I've been wanting to check out this place for quite a while. Unfortunately, I happen to work the same hours that Helliesen is open - but I finally got off early and decided to check it out. I'm disappointed that they . I'm building some raised garden beds and decided to check out my options. Upon walking in, I was greeted by the amazing smell of popcorn! They've got a little machine with some delicious popcorn to snack on! Major plus for this guy - I love that stuff. Anywho - back to the lumber - my options were Douglas fir-larch, pressure treated lumber, and cedar. The douglas fir-larch is around $0.65 / LF. Pressure treated was about $1.65/LF, and cedar was around $3.30/LF. Based on the fact that I would have to seal the regular wood, I decided to go with 12' pressure treated. I'm a fan of local business, but prices have to be competitive. In this case, prices for a 2x8x12' was about 15% higher than at one of the big box retailers. In general, that seems like an approximate premium that you may pay here over the home improvement juggernauts.
I was assuming that Hellisen only sold lumber, but they have quite a few other items. You can find a lot of wordworking tools and fasteners, as well as basic construction materials - but, mostly things that are wood related.
If you like supporting local business and don't mind a small premium, Helliesen is a great option for lumber in Yakima. If they were open on saturdays, I'd buy a lot more lumber from here! read more