode and become unusable, thereby damaging the wood. Based on these disadvantages, the use of nails and metal staples should be abandoned.

Since any structure is firmly held together with nails, it is better to use them to connect parts rather than knock together walls.

Wooden type - has properties such as absorbing and releasing moisture, so the connection of the timber must be movable.

You can also watch the video Fastening logs with dowels

Selected for you:

Wood is considered one of the highest quality and most reliable building materials. The naturalness and “softness” of wood make it possible to build very good buildings. But if construction crew treats the quality of fastening irresponsibly, then such a house, not only will not stand for a long time, but can also pose a threat to its owners. Therefore, it is very important to know how to fasten the beams together correctly.

The reliability of a wooden house depends on how the timber is attached to the timber.

Some features of timber

It is believed that the customer is always right, but many builders begin to impose their opinion. And then disputes may arise. One of these controversial issues is the choice of timber or logs. In order to answer this question, you need to know some characteristics of these materials.

The logs have very high frost resistance and provide good wind resistance, preventing the formation of drafts from cracks. But creation log walls- a very difficult job that requires knowledge and skills, and even better, a highly qualified carpenter. Self-production a log house threatens to lead to failure. Assembly of logs is step by step process, because after cutting they are given time to shrink and only after that they are installed.

Timber is the same wood, only already mechanically processed in production. Its thermal conductivity properties are similar to logs. The only thing is that the connecting seams of the beams are more breathable. But they also found a way to deal with this problem: you need to use alternating beams with different heights. Thus, the seams are reduced, and as an addition, special cushioning materials and insulation are used.

When constructing walls from timber, the need for meticulous work is much lower. This means that, in addition to a professional, both a beginner and an amateur can cope with this task. A very great convenience is that the timber has minimal shrinkage. Therefore, it is almost immediately laid out on the foundation.

If we objectively evaluate logs and beams, then in the second case the time for construction works you need 2-3 times less than in the first one. This significantly saves time, financial and human resources.

Principles of correct timber connection

Since the corner connections of a timber building are quite weak point, then to eliminate this drawback, all kinds of insulation are used. For this purpose, there are several types of connections, not only for the corner, but also for internal walls, rafters and beams.

Each place has its own purpose, therefore, in order for the entire building to fulfill its functions, it is necessary to correctly fasten the timber in all places.

For corner beams joints such as butt joints, with or without remainder, have been developed. WITH inside use a T-shaped connection.

Longitudinal fastening of the timber is ensured using dowels, a main tenon, an oblique or straight lock.

For such a material, this connection provides maximum strength and reliability. To make your work easier, you should act according to a specially designed template. The main thing is to maintain the evenness of the lines and make sure that the bars fit snugly against each other. As already mentioned, corner joints are additionally insulated.

Choice also plays an important role. the right tools. For example, without an ax there is no point in taking on a log house. The saw, hacksaw, hammer and mallet act as auxiliary forces.

The most common joint for corners is the joint with the rest and the keyway. The size of the groove is oriented to half the thickness of the wood. This type is mainly intended for the first crown.

The "lock" can also be used for residue-free connections. For these purposes, it is necessary to have dowels with a cross-section of 30 mm and a length of 25 mm. The timber is laid on tow, and then holes are prepared for the dowels. At this stage, it is important to compare the height of the beam and the depth of the aperture. The second should be 1.5 levels higher than the length of the log.

Beginners most often build using butt joints. Of course, this method is the simplest, but it has many nuances. Firstly, with this option, the structure is vulnerable to wind; accordingly, drafts will constantly blow in the house. This means that the heat will not stay there for long. Secondly, during frosts the building will cool down greatly.

IN this option the connection of two beams with metal plates and nails with spikes is provided. Two elements are stacked on supporting part, after which both ends are fastened with staples.

The T-joint requires dowels. Thus, the most reliable fastening of all available. Additionally, connections with a key and straight groove, as well as a symmetrical or rectangular trapezoidal tenon can be used. The latter help to hold the joints together so that they do not become loose or come apart. Of course, in order to make such a spike, you need to be patient and time. Therefore among professional builders he is not that popular. But the dowel is another matter. Connections in the corners are strengthened with staples, bolts and nails.

Advantages of properly fastened profiled or laminated timber

Despite the fact that wood has been used in construction for a long time, it also has a number of “inconvenient” features. Firstly, the surface of the wood is not perfectly smooth. Secondly, while working with it it turns out a large number of burrs and knots. If the material is not handled correctly, it will be too vulnerable to cold winds, which will significantly affect the quality of living inside such a building.

A rope is passed through the holes and secured at the ends with knots.

Exactly the right technology timber production made it possible to eliminate these disadvantages. A prominent representative of such a “struggle” is profiled timber. Ready material has special depressions and ridges on its surface. They provide a tighter joint and, accordingly, more high quality connections. Considering the profile, the methods for joining profiled materials are similar to ordinary timber.

To be fair, it is worth pointing out right away that the cost of such material is quite high, since the consumption of wood during the production process is very high.

Therefore, more preference is given to the glued analogue. Such timber consists of lamellas separately glued together, which lie in fibers that do not coincide with each other. Such material is initially honed to smooth surface, is impregnated with special solutions that will protect the house from rotting and fungi.

Profiled timber has good fire resistance, similar to metal structures. The glued analogue is lighter, which allows you to significantly save on laying a heavy foundation. But again, preferences depend on the individual wishes of the customer.

Wood has a very bright and unique structure, thanks to which buildings made from it look truly interesting and attractive, most importantly, original.