Guaranteed Curb Appeal
Cedar shingles have that old-world-meets-modern feel that few roofing materials can replicate. A wood shingle roof increases the value of your house, which serves as both an aesthetic asset and a long term investment.

Environmental Responsibility
When you choose FSC certified cedar roof shingles, you can rest assured that your material was harvested ethically. Every step leading to the cedar shingles was accomplished in a way that supports the integrity of the forest and its ecosystem.

Installing cedar roof shingles will create a renewable resource which improves your home’s sustainability performance. The natural insulating qualities of cedar will reduce the amount of energy needed to warm or cool your home.

Longevity
Because your home is one of your most valuable investments, a cedar roof  will guarantee long-term performance Cedar is naturally insect-resistant, which enables it to maintain its exceptional quality for over 50 years. Minor periodic maintenance measures can stretch the lifespan of your wood shingles even longer. This lightweight, yet durable, material is ideal for areas that have variable weather since cedar can withstand wind, rain, snow, and climatic changes.

AltruWood is proud to offer FSC certified wood that will sustainably provide beauty and secure longevity for your home Get in touch today to turn your roof into a beacon of curb appeal, longevity, and environmental responsibility!

For timeless appeal matched by rugged durability, there’s no better material than cedar shake. Western red cedar offers subtle color variations that make an instant impression without overpowering the overall aesthetic of the home. Beloved by homeowners for its durability, cedar shake is known to withstand high winds, salty air, and heavy rainfall. Its naturally weathered look builds an authentic character that goes with any architectural style. Cedar shakes were traditionally hand-cut, so that no piece is quite the same. You will find subtle nuances in shape, size, and color. The aesthetic hails back to the style of seaside cottages and country homes, offering durable protection from the elements and a striking finishing touch for any property.

If you’re seeking a wood shingle roof that is more clean-cut, red cedar shingles offer an ideal solution. Like cedar shake, this option features an abundance of natural tannins and oils that provide unparalleled resilience to the elements. These shingles are precisely cut to ensure a uniform shape and size, providing an elegant accent for any home. You also have the option to purchase shingles for roofs that are pre-stained, which can ease the installation process.

Altruwood is proud to offer FSC-certified options for wood roofs that are durable, beautiful, and long-lasting. Make an investment in your home and marry function and beauty with our high-quality materials!

It turns out, one of AltruWood’s most popular and diversely-used products, Western Red Cedar, is available in roof shakes that create attractive, long-lasting, and sustainable roof for any building.

Long-Lasting

How is one wood product able to fit the bill in so many ways? For starters, Western Red Cedar is naturally rot-resistant. The fibers of Western Red Cedar are high in natural oils and preservatives known as thujaplicins that provide innate protection against decay and insect damage–a crucial consideration for a product that’s standing between you and the elements. When installed correctly, Western Red Cedar shakes have a life expectancy of up to 40 years–that’s a decade longer than a comparable roof made of asphalt shingles.

Sustainable

Western Red Cedar shakes also pack a bigger punch in the realm of sustainability than their counterparts made from petroleum-based roofing products, for several reasons. These shakes are actually an innovative use of manufacturing byproduct. When Western Red Cedar is milled into large planks for use as siding or decking, the shakes are created from the scraps and waste products left behind. Any shavings or small pieces left after the shakes are created is put to further use as hog fuel or biomass. The biomass is used to generate electricity to power the sawmills, bringing the process full circle for a virtually waste-free production cycle. And when your Western Red Cedar shakes do eventually need to be replaced, you can rest assured that they are made from a natural, organic material that will eventually break down over time.

Attractive and Traditional

People have been choosing Western Red Cedar shakes for hundreds of years, and beyond their durability, there’s another reason why: they just look good. New, cedar shakes have a fresh, natural look and the incomparable aroma of real cedar. Over time, they weather to a beautiful, silvery gray. Shakes differ from their machine-cut cousins, shingles, in that they are traditionally hand split and will vary slightly in size and shape, giving them a truly unique charm.

Because they stand up so well to wind, water and air, cedar shakes have become known as the traditional material for a beach house, but they make an attractive statement on homes in any location. If you own an older home or building and are looking for a traditional roofing material, look no further than Western Red Cedar shakes. In Scituate, Massachusetts, for instance, a historically significant water tower was re-shingled in cedar from top to bottom. Preservationists interested in saving the 240-foot structure chose Western Red Cedar shakes for the project as the most historically accurate material.

