American Wood Council FAQ Page

Frequently Asked Questions

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What is the American Wood Council (AWC)?
Where can I find information for nominal 1", 1-1/4", and 1-1/2" stress-rated boards?
Where can I find additional background information for adhesives used in wood construction?
What is the American Institute of Architects (AIA)?
What is the American Institute of Building Design (AIBD)?
What is the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE)?

What is the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE)?

Where can I find publications of the American Wood Council?
Where can I find bar code guidelines?
What are the connection requirements for built-up beams?
Where can I find information on flitch beams or composite wood members?
What do the column headers for bolt design value tables 11 A-K in the NDS mean?
Where can I find more information on bowstring trusses?
What is the Building Seismic Safety Council (BSSC)?
What is CABO?
Are there deflection limits for cantilevers?
Where do I find more information about wood preservatively treated with Chromated Copper Arsenic (CCA)?
Construction Cost Saver Number 1: Pre-Planning: Key to Savings
Construction Cost Saver Number 2: Use of 24', 28', and 32' house depths (T32)
Construction Cost Saver Number 3: Use of Full Span Capability of Lumber Joists (T33)
Construction Cost Saver Number 4: Exterior Wall Framing (T34)
Construction Cost Saver Number 5: The All-Weather Wood Foundation (PWF) (T35)
Construction Cost Saver Number 6: Keeping Energy Saving Construction Costs Down (T36)
What is the thermal conductivity of wood and how does it compare to other materials?
Where can I find resistance values, connection details and other general information for bolts, lag screws, wood screws, nails, split ring and shear plate connections?
Where can I find manufacturers of prefabricated wood connectors?
Where can I obtain information on construction tolerances?
Where can I find information on wall bracing requirements at corners with openings?
What is creep and how can I address it?
Where can I find design values for cypress for structural use?
Where can I find information on flame spread performance of wood products?
Where can I find information on the design of fire-resistive exposed wood members?
Where can I find information on fire rated wood floor and wall assemblies?
Where can I find information on the Component Additive Method (CAM) for calculating and demonstrating assembly fire endurance?
Where can I find information on post-frame buildings?
Where do I find decking design values?
Where can I find design values for lumber and glued laminated timber?
Do you have information on toe-nail connections?

Where can I learn more about Design Professional Membership?
How do I calculate a capacity for lumber sheathing or heavy timber decking diaphragms?
Where can I find information on dowel bearing strength for plywood and OSB?
Is there any criteria as to length of building with wood products in which a thermal expansion joint is required?
Where can I find more information on the benefits of wood construction?
Where can I find information on federal specifications and standards for lumber and wood products?
Can finger jointed lumber (also known as end-jointed and edge-glued) be substituted for sawn lumber?
For one-hour fire-rated wood joist assemblies, how do I compensate using a 2x8 rather than a 2x10?
Where can I find information on building construction and fire insurance costs?
Where can I get information on firestopping and draftstopping for concealed spaces?
Where can I obtain info on fire tests related to post-frame building design?
What are the building codes in Florida?
How are the floor joist span tables calculated and used?
Where can I find information on formwork design?

Where can I find information on fiber reinforced plastic (FRP) wood composites?
How does fire retardant treatment (FRT) affect fire endurance?

Does fire retardant treatment (FRT) make wood non-combustible?

Where can I find publications on fire retardant treated wood?
Where can I find design values, span tables, allowable load tables and other information for structural glued-laminated timber?
Where can I find information on glulam adhesive manufacturers?
Where can I find information on Lumber Grade Rules and Grade Stamps?
Where to find information on green building design?
How does the group action factor apply to connections? And Does the group action factor, C_g, apply to sill plates and ledgers?
Where do I find information on wood guardrails used in highway/bridge construction?
What are the design criteria such as deflection limits and strength for wood guard rails or hand rails?
Where can I find more information about past NDS editions?
What is BOCA, ICBO, and SBCCI?
And what are the UBC, NBC, and SBC?

What are I-joists and where can I find them?
Where can I find background on In-Grade Testing for the NDS supplement?
What is the IRC?
Are self-tapping lag screws covered by provisions in the NDS?
What is the difference between full diameter and reduced diameter body lag screws (also known as lag bolts)?
Where can I find information about structural lumber grades vs. appearance characteristics?
What is the load duration factor (C_D)?
Where can I find information on log structures?
What is LRFD?
Where can I find the Errata of the LRFD manual?
For Load and Resistance Factor Designs (LRFD), many of the design examples and much of the discussion focuses on elastic stress analysis. I thought that one of the benefits of LRFD was its ability to accommodate plastic (non-linear) analysis. Why don't you cover plastic design considerations in your standards?
What's the difference between LRFD and ASD?
Where can I find design values, span tables, allowable load tables, and other information for structural softwood and hardwood lumber?
What is the MEC or Model Energy Code?
How do I convert to metric lumber sizes?
Where can I find information on Metric Planning?
Where can I find information on Mold and Moisture in Homes?
Where can I find information on mold and mildew of structural wood members?
Where can I find referenced standards for dimensional tolerances for nails?
What are naturally durable species?
What is NDS?
Where can I find the NDS commentary?

