What is a Timber Frame Home?
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The most popular method of timber frame construction in the UK is the open panel platform system.
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A timber frame house is a fully engineered structure, incorporating an external wall leaf made with 140mm x 38mm stud sheeted with 9mm plywood or OSB and covered with a breather membrane. Internal load bearing and non load bearing walls are made with 89mm x 38mm stud and along with external walls are designed to support either engineered wooden floor panels or engineered roof trusses.
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The external cladding can be conventional block or brick or can incorporate modern timber or decorative claddings
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The structure is fully engineered and the final timber structure will have a complete set of engineering calculations specific to that building.
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All walls are insulated to achieve the required U values as specified by the current Building Regulations.
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Advantages of Timber Frame Construction
- Speed and accuracy of construction
- High level of insulation
- Low running costs
- Flexibility of design
- Reduced drying out times
- Reduced waste
- Compliance with the current building regulations and authorities
- Manufactured off site for quality and accuracy
- Very adaptable for the installation of services such as centralised vacuum cleaning, communication and control services.
- Inspected and tested after erecting.
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Why Wood Is Good
- Wood is an ecologically friendly and renewable resource
- It reduces the effect of global warming as trees act as carbon sinks
- Wood biomass is a renewable source of green energy
- Timber is a good insulator against the cold
- The versatility of wood can give great scope for architectural and engineering design
- Wood can be equally effective as a structure or as a light weight skin
- Wood has a high strength-to-weight ratio. Strength for strength, pine and spruce are 16 times lighter than steel and 5 times lighter than concrete
- The manufacture of wood products uses less energy than the manufacture of other man made products such as plastics etc
- Wood is a reliable and predictable building material
Build quality is improved as each unit is an engineered solution
with the consistency and accuracy of factory technology including
Computer Aided Design/Computer Aided Manufacturing (CAD/CAM)
software. There are lower call back costs, as any problems
encountered can be eliminated immediately before leaving the
factory. Project costs are estimated to be reduced, not because
timber frame is cheap, this method of construction is not
cheaper (particularly if the builder hasn't thought his practices
through) but because factory fabrication means much greater
predictability, better controls and of course, a faster pace.
There is less need for materials on site which reduces waste
and loss through theft, this facilitates a tidier, healthier
and safer site.
A dry weather-proof shell can be achieved in a fraction of
the time taken for the masonry counterpart this has a financial
advantage as capital outlay is reduced and internal trades
proceed without hold ups due to the vagaries of a very Irish
complaint - the weather.
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