Whether your home is old and historic or new and modern, consider cedar shakes from AltruWood for your roof. They’re a sustainable choice that will keep your home dry and your house beautiful for years to come.

We’ve also been Facebooking and Tweeting for some time now. Every once in a while we like to highlight the things we’ve been talking about on our social media sites. Especially when we think it’s worth further notice. Let’s take a stroll down memory lane for the month of March to see what’s been on our minds.

Buildings for sale at one measly Euro for residents to turn into a self-styled home. There have got to be similar deals in the U.S. right now. Know of any in your neck of the woods?

Creating a wall from reclaimed wood from Apartment Therapy. And we happen to know where you can get some reclaimed wood!

There’s lots of talk of prefab housing these days, but this advice seems to lend itself to homes both prefab and not.

Tiny spaces have also been all over the place lately, but this may be our favorite recently.

A skyscraper made of wood. It’s seems a retro idea, but what’s old is new again given how steel currently rules most cities.

On Facebook, we put forth this question: To glue down solids on concrete or not? This is something we are asked about frequently.

We were featured in Architect Magazine in March. Heading up a section on reclaimed wood, a pretty picture of one of our hand hewn beams.

Taking a step away from wood for a second…Have you ever seen leather floors? It was one of our crazy flooring pics of the day on Facebook.

For music lovers who also appreciate good design comes the ReAcoustic iPhone and iPad dock. Yes, it’s made from wood!

Without further ado, projects we hope will inspire your next project:

Last fall, UC Davis opened West Village, currently the largest net-zero development in the U.S. We look forward to seeing more, and larger similar developments in the years to come:
Higher Cred

This home is truly unique, the wood used is gorgeous, and — to tick a third box — it was built with sustainability in mind:
Unique Design Near the Great Barrier Reef

We loved the Douglas fir ceiling in this home. It perfectly demonstrates the natural good looks of one of the Pacific Northwest’s great beauties. If you’re looking for something similar, call us!
Open House

Here, a thoughtful article on recent architectural preservation projects:
Restoration Redux

This is a great re-use of barn siding:
Abandoned Stable Becomes Luxury, Off-Grid Home

It’s not often you see a home with this much exposed wood. Here is a stunning demonstration:
Boathouse and Seasonal Residence

Think of all the ways this traveling structure can be used:
House Arc

It’s never too early to start learning about green building!
Pretty Preschool

A review of retro-fitting and the value historic buildings to the environment:
Why Historic Buildings Matter

And we can’t resist this story about one woman fighting against deforestation so that she and her fellow villagers can cook dinner:
Lady Tarzan

Reclaimed wood often gets tagged as worn-out. Nothing could be further from the truth. Much of today’s reclaimed wood kept structures together for 100 years before being torn out for discard or reuse. Reclaimed wood is not worn if it still performs, which is why wood vendors deconstruct old warehouses and barns in the first place.

FSC® certified wood may not be the best choice for a renovation or new construction project for several reasons. Budget constraints, extensive supply needs, and reusing preferences are three common reasons. So, reusing wood such as reclaimed western red cedar is ideal. However, reclaimed cedar doesn’t have to look old, which is important when new-looking wood is needed to meet aesthetic preferences and design builds.

Reclaimed cedar can be repurposed into new-looking lumber that’s as stable as, well, 100-year-old wood. There are extra steps and time involved to repurpose reclaimed cedar to fit your project needs. These steps may include: Cutting down planks for fitting purposes, re-sanding to remove surface blemishes, and refinishing to polish off the job.

AltruWood recommends the following when shopping for reclaimed western red cedar slated for repurposing and reusing projects:

- Ask for professional grading when reclaimed cedar is slated for structural purposes.
- Ask your vendor for their reclaimed wood buyer’s guide.
- Ask about warping, rot, splitting, and loose knots, characteristics that can affect reclaimed wood’s structural integrity.
- Ask to see the wood or pictures of it, if possible, before purchasing.

It’s worth mentioning that using reclaimed western red cedar keeps our forests healthy. You help sustain our forests be decreasing the demand for new wood, including new FSC® certified wood products.

Check out Altruwood’s blog for more of the wood-stuff, including FSC® Certified & Reclaimed Western Red Cedar and FSC® Certified Wood: Recycled and reclaimed wood products.

