I have a barn that needs repair. Recycled timber is salvaged from older structures such as large warehouses and port buildings. Second, recycled timbers can sometimes be found in large sizes and longer lengths because of the spans that were built in the older structures. Third, even after planing, the timbers retain an aged appearance that makes them desirable. On the minus side, the cost of recycled timber is generally higher than green timber due to the labor involved in acquiring the timber.
Green timber is the more common type of timber used in cutting timber frame structures.
Green timber sizes are available in different species of woods and tend to be less expensive than recycled material. Some checking and shrinkage do occur in the timber as a natural process in the drying of the timber, but that shouldn't cause any structural weakness, nor should shrinkage affect the joinery. Timber framers have methods and materials that they use to keep shrinkage to a minimum. In the eastern and midwestern parts of the United States and Canada, timber framers tend to use oak and pine as their main species. In the western areas, framers use more Douglas fir or Port Orford cedar.