Wood Beams - Strength of Material
Compression and bending strengths of wood species typically used in beams:
| Wood Species | Maximum Stress (psi) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bending | Compression | |||||
| Horizontal Shear - τ - | Perpendicular to Grain - σ - | Parallel to Grain - σ - | ||||
| Wet | Dry | Wet | Dry | Wet | Dry | |
| Birch, Yellow | 1417 | 1668 | 477 | 715 | 960 | 1200 |
| Fir, Douglas | 1417 | 1668 | 417 | 625 | 1360 | 1700 |
| Larch, Western | 1417 | 1668 | 417 | 625 | 1360 | 1700 |
| Maple, Red | 1271 | 1495 | 410 | 615 | 880 | 1100 |
| Oak, Black | 1369 | 1610 | 590 | 885 | 920 | 1150 |
| Pine, Eastern White | 1222 | 1438 | 223 | 335 | 960 | 1200 |
| Redwood | 1320 | 1553 | 433 | 650 | 1200 | 1500 |
- 1 psi (lb/in2) = 6895 Pa (N/m2)
- 1 MPa = 106 Pa
Related Topics
• Beams and Columns
Deflection and stress in beams and columns, moment of inertia, section modulus and technical information.
Related Documents
Continuous Beams - Moment and Reaction Support Forces
Moments and reaction support forces with distributed or point loads.
Floor Joist Capacities
Carrying capacities of domestic timber floor joists - Grade C - metric units.
Floors - Live Loads
Floors and minimum uniformly distributed live loads.
Glue-Laminated Timber - Dimensions
Common sizing of glue-laminated timber.
Hardwood and Softwood Species
Species of hardwood vs. softwood.
HE-A Steel Beams
Properties of HE-A profiled steel beams.
Lumber - Weights
Weights of green, kiln dried and pressure treated lumber boards.
Machine Stress Rated (MSR) and Machine Evaluated (MEL) Lumber
Grading of lumber in North America
Maximum Floor Joist Span
No. 1 and No. 2 Grade of Douglas fir and maximum span floor joists - imperial units
Nails and Spikes - Withdrawal Force
Allowable withdrawal load for nail and spikes.
Softwood and Hardwood - Structural Strength Classes
Strength classes, bending stress and mean density of hardwood and softwood
Softwood Lumber - Grading
Rough lumber, surfaced lumber (dressed), worked lumber, shop and factory lumber and yard lumber.
Structural Lumber - Section Sizes
Basic size, area, moments of inertia and section modulus for timber - metric units.
Structural Lumber - Properties
Properties of structural lumber.
Tree Species - Water Demand
Trees species and relative water demand.
Urban Tree Heights
Height of trees commonly used in towns and urban areas.
Weight of Beams - Stress and Strain
Stress and deformation of vertical beams due to own weight.
Wood - Compressive Strength vs. Moisture Content
Red Spruce, Longleaf Pine and Douglas Fir - moisture content and their compressive strength.
Wood - Density vs. Moisture Content
The density of wood versus moisture content.
Wood Columns - Safe Loads
Safe loads for wood columns.
Wood Headers - Max. Supported Weight
Weight supported by a double or triple wood headers.
Wood Screws - Withdrawal Force
Allowable withdrawal load force.
Wood, Panel and Structural Timber Products - Mechanical Properties
Density, fibre stress, compressive strength and modulus of elasticity of clear wood, panel and structural timber products.