Join Wooden Beams: DIY guide how to join wood

• material and methods
• Connecting wooden beams: instructions
  • Interconnects
  • halving

You want to connect wooden beams, for example if you need to finish a framework for a construction project ">

Wooden beams are the basis for numerous construction projects, from beds to scaffolding to flat roofs that need to be firmly connected. In the hobby and home you rarely have to connect wood, let alone wooden beams, which are heavier and thicker compared to slats. If you want to combine wooden beams, you can use a variety of different methods that make the work much easier. For the majority of methods, you only need the right materials to connect multiple beams quickly and effectively. Joining wood is not difficult, as long as the necessary materials and tools are available.

material and methods

The choice of materials and tools depends on the method you choose to connect the wooden beams. You have several options:

1. Flat connector: the flat connector is one of the easiest ways to connect wooden beams. This connector is a flat piece of metal which, like all connectors, is provided with holes through which screws can be passed. The simple shape allows the connection of vertical and horizontal wooden beams, as soon as these are additionally supported by other beams. T-shapes are possible with the flat connectors. The cost is about 25 to 90 cents apiece, depending on the dimensions, the thickness and the number of holes.

2. Cross-flat connectors : Cross-flat connectors are used for the same purpose as flat connectors, but only three bars can be connected via a cross-connection. They are also known as T-connectors and similarly designed by the price.

3. Angle connector: with angle connectors, wood can be connected at a right angle. They provide high stability when multiple angle connectors are attached to a main strut that needs to carry multiple beams. The cost is about 30 to 50 cents apiece.

4. Strut Connectors: Strut Connectors are additional reinforcement from right angles. These connectors have a 135 ° angle, which is ideal for 90 ° amplification. They are also easy to use and are not more expensive than the angle connectors.

5. Multi-purpose connectors : Multi-purpose connectors are an alternative to brace and cross connectors that can be angled or multi-angle. That makes them, as the name says, diverse. For this reason, they are significantly more expensive, but can be used well for difficult constructions, if conventional connectors do not fit. They also provide an additional connection through the adjustable end part, if a connection is not sufficient. The price amounts to 1 to 1, 50 euro per piece.

6. Gerber connectors: Gerber connectors are used to connect wooden beams that are intended to be extensions. This means that if you want to connect two wooden beams whose length is five meters to reach ten meters at the end, use Gerber connectors. These are used in two versions:

• aslant
• just

Both have the same purpose, but the oblique version is usually more stable, as they connect the beams at the top and bottom, and not just at the bottom as in the straight tanner connectors. The costs are quite high with 2.50 euro to 4 euro per piece.

7. Sparrow Pile Connectors: Sparrow Pile Connectors combine two types of wooden beams typical of the roof construction, namely rafters and purlins. As these are difficult to connect parts, the unique shape of the anchors is needed. The two wooden beams are also positioned one above the other and connect, only the Sparrenpfettenverbinder work as a kind of angle connector. It is not a sheet metal like the tab anchor, in which the bars are placed, but a sheet metal, which has an angle, whose leaves reach at different heights. About 60 cents to 1.50 are charged for rafter purlin connectors.

8. Equestrian Anchors : these anchors are suitable for connecting wooden beams that lie on top of each other, creating a crossroads as you would need for patio roofs or a pergola. The shape consists of a square base plate with four rectangular side parts, two of which are bent upwards and two downwards. This allows one beam to be positioned on top of the other and connected by nails or screws. The application is particularly simple, since the anchors are selected according to the size of the bars. The cost is 70 cents to 1 euro per piece.

9. Overlap: Overlapping makes exclusive use of the material wood. For this you only need a pencil and a saw in manual or electrical version. In this case, a piece of wood from each beam is cut out, which have exactly the same size. This results in a plug connection, which is fixed only with glue or optionally screws or nails. The connection itself is only possible due to the cut out pieces of wood. This allows you to connect wood without using electrical appliances, which keeps the costs very low.

A big advantage of all these methods is the ease of use. You do not really need a carpenter's knowledge to use the angles, anchors or overlaps, which is particularly suitable for home improvement or hobbyists. In general, the cost and effort are quite low in all variants and the results are satisfactory. Anchors are selected according to the width of the beam, while for connectors you pay attention to the dimensions of the connector itself. The larger the bars you want to connect, the larger the connector must be. Above all, the width of the angle connector should be 50 percent of the beam in order to fix it sufficiently.

Tip: to use the connectors and anchors, you need a drill with a wood drill, suitable screws and a cordless screwdriver. Alternatively, you can use self-tapping screws that are best for connections that do not need to carry too much weight.

Connecting wooden beams: instructions

If you want to connect wooden beams, you can do this either through the connectors and anchors or overfolding. The connection via metal components is fast, easy and always based on the same principle.

Interconnects

The following instructions give an overview of the application of the connectors:

Step 1: Mark the desired connection point on the beam with a pencil. This is especially important for gerber, multipurpose and rafter purlin connectors, as these are not straight but offset to enable their function. Simply hold the connector to the wood and mark the holes.

Step 2: Now use the wood drill to drill holes in the marked areas. You can omit this step as soon as you use self-tapping screws.

Step 3: Now attach the connector to one of the woods and screw it tight. Then fix the other bar. For angle and flat connectors, you must take extra care to ensure that they are properly seated, otherwise the entire result will go wrong, which can lead to wood damage. A spirit level is recommended here.

4th step: Sparrenpfetten- and Gerber connectors should always be used twice, ie on each side. This increases the stability of the connections.

With connectors, numerous projects can be implemented and especially in the home, connectors are often the simplest and fastest way dar. However, anchors are just as advantageous and well suited for carrying elements anchor tabs use the following:

• Place the beam that should support the other beam in front of you
• Now measure the point at which the connection must be made and mark it
• Now you "put" the tab anchor on the beam and fix it with screws or nails
• then mark the position on the second bar
• place the bar with the mark on the anchor
• fix it with screws or nails

You do not need more for this variant to connect wood.

halving

In the case of a transfer, on the other hand, proceed as follows:

Step 1: First mark the place for the overlay. The required dimensions are the width and height of the two wooden beams that you want to connect. The length is completely unimportant here.

2nd step: The width of the wooden beam is marked. Place it either on the other beam and draw the width on the wood or simply use a folding rule. Seen from above, two lines should now be visible on both beams.

Step 3: Now another marker is placed directly in the middle of the wooden beam. For example, if you use a wooden beam that is six centimeters high or six centimeters thick, make a mark at three centimeters for both woods.

Step 4: Now extend the markings from step 2 to the mark of step 3.

Step 5: Now saw the marked part out of the wood of the two beams. After this procedure, you would have to have two pieces of wood of the same size as leftovers and two wooden beams, each with the same size of recess.

Step 6: Now you can decide to glue, nail or screw the connection. If you decide to glue, apply strong wood glue to the joints.

Step 7: Connect the wooden beams over the recesses. If you have measured correctly and sawed clean, the parts sit like a glove and do not stand over. Press the wood slightly if you use glue. If you are screwing or nailing, you must now apply them to complete the project.