- Nicole Morales

Western red cedar is a popular choice for siding, shingles, and shakes. Western red cedar is lightweight, naturally resistant to moisture and decay, and resin-free. The same properties that help make western red cedar resist moisture and decay also keeps the bugs away – this natural preservative gets stronger with age.

Natural properties aside, it’s still important to prime and pre-stain western red cedar for exterior applications, especially if you want it to weather naturally into grey. Priming and staining sustains the wood’s performance and maintains its natural properties.

Priming western red cedar

Priming western red cedar helps the wood’s natural properties stay put. Without a primer, tannins from within the cedar mix with moisture and seep to the wood’s surface, naturally staining and discoloring the surface. This is called extractive bleeding, a naturally occurring process that does not affect western red cedar’s properties. However, extractive bleeding does affect the properties of finish-stains and paints. These extractive bleeding stains can discolor some paints and compromise the intended performance of finish-stains.

Primer prevents this from happening – be sure to use a western red cedar stain-blocking primer or one formulated for extractive bleeding. Ask about Altruwood’s factory-priming option when ordering FSC® certified cedar siding, shakes, and shingles.

Staining western red cedar

After priming western red cedar siding, shingles, and shakes, you can stain the wood’s surface. A stain protects the cedar from weathering, discoloration, and moisture damage.

Walk into any home do-it-yourself paint and supply store and you’re bound to be inundated with finish-stains. These products provide protection and also dress up the wood’s surface, enhancing cedar’s natural colors and textures or changing its face altogether. Three common choices are solid-color stains, semi-transparent stains, and transparent stains.

Solid-color stains act as a barrier between the elements and the wood, forming a film around the wood. Semi-transparent stains are ideal when you want to maintain western red cedar’s natural finish without weathering. Semi-transparent stains penetrate the wood’s pores, to varying degrees based on product. Transparent stains enhance the wood’s color and act as an invisible protectant, especially transparent stains with fungicide.

Read and follow the manufacturer’s label to prevent unwanted surprises, such as coat discoloration and cracks, down the road.

Things to think about

The best time to prime and stain western red cedar siding, shingles, and shakes is before installation. Waiting to prime and stain western red cedar after installation is risky and can compromise the performance of paints and stains, especially when overlap is a part of installation. You may not see it, but weathering happens immediately – even the smallest amount of sun, wind, rain, and moisture weathers wood. The Western Red Cedar Lumber Association (WRCLA) says, “the longer the period the Western Red Cedar is left to weather, the more rapidly the finish may fail,” because you are left with a degraded surface that will need to be refinished – sanded, brushed, and washed – before a finish is applied. The WRCLA recommends finishing western red cedar within two weeks of installation.

It’s a dirty job, but applying primer and stain to all sides of western red cedar siding, shingles, and shakes increases the performances of the primer and stain.

A note about paint: Paint provides good protection against natural weathering, discoloration, and water damage, but it’s not a preservative.

- Nicole Morales

Not so fast, friend. There’s actually a lot more to cedar than you might realize. So if you’re a novice in the ways of this aromatic wood, here’s a little bit of Cedar 101 for you.

Western red cedar is botanically known as Thuja plicata, and it’s a softwood native to the western U.S. and Canada, known for its beauty, extreme durability, and natural preservatives. Incense cedar, Port Orford Cedar, and Alaskan (Yellow) Cedar are other cedar varieties that you might see at a lumber supplier. Western red cedar, however, is the largest and most abundant cedar variety available in the U.S. and Canada. It’s great for cedar siding, cedar decking, cedar shakes and cedar shingles.

Even once you’ve made up your mind that you want Thuja plicata, there are still a few things you should know. This species grows primarily in British Columbia, with some found in western Washington and Oregon. However, some Western red cedar grows on the interior slopes of the Rocky Mountains, in Idaho, Montana, and parts of Alberta and eastern British Columbia.

The cedar trees grown on these inland, higher-elevation forests are still Thuja plicata — the same botanical species as the coastal-grown Western red cedar — but there are differences in the wood. So much so that it’s sometimes processed and graded differently. The coast species will normally be labeled “Western Red Cedar,” the other labeled “Inland Red Cedar.”

Paul Mackie is the western area manager of the Western Red Cedar Lumber Association, but he also answers to “Mr. Cedar” for his ability to answer cedar questions—you can check out his skills yourself on the Western Red Cedar Lumber Association website’s “Ask Mr. Cedar” feature. Mackie said that while there is no botanical distinction between the trees grown inland and trees grown on the coast, buyers will see a difference if they examine both Inland Red Cedar and Western Red Cedar.

