Advanced
Timber-Frame
Technology
FAQ's
- lower heating costs,
higher building standards, greater comfort, better economy -
Freedom to Build Your
Home, Your Way
Welcome
Choice Comfort
& Economy Better Built?
NHBC A Better
World
More Trees Self
Build & Multi-Storey Further
Information FAQ's
Timber
Frame -v- Wet Trades
Welcome
- to the world of factory built, pre-fabricated
timber frame kit houses for developers and self builders. A world
where custom designed eco-homes are snug, warm and draught free; a world
where low running costs are matched by precision engineered quality; a
world where, by using pre-fabricated timber eco-homes,
new homes, house extensions, rooms in roof, attics, home offices, granny
flats, and so on, don't need to come at the expense of future generations.
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The
Choice is Yours - Right
across the developed world more people choose timber frame than any other
building system, with timber-frame accounting for some 70% of low
rise family housing. In the UK more and more builders are choosing
to build houses of all shapes and sizes, right up to multi-storey flats,
using factory built housing in natural
wood timber frame. Most of the top 25 companies and virtually all
self builders now use system for self build wooden kit houses.
So more and more people are finding out what it's like to enjoy living in
a timber frame home.
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More
Comfort and less expensive to heat -
Nowadays
all new 
buildings have to conform to new thermal efficiency
standards. But because wood is such a good natural insulator,
enhancing the efficiency of the insulation
materials, timber frame buildings have been meeting, and exceeding,
these standards for years. And they are more comfortable
to live in, thanks to the excellent insulation of the structural shell,
the whole home heats up more quickly, without any cold areas. Better
insulation, hand-in-hand with detailed draught proofing, means a smaller
boiler, lower heating bills, and a cosier, more comfortable home.
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Better
Built? - Precious little has changed
in the way masonry houses have been built over the years. They rely
on the building skills of a dwindling number of craftsmen working on messy sites in
all weathers. Timber frame homes, on the other hand, are
precision-engineered under factory conditions, doing away with many of the
building processes that were needlessly done on site. Room
dimensions are more accurate too - useful when you're fitting a kitchen or
a carpet! A 'dry' plasterboard lining system is used, rather than
wet plaster, allowing decoration to be carried out immediately the house
is finished and eliminating the need to make good where shrinkage of on
site plastering has occurred.
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NHBC
- The National House Building Council - records show fewer problems
with timber
frame houses than other construction methods. When you
choose a Benfield Advanced Timber-Frame Technology you can
rest assured that the frame design, manufacture and build are covered by
an independently monitored Quality Assurance scheme.
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A
Better World - As well as using less energy to
heat, timber frame homes use less energy to build, because wood grows
naturally, needing only minimal energy to fell, mill, transport and
construct. By contrast, the production of concrete blocks, bricks,
plaster, cement, steel and so on takes a great deal of energy and creates
unwanted pollution.
Using more wood is a good way
to help reduce the growth of global warming because wood is a renewable
building material. As trees grow, they absorb carbon dioxide from
the atmosphere and give out the oxygen we breath.
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More
Trees -
In Northern Europe, our forests are managed so that there
are more trees
growing than being harvested. In fact the annual
surplus of growth over harvest is a staggering 252 million cubic metres -
roughly 30 times the UK's total annual consumption of wood (source:
UN-ECE FAO TBFRA 2000)
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From
Self Build to Multi-Storey - One in ten of the new homes
built every year in the UK is 'self-build', i.e. an individually
commissioned house, either built by the owners themselves, by a builder,
or by a combination of both.
And 9 out of 10 of these
'self-builders' choose timber frame. Because no other building
method is as simple, versatile, or cost effective.
Contact us for more
information on how to go about building your own home and on the range of
timber frame housing types and styles available.
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Further Information, the
Choice is Yours - We believe passionately that timber
frame is the best solution for most homes. But it's your
choice. If you would like further information on specific aspects of
timber frame, please contact us. We are here to help you.
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Your
Questions Answered:
Q: "How is a timber frame house
different from a masonry house?"
A: A
modern masonry house is normally made of an inner supporting wall of
concrete blocks and an outer supporting wall of brick. A modern
timber frame house replaces the inner wall with a timber frame strong
enough to carry all the loads of the house. This is usually covered
by the plasterboard internally and a brick, stone or timber 'siding'
external finish.
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Q: "Are you
more at risk from fire in a timber frame house?"
A: No. In common with all other forms
of construction in the UK, timber frame has to meet all Building
Regulations. Safety in timber frame is our number one commitment
and timber frame has an excellent performance record.
commitment
and timber frame has an excellent performance record.
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Q: "Will a timber
frame home last?"
A: Yes. A new timber
frame home will last as well as, if not better than, any other type of new
home. Softwood timber frame houses have been built in the UK since
the 19th Century and are still going strong. Your timber frame home
will still be there for your great grandchildren to enjoy ... and beyond.
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Q: "Will I get a
mortgage on a timber frame home?"
A: Yes.
But don't just take our word for it. Patrick Snowden, Head of the
Professional Services said; "Halifax takes the view that properly
constructed timber frame housing with a suitable
external cladding is
equally as good as housing suitable
external cladding is
equally as good as housing which is
brick or block and we make no differentiation in the lending terms offered
on either form of construction."
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Q: "Will I have to
pay more for insurance?"
A: No. The Association
of British Insurers says; "Insurance
companies generally draw no distinction between modern timber frame and
brick and block construction, provided the
external roof covering is also of tiles, natural or mineral slates, or
concrete."
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Q: "Will a timber
frame house look different?"
A: No.
Typically, timber frame houses are clad in brick and look like any other
house. But a range of materials are suitable, e.g. stone, block and
render, or timber boarding.
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Q: "Can I still do
DIY jobs around my timber frame home?"
A:
Yese. Many jobs are easier, because of the good fixing you can get
in the vertical studs (structural timbers). But, as always with DIY
activities, you need to follow health and safety guidelines and a few
simple rules. Visit www.timber-frame.org,
or contact us for free advice.
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Q: "Are timber
frame homes quiet?"
A: Yes. Modern timber frame
systems enjoy better acoustic insulation qualities than masonry and fully
conform to, or exceed, the latest Building Regulations. So you'll
stay on speaking terms with your neighbours (but not through the wall!)
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ATT
"... the sustainable way to build ..."
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