Durability of timber structures in agricultural and livestock buildings

This paper aims to determine the factors that most strongly influence the durability of timber members in agricultural and livestock buildings. A sample of 133 agricultural and livestock buildings was selected, including barns for housing different livestock species and other agricultural buildings such as storage buildings or hay barns. Every building was inspected in order to gather information about the timber structure. The following variables were analysed: timber species, service life of the structure, features, treatment, structural condition, type of product (round or sawn timber), structural system, joint design and service conditions (end use of the building, environmental conditions, ventilation). Timber durability was assessed based on the structural condition of the buildings, and the influence of the other variables on the condition of the structure was analysed. Data analysis revealed that the structural condition of the buildings studied was not affected by age or species. The factors with the strongest influence on the structural condition of the buildings were wood treatment, ventilation and the proper design of joints between timber members. Therefore, the durability of timber structures in the buildings studied was dependent on the construction practice, including the previous treatment of wood and the proper maintenance of the structure (ventilation, cleaning).