A timber frame “speaks” to the owners. With stick framed houses you often hear noises as the house settles, particularly at night as the air cools off.
In a timber frame, the timbers will sound off, often as the seasons change, and you are either heating (drying out the air) or cooling (adding moisture to the air).
While I’ve heard tales of pops that sound like a shotgun going off, our house seems to speak softly in the night. These sounds aren’t loud and disruptive or scary, just a gentle mention that this timber frame is built with wood, a natural product that breathes even after it is cut from the earth. Since timbers are left in much their natural state (well, squared off and joined, but not cut down to sticks), I like to think of these sounds as the sounds of the forest…brought to live indoors and domesticated.
So expect your home to speak and to when it does, smile and remember that you’ve connected with nature in a most wonderful way.
