Yeah, humidity swings can really mess things up, even with careful prep. Have you tried leaving a slight gap between boards to accommodate movement? Curious if anyone's had success with that approach...
Yeah, leaving small gaps can help a bit, but it's tricky to get just right—too much and your wall loses rigidity; too little and you're back to square one with warping. Have you considered alternating grain direction when placing boards? I've found it helps balance out expansion and contraction. Also, using kiln-dried lumber rather than air-dried makes a noticeable difference in consistency...though it can bump up the cost a bit. Anyone else tried that route and noticed improvements?
Totally agree on kiln-dried lumber—makes a huge difference. A couple more things I've found helpful:
- Framing with engineered studs (like LVLs) can really cut down warping issues.
- Adding temporary diagonal bracing during construction helps walls stay true until sheathing goes up.
Just my two cents...
Good points on engineered studs—definitely cuts down headaches later. I've also found that paying extra attention when laying out the bottom plate helps a ton. If that's off even slightly, walls seem determined to wander... learned that one the hard way.
Totally agree about the bottom plate—I swear walls have minds of their own if that’s not spot-on. Also, bracing temporarily as you go helps keep everything honest. Learned that trick after spending way too long fighting a stubborn wall into place...