What is the NDS supplement and why would I need it?
Where can I find more information on all of the NDS references?
Where can I find more information about the NDS reference, Square and Hex Bolts and Screws, Inch Series?
What are the safety factors (factor of safety) that are used to derive allowable design values for wood fasteners, lumber design values, etc. referenced in the NDS?
Is NDS available in electronic format?
What is the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)?

What is the National Institute of Building Sciences (NIBS)?
Where can I find information on noise barriers?
How do I design for notches in a bending member?
What is the National Research Council (NRC)?

Can Oriented Strand Board (OSB) be used interchangeably with plywood?
Where can I find information on painting and finishing wood products?
Where can I find information on particleboard/Medium Density Fireboard (MDF)?
What is pickle wood or pickled wood?
What is the difference between plastic lumber and wood-plastic composites?
Where can I obtain information on plywood gusset (gussett) plate connections and plywood gusset trusses?

Where can I obtain information on designing post frame structures (sometimes referred to as pole buildings or pole barns)?
What are typical retention levels for treated wood preservatives used in construction?
Does pressure-treated lumber have the same design values as lumber that is not pressure-treated?
What publications do you have on Permanent Wood Foundations?
Can a conventional (solid) concrete footing take the place of the gravel footing for permanent wood foundations (PWF)?
Where can I find information on radon reduction?
What are the thermal R-values for wood?
Where can I find technical papers on Timber Retaining Walls?
Where can I find information on structural composite lumber (SCL)?
Are there design values for shear perpendicular to grain?
Why did shear parallel to grain (horizontal shear) design values increase in the 2001 NDS?
Where can I find information on wood shrinkage?
Where can I find information on installing wood and siding over foam sheathing?
What are the grade rules for softwood?
What is the difference between southern pine and southern pine-misiones Argentina?
Are there span tables for cantilever beams?
Where can I get span tables and span table information for lumber?
Where can I get decking span tables?
What is the difference between SPF and SPF south?
If there's an existing structure where the MC<19% for southern pine timbers, could the designer back out the wet service adjustment from the NDS published design values in table 4D?
Where can I find design information for staples and/or pneumatic nails?
Where can I find technical papers by AWC?
Where can I find information about preservation against termites?
Where can I find information on timber bridge design and construction?
What is timber frame construction and where do I find more information about it?

Where can I find information on Timber Poles and Piles?
Where can I find suppliers of timber rivets?
Where can I find information on unprotected wood and steel joists exposed to fire?
How do I calculate the fire resistance of exposed wood members?
Where can I find information about fire tests of laminated wood and rolled steel beams?
Where can I find information on low-profile wood floor systems?
Where can I find information on the structural performance of a house?
Where can I find information comparing wood-frame and masonry structures?
Where can I find information on the heat release rates of construction assemblies?
Where can I find design values for tropical hardwoods or imported species?
Where can I find information on bracing of metal plate connected wood trusses?
Where can I find information concerning metal plate connected wood trusses?
What is the "vented airspace"?
Where can I find criteria for vibration control for wood members?
Where can I find the video, House - Where, Why & How: a child's Guide to the Origins of Everyday Stuff?
Where can I find information on conventional wood frame construction?
Where can I find information on tongue and groove roof decking?
Where can I find information on plank and beam framing for residential buildings?
Where can I find information on heavy timber construction?
Where can I find information on designing wood frame structures for performance?
Where can I find more information on the Wood Frame Construction Manual (WFCM)?
How does the WFCM address floor plan offsets that result from wall extensions and recesses?
What are the design manuals for wood construction in high wind areas?
Where can I get information concerning the Wood Design Awards Program?
Where can I find information on wood dowel (wood peg) design values?
Where can I find information on evaluation, maintenance and repair of existing structures?
Where can I get help and information on WoodWorks?
Where can I find Wood Structural Design Data (WSDD)?
How do I use the beam load tables in WSDD?
How do I use the simple solid and space columns tables in WSDD?
Where can I find out about the Wood Solutions Fair (WSF)?
Where can I find information about recycling wood products or using reclaimed lumber?

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