“The inland fiber is different from the coastal materials,” he said. “The inland fiber will be lighter, striped in appearance, and the percentage of clear is much less.”

AltruWood sources its Western red cedar from trees grown in the coastal climate. These giants grow in rainy forests, located anywhere from sea level to about 4,000 to 5,000 feet in altitude, and in warmer, wetter conditions than the cedars grown on the other side of the mountains. Coastal western red cedars can grow up to 200 feet tall and more than 10 feet in diameter. They also offer a more varied appearance.

“In the coastal fiber, you’ll see a wide range of color occurring in the tree,” Mackie said. “You’ll have everything from a dark chocolate to a light straw color, and all those colors might occur within the same piece.”

The coastal cedars also tend to have a higher percentage of “clear” grade material—the high-quality, vertical-grain wood that the best quality siding, decking, and timbers are made from.

In the higher altitude and drier climate, inland red cedar just doesn’t get as big. If you need massive, large-diameter beams or timbers, they’re going to have to come from coastal cedars.

These smaller inland red cedar trees are most often processed into different products than coastal red cedar, Mackie said – smaller dimensional lumber or split rail fencing, for example.

“There’s not nearly as wide of a product range for inland cedar,” Mackie said.

Another difference is the way it’s processed and graded. There are several different lumber grading agencies in the U.S. and Canada, each with its own set of names for different grades.

In general, cedar is usually sorted into “clear” and “knotty” grades. The best and most blemish-free wood is referred to as “clear,” and within the “clear” designation, lumber is further sorted out by just how free from defects it is, with A being the highest and D being the lowest.

According to Mackie, inland red cedar has a lower percentage of clear lumber — so small that most producers of inland red cedar don’t have enough of the highest grade to send to market. Instead, the highest you’ll most likely find is “D and better clears” for inland red cedar. Western red cedar producers have enough volume to offer a wide range of clear grades, all the way up to the very highest grades of clear vertical-grain heart.

Another thing to keep in mind is which grading system different mills are using.

“Many of the coastal mills only process cedar,” Mackie said. “The inland mills might do a run of ponderosa pine, then of white pine, then of cedar.”

Because cedar is just one of many products they offer, their wood is not normally graded according to cedar-specific rules. Mackie said that in the “knotty” grades, inland cedar is often graded according to Ponderosa Pine grade rules. It all depends on where the wood was milled and what set of standards that particular producer was using. That means a “knotty” grade inland red cedar was not necessarily graded according to the same standards as a “knotty” grade coastal cedar.

So, just because two pieces of wood both look like cedar, smell like cedar, and may even be botanical brothers, doesn’t mean that they are identical.

Know your source, and you’ll be sure of getting exactly the kind of cedar you’re looking for.

Many thanks to Mr. Cedar for his time and knowledge!

- Jennifer Rouse

Image source: rachel_thecat, http://www.flickr.com/photos/23209605@N00/542151129/

Climate
Where in the world will your western red cedar go? In the rainy Northwest? Under the sun in the Southwest? In the hot and humid South? You may sense what we’re getting at here: climate is an important factor when buying western red cedar, or really any wood.

Temperature, moisture, aridness, and even wind all affect the performance of wood over time. Cedar shakes and cedar shingles, though stable, do weather naturally over time. Weathered western red cedar turns grey, more rapidly when installed unfinished. A classic and charming beach front house comes to mind with cedar shakes and shingles that take on a puzzle-like, grey piece here, grey piece there, exterior. In drier climates, unfinished western red cedar takes on a shiny silver appearance. Natural finishing aside, western red cedar is susceptible to premature weathering from water stains, dirt, and mildew. Routine washing and cleaning is important.

To preserve the warm reds and golden hues of newly installed western red cedar, apply a finish application that meets the needs of your cedar’s end use. We won’t lie, it’s tedious and time-consuming to apply a finish the first time around, so consider ordering pre-finished siding, shingles, and shakes to make installation easier. Then there’s the routine maintenance required to keep the color in the cedar. And it’s the climate that determines how fast your cedar weathers, what color grey it’ll weather to, and just how routine your maintenance will become–all things to think about.

Grain
Grain is good. Grain is great. And grain determines your western red cedar’s fate. And for the most part, western red cedar offers long lasting performance, thanks to its roots – its long lean trunk generally produces long straight grain lumber.

