You’re a do-it-yourself kind of person and you’ve been looking to do a few home improvement upgrades, maybe putting up shelves in the garage or in a closet or even building a shed out in the backyard. You have some basic skills; you can measure right and cut straight and know how to read a set of shed plans or woodworking blueprints. You feel like you have enough skill to get the job done.
You have the set of plans or have drawn out the measurements for your shelves and are ready to go get the lumber and start. If you’ve sat under a carpenter or master builder you probably know exactly what to get. However, most of us would do one of two things; buy the cheapest or one of the most expensive. So what are the very basics we should we know before we go?
#1 – It’s Not What It Used To Be
It wasn’t that long ago when you went down to purchase lumber for a project you would be met by an experienced lumberman who would start the conversation with this question; what are you using the lumber to build? He would them instruct the novice to the right type and size of wood for the project at hand.
It’s no longer like that in most places.
Today, most of us go to a do-it-yourself lumber/hardware store where the people who are there to help have no more knowledge than you do about lumber. They don’t ask probing questions about your project. They point you to the bins where the lumber sits so you can go through them and dig out the sizes you think you need or the bins where the type of lumber you think you want to use are.
This means you have to do your homework and a bit of research and find out sizes, shapes, types, etc before you ever leave your house.
#2 – You Don’t Have To Be Overly Choosy For Most Projects
If you’re putting up shelves in a closet, it doesn’t make that big of a difference to use yellow pine, white pine, ash, cedar, redwood, oak, particleboard, plywood or mahogany.
It also doesn’t really matter what grade of lumber you choose, especially if the shelf is hung high up and out of the way. It will be hidden behind the closet door and too high for most people to even notice.
What you will notice though is the difference all these types and grades of wood cost! There really is no reason to pay the higher prices for lumber for projects that are out of site. This means you really need to know what and where your projects are and how they are viewed.
At the same time, you need to know when purchasing the higher grade lumber or a different type of wood is important. You should be able to determine this by looking at your set of plans. Of course if you have any detailed questions or your plans are vague, call around to the various lumber stores in your area until you get one of the guys who knows his stuff and ask.
It is always better to ask the questions and get the answers before purchasing your lumber. This way you are better prepared and ready for your project the first time around.