Pine lumber is a softwood that is commonly used for flooring, furniture, and construction. Pine trees are abundant and grow faster than deciduous trees, making them a more renewable resource. Different types of pine have various uses, such as Southern yellow pine for flooring and red cedar for outdoor furniture.
Pine lumber is pine that has been cut into planks and so called dimensional lumber. Planks are most commonly used for flooring, shelves, and furniture. Dimensional lumber – cuts eight feet (2.44 m) to 12 feet (3.66 m) and longer, are characterized by their relatively small dimensions in width and depth, the most common of which are two inches (5.08 cm) by four inches (10.16 cm), usually called two by four, or 2×4. Dimensional lumber is used extensively in the framing of homes and other structures as well as for the interior walls of larger buildings, although aluminum framing materials are gaining popularity. Dimensional pine lumber is also popular for building decks on the outside of homes.
About 115 different species make up the general group of trees called pine. These are conifers, that is, their seeds are stored in cones before being distributed. Also, their leaves are very thin, often shaped like needles, and they don’t fall off the tree in autumn. Trees that aren’t pines — that is, trees with broad leaves that usually lose their color and fall off the tree in the fall — are called deciduous. The wood of most pines is easier to cut and less dense than that of most deciduous trees, leading to softwoods being labeled softwoods and hardwoods being called hardwoods.
In addition to being relatively softer, and therefore easier to cut and mill, pine trees generally grow faster and are more abundant in the world’s forests, making them a more renewable resource than most deciduous trees. This makes pine lumber very popular for construction applications because it is less expensive than hardwood lumber.
Pine lumber is primarily used for framing residential buildings and small commercial structures. Dimensional lumber is used for this purpose, with 2×4 used for the studs supporting the walls and wider pieces, such as 2×10 (5.08cm x 50.8cm) and 2×12 (5.08cm x 60.96cm) used as joists and beams to support the floors and roofs. There are many other carpentry uses for pine lumber, such as moldings, door and window frames, paneling, and roofing.
Pine lumber is particularly versatile. Southern yellow pine, for example, has beautiful color and grain and is used extensively in North America for flooring. Red cedar, with a natural resistance to rot and insects, is used to make outdoor furniture such as Adirondack chairs; left untreated, it develops a silvery gray color after a relatively short time outdoors. Red cedar is also popular as decking, as is redwood, although some tropical hardwoods are sometimes used for the decking itself, along with pressure-treated pine lumber such as Douglas fir, spruce, or pine lumber. white pine used for the frame and support structure. Knotty pine, which is not a species, but a condition common to most varieties, is often prized for its beauty in furniture.
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