Residential frame construction in Tradition, Port St. Lucie

Choosing the right framing for your new home development in Tradition, Port Saint Lucie

One of the first and most crucial decisions you’ll face when building your new house is choosing the appropriate type of framing. The frame provides the structural support for the rest of your home. Hence, it must be durable, strong, and resistant to the weather hardships in Florida’s shoreline, including tropical storms and hurricanes. With the help of expert residential construction companies, you don’t have to decide alone.

Seeking professional advice from home builders will help you fully understand the advantages and cons of each framing option and make an informed decision that suits your needs and budget. Thus, although it’s always a good idea to research the most common framing options, don’t hesitate to contact professionals and discuss your thoughts before moving on to construction.

Pros and cons of the 3 most common framings for residential contractors

Wood framing

Wood frames are the most common in custom home construction across the United States because they are economical, resistant to extreme weather changes, and provide a comfortable environment for the building’s occupants. Wood framing is also recyclable and absorbs carbon, compensating for greenhouse emissions during construction.

The two most common types of wood framing are:

1. Platform framing (most known as stick framing):contractors frame each floor separately using studs or support posts running from the bottom to the top. Hence, it requires shorter lumbers to frame the house, making framing work easier for residential construction companies.

2. Post and beam framing: Like timber framing, it uses large support posts and beams to build the structure and secure it with metal plates instead of mortise and tenon joints.

Wood is a highly versatile material and imposes virtually no limitations regarding architectural design, one of the reasons why residential contractors and designers prefer it over other materials. It’s light. This way, erecting the home doesn’t require cranes and other heavy equipment, reducing the project’s costs.

However, wood is susceptible to fungus, rot, and termites and can warp over time in places with high humidity; thus, special treatment is required to prevent these issues. Likewise, wood framing is less fire-resistant than other options like concrete.

Steel framing

Steel frames are generally costlier than wood and concrete. Still, they pay it off with their remarkable durability and fire and water resistance, which have made them popular among commercial contractors and home builders. Likewise, steel is less susceptible to earthquakes and high-speed winds.

Although steel can weigh more than wood and complicate its transportation, nowadays, you can find pre-engineered steel kits to facilitate the construction and transport of your new home development. However, if you build the frame from scratch, you must find qualified residential construction companies to measure the steel beams and studs to avoid sending them back to the factory due to measurement mistakes.

Concrete framing

Concrete is very common in construction, especially for foundations and upper floors. It is also used as a framing material in custom home construction projects due to its remarkable strength and resistance against weather hardships. Unlike wood, concrete has a class A fire resistance, meaning it is one of the most fire-resistant building materials available; it’s also resistant to termites and high moisture levels. Hence, you won’t deal with warping structures.

Still, concrete frames often use wood or steel bars to reinforce the beams and studs. Concrete framing also has two standard methods: concrete block or traditional frame.

1. Concrete block in mansory: As the name suggests, residential contractors used concrete blocks to build a masonry frame similar to the one crafted with brick or stone. Thus, the blocks are plastered together using mortar to build the walls, supporting beams, and studs.

2. Traditional framing: This method is similar to post and beam framing, using large columns, beams, and flat concrete planes called slabs to erect the home’s skeleton, often cast on the job’s site. Thus, slabs are placed between columns and reinforced with beams for support.

On the downside, concrete is a heavy and sturdy material that lacks the flexibility of steel and wood so it can limit architectural choices regarding designs and styles. Likewise, concrete frames are often unsuitable for steep roofs. It also requires expert residential construction companies to build up, as improper installation can lead to water infiltration, compromising the structural integrity of your home.

Get the home of your dreams with TRM Construction.

TRM has successfully brought dozens of high-end custom home construction projects across the Treasure Coast and the Palm Beaches to reality with superior craftsmanship and construction management. We specialize in guiding you through all the choices for your dream home, from floor plans to windows and door frames, so you get materials that endure Port St. Lucie’s changing weather without sacrificing your style.