2x4 Quality Tips

Okay, have you got a project coming up soon, you know, inside that maybe you're going to

remodel your basement, whatever it might be, you're probably going to have to buy some 2x4s

Okay, well, do you just go down to the lumber yard and buy any particular one

Well, there's certain things I want you to look at because when you buy 2x4s, you have

to buy the certain ones so that they work for different parts of the job. Now, first you need to realize that 2x4s don't measure 2 inches by 4 inches

They measure an inch and a half thick by three and a half inches wide

The next thing I want you to look at is we're going to check for crown and we're going to check for bow

Now what a crown is, a crown is when you look down the edge of the 2x4 and if it has a hump

in it, it has a crown. A bow is when you look down the side of the 2x4 to see if it also has a bend in it

Now it's okay to buy crown studs and bowed studs, but you also want a mix of ones that are

straight You going to need straight 2x4s when you start to frame in doorways and when you work with corners You like those to be perfectly straight if at all possible Now if you want to make sure that the 2x4s aren going to twist try to look at the end grain

What you're looking for is to see if you can find what we call vertical grain where the 2x4 was cut out of the center of the tree

Those 2x4s generally are the most stable. Now, some 2x4s also have defects on the edge

It's called the Wayne, where parts of the edge of the woods missing. Well, those studs will work fine for what we call the packing studs alongside a doorframe

where it's not perfect, it's not critical to have a solid corner

So don't worry. You can buy some 2x4s that don't look the best, and they're going to work on your job

Okay, an assortment of 2x4s just like this will work on most jobs

So go ahead and pick and choose wisely, get some straight ones, get some crooked ones

You'll use them all up, I'm sure. improvement tips go to ask the builder.com