When knots are present in the lumber, they are tight and do not affect the performance of western red cedar – many manufacturers and vendors sell the highest knot grades – select tight knot – to consumers who desire a knotty, more rustic look. Always ask about the grade to ensure it meets your project’s requirements and end-use.

Consider the grain pattern you need to meet your project guidelines and end-appearance. Opt for clear vertical grain – the grain to withstand the elements – for exterior projects, such as siding, shingle, and shakes. AltruWood offers Premium, Number 1, Number, 2, and Number 3 western red cedar grades.

Type
Like grain pattern, the type of western red cedar siding, shingles, and shakes is important. Take siding, for example, which comes in a variety of types: bevel, lap, and the vertically-placed board-and-batten sidings. Each of these siding types has their own defining widths and thicknesses – with a range of sizes specific to each type – used to achieve a certain aesthetic.

Bevel siding is thicker at the butt, adding surface dimension with its shadow lines (this thickness helps protect buildings from the elements). The thickness of board-and-batten siding, on the other hand, stays the same throughout the length of the board, creating this siding type’s signature channeling effect.

Note that the lumber industry uses the term nominal when it measures lumber. The nominal size is really the actual size rounded up. For instance, a 1 inch nominal thickness has an actual thickness of 7/8 of an inch.

- Nicole Morales

Because, unless you’re a lumber professional, “mixed grain” sounds like a loaf of bread, and “tight knot” sounds like a complaint to take to your masseuse.

Keep reading. We’ll help you out.

First of all, you’ve taken a step in the right direction by choosing western red cedar for your project. Western red cedar is known as one of the most durable of woods. Within its fibers, naturally-occurring chemical compounds give it unique preservative qualities. It’s resistant to rot and decay, and it has tight growth rings that give the wood extra durability.

When it comes to purchasing western red cedar, your lumber supplier will offer a variety of different grades, depending on what you’re using it for. If it’s for a load-bearing wall or timber, for example, it may be graded by “structural” standards, whereas if it’s paneling, siding, or trim, it will be graded based on “appearance” grades. That doesn’t mean appearance-graded products aren’t tough–it just means that they’re also judged based on how they look.

Clear vertical grain is generally considered to be the highest grade wood. “Clear” means that the wood is virtually free from knots or other imperfections. “Vertical grain” refers to the way the Western red cedar board was cut. Vertical grain is cut perpendicular to the tree’s annual growth rings.

According to the Western Wood Products Association, a national lumber grading agency, vertical grain is the most durable choice. Why? For one thing, vertical grain holds its shape well, and as it expands and contracts naturally in response to moisture in the air, it will do so evenly. It won’t warp or bend. It also stains more evenly and has a clean, elegant look, without a lot of variation in tone.

Mixed grain is another option when it comes to purchasing western red cedar lumber. This means that when you shipment of wood comes, it will include a mixture of different types of boards. Some of it will be vertical grain (you might see it referred to just by initials: VG); and some of it will be flat grain (FG). Flat grain means that when the board was originally cut from a log, it was run through the saw the other way–parallel to the annual growth rings of the tree. Instead of thin vertical lines running up and down the length of the board, you’ll see a wavy pattern of wood grain, also sometimes called cathedral grain.

Within the mixed grain (MG) designation, you run into still more letters, such as A, B, C, and so on. In general, the closer the letter is to the beginning of the alphabet the better the appearance grade of western red cedar. “A” grade cedar has a few more imperfections than clear vertical grain. It allows up to two small, tight knots in a board, but that doesn’t detract from its structural stability. Mixed grain shipments of A and B quality are still going to be a highly durable material, but they won’t have quite the same clean, perfect appearance or dimensional stability of clear vertical grain.

Other varieties of cedar product include Select Tight Knot (STK) and Knotty. Again, these words refer more to appearance than to strength. Some builders and designers prefer the more rustic, casual look of western red cedar that displays natural knots and variations within the wood. The knots in these grade are referred to as “sound and tight”–they’re not going to fall out and leave you with a hole in your cedar siding or cedar paneling.

If you’ve got the budget for clear vertical grain western red cedar, then go for it–it’s a beautiful material that meets the highest quality standards. If you want something that’s still durable but more affordable, then consider mixed grain, select Tight Knot and/or Knotty. These tend to be more economical than the highest-quality grades, but they still provide all the benefits of western red cedar–beautiful color, wonderful natural aroma, and superb durability.

- Jennifer Rouse