New Builds in France - Timber Frame Houses

Question

We have purchased land in France on which to build and are considering a timber frame home. What are the benefits, if any, over conventional construction?

Mr and Mrs Redwood

Answer

There are many benefits and you must be prepared to not only look in detail at the immediate benefits (time, cost of build etc) but also long term.

Timber frame houses have been around for hundreds of years and were some of the first buildings ever constructed. As an ecologically sound and renewable material, timber is much easier to work with than bricks and mortar, and in house construction uses three times less energy.

One of the many benefits of a timber frame house is the insulation advantage: timber is six times more efficient than brick and twelve times more than concrete. That would make a timber wall of 16cm thick equivalent to one metre in brick! When considering heating systems, the natural insulation advantages of timber together with high quality installed insulation means big savings. Timber homes are often over heated using systems that are too expensive and not necessary so you should take experienced advice and do some research as cost savings over time are considerable. Solar panels and geo-thermal heating are just some of the options to be considered.

The sensation of wellbeing in a timber home is a result of the natural breathing and insulation properties of timber, as it produces a nearly constant natural balance between temperature and humidity. Cool in the summer and warm in winter, this level of balance is not achieved by other materials.

Speed of construction is one of the many advantages when considering timber, as the section-by-section assembly means that you end up with a much faster house to finish off. This results in an end product with a very high standard of accuracy and quality. Another advantage of timber is its great strength-to-weight ratio, which allows for more flexibility in the design. Its general lightness is an advantage when considering soil conditions and foundations requirements. The natural flexibility of a timber frame also allows for ground movements.

It is important that you go for a system that is as complete as possible when delivered from the factory and that the company in question uses the latest materials, machines and techniques. When your house arrives from the factory you should not be able to see the timber frame as a skeleton but each section should be complete, from the external finish through the various layers including insulation, to the internal plasterboard. The latest complete panel system should also include the wiring and plumbing which are plugged in or compression connected where the panels join, as a small gap is left in the plasterboard for this. Some of the more complete panel systems also include pre-fitted windows. The floors should also come as complete box sections at the first floor with joists, floorboards and phonic insulation pre-fitted, as with the walls. With a pre-fitted weatherproof membrane on the close boarded roof you will have the initial house erected and dry in 2-3 days.

The benefit of a high degree of factory finish means the overall cost is easier to calculate as you will have less work to complete on site and less of the problems and costs often associated with local labour. The weather will also have less time to interfere and your modern timber frame house should be ready to move into in less than a month from the delivery date.

In recent years timber frame homes have made a remarkable return in ever increasing numbers, mainly due to the factors detailed above. In France some 15,000 units were built in 2005 and the figures for 2006 show a 20 per cent increase.