Non-motoring > Timber houses	Miscellaneous
Thread Author: BobbyG	Replies: 27

New Tue 4 Oct 11 15:54   Timber houses - BobbyG

A friend is looking for a new house and one street near where she lives is all timber houses. By this, I mean that the outside of the house is timber, not brick, roughcast or whatever. Apparently the houses were built in the 1940s and the standard maintenance is that it gets painted every 5 years. What are the pros and cons of such houses? The only pro I can think of is that it would be easy to screw in hanging baskets! Assume these were built due to them being cheap at the time? Anyone any experiences / info would be appreciated. I have tried googling but just seem to get loads about timber framed houses, or new eco log cabins! Reply to this message | Report message

New Tue 4 Oct 11 15:59   Timber houses - CGNorwich

Most US/Canadian houses are timber. I guess they are quicker to build than brick and where timber is cheap they make sense. They do need regular maintenance/painting but on the other hand are relatively easy to repair. Reply to this message | Report message

New Tue 4 Oct 11 16:01   Timber houses - R.P.

Getting insurance and/or a mortgage might be a problem. Reply to this message | Report message

New Tue 4 Oct 11 16:05   Timber houses - zippy

And wood is not as cheap here as it is in the USA! Reply to this message | Report message

New Tue 4 Oct 11 16:12   Timber houses - madf

There were a lot of timber framed houses which were shoddily built in the 1970s? where the moisture proof interior frames were damaged by poor building - nails through the skin etc.. You have to watch out for rot in the structure.. wet rot or worse.. dry rot.. For that I imagine a structural engineer/architect who knows about wood framed houses would be essential.. Reply to this message | Report message

New Tue 4 Oct 11 16:17   Timber houses - NortonES2

When we had a holiday in New England, I was told the general practice was to buy a plot, choose house from a catalogue, then erect onto a concrete pad. Walls and roof in place in a day or two. Ticky-tacky but quick! Reply to this message | Report message

New Tue 4 Oct 11 16:18   Timber houses - Dog

>>choose house from a catalogue, then erect onto a concrete pad. Walls and roof in place in a day or two. Ticky-tacky but quick!<< Bit like my shed then! Reply to this message | Report message

New Tue 4 Oct 11 21:46   Timber houses - BobbyG

>>Getting insurance and/or a mortgage might be a problem. This is a full street of similar , semi detached, houses. Probably are ex-council houses but I assume that they will all have had mortgages and insurances at some point. Agreed, might be a problem, but not insurmountable. Reply to this message | Report message

New Tue 4 Oct 11 16:09   Timber houses - Mapmaker

"My friend has a problem, give me some advice." Bobby, wood + fire = conflagration. Reply to this message | Report message

New Tue 4 Oct 11 16:28   Timber houses - Bigtee

A nice Log Cabin sounds nice as a holiday home and seem popular now like caravan parks are. Reply to this message | Report message

New Tue 4 Oct 11 18:59   Timber houses - Meldrew

Wooden houses also collapse easily in high winds - see recent USA new shots from "Tornado alley" weblog.sinteur.com/index.php/2007/05/06/aerials-of-greensburg-tornado-damage/ Last edited by: Meldrew on Tue 4 Oct 11 at 18:59 Reply to this message | Report message

New Tue 4 Oct 11 19:05   Timber houses - Zero

hmmm, there are high winds and HIGH winds! Last edited by: Zero on Tue 4 Oct 11 at 19:05 Reply to this message | Report message

New Tue 4 Oct 11 19:08   Timber houses - Zero

The building society may or not may class it as "non standard construction" By that I mean some will and some wont. If they class it as non standard there is no mortgage available. Elizabethan houses were timber framed, plenty of them still about. Reply to this message | Report message

New Tue 4 Oct 11 21:43   Timber houses - Lygonos

She's only been on the throne since 1952. **EDIT** - nevermind, she's off it now - it's 2144. Last edited by: Lygonos on Tue 4 Oct 11 at 21:44 Reply to this message | Report message

New Tue 4 Oct 11 21:56   Timber houses - Zero

>> She's only been on the throne since 1952. >> >> >> **EDIT** - nevermind, she's off it now - it's 2144. Couldnt use the term "Tudor", too many mock copies about, so common. Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 5 Oct 11 05:57   Timber houses - Meldrew

Yes. I guess I am thinking that a brick built might fare better than a timber, in a given wind. In both cases the roof will probably be the problem. Last edited by: Meldrew on Wed 5 Oct 11 at 05:58 Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 5 Oct 11 10:56   Timber houses - NortonES2

The roof, of course, is usually a timber frame:) No reason why timber framed buildings should be less wind-resistant than block and brick. Link to article about NA construction methods: tinyurl.com/3kukae6 Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 5 Oct 11 11:13   Timber houses - Cliff Pope

>> No reason why timber framed buildings >> should be less wind-resistant than block and brick. >> Except that bricks are heavier. In 1988 my wooden shed was picked up by the wind and dropped a few hundreds yards away. In 1995 I demolished a brick shed of about the same size. It took several days of hard work with a sledge hammer and crow bar. Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 5 Oct 11 11:21   Timber houses - Dog

>>No reason why timber framed buildings should be less wind-resistant than block and brick<< - - - - > www.youtube.com/watch?v=Olo923T2HQ4 Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 5 Oct 11 11:34   Timber houses - Bromptonaut

Most new builds on the Western Isles are timber framed. They know a thing or two about gales up there. Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 5 Oct 11 12:11   Timber houses - Chris S

Austin built some timber houses in Longbridge, Birmingham, to house workers during the First World War. They were still there a few years ago and as far as I know they still are. They must have lasted well over 90 years by now. Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 5 Oct 11 12:36   Timber houses - Falkirk Bairn

Big proportion of homes built North of the Border are Timber Framed - BUT Clad in Brick/Block. Very few permanent homes in Scotland are timber framed and timberclad although there are examples of these all over the country built fairly recently as examples of Green building methods with high insulation properties 100%TIMBER FRAMED AND CLAD + BUILT 50+ YEARS AGO - NO REAL CHANCE OF A STANDARD MORTGAGE Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 5 Oct 11 12:42   Timber houses - Fenlander

Nothing wrong with timber houses or outbuildings, been constructing larger outbuildings from timber for 30yrs+. As long as the timber is decent quality, pest treated and the cheaper constructional parts are kept dry it's fine. Very important too it's properly fixed to the ground, often 1/2" rawbolts into a concrete pad are not enough. But as far as the OP's question goes I'd only buy a 70yr old full timber house for peanuts due to resale/mortgage issues. Last edited by: Fenlander on Wed 5 Oct 11 at 12:44 Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 5 Oct 11 19:36   Timber houses - Runfer D'Hills

I'm a bit jealous. My house has mock timber. Probs mock bricks too. Mock gas lamp outside. Mock open fire. Mock the lot actually. Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 5 Oct 11 19:54   Timber houses - Iffy

...Mock the lot actually... The bike rack (still) in the mock garage is real. Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 5 Oct 11 19:56   Timber houses - Zero

we have mocked the bike rack often enough. Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 5 Oct 11 20:42   Timber houses - Runfer D'Hills

The bike rack has long gone. It is now a large jar of Jelly Babies. Barter system lives and breathes... Reply to this message | Report message

New Wed 5 Oct 11 20:46   Timber houses - Zero

Good trade! Reply to this message | Report message