Tag Archives: green building

Timber Frame Homes – Perfect Small Homes

February 2, 2012

Small Homes aren’t a trend.  They represent a way of life, both past and future.  A simpler life where home was shelter, not a status symbol or fad.  In the past, people built homes to fit their needs.  As their families grew, their homes grew, but only enough to provide the space they needed … comfortable space.

Over time we expanded our spaces, expanded not because we were more comfortable, but because we could.  Now, it’s time to step back.  We need to remember that the space we build, we have to maintain, we have to heat and cool, we have to “keep”.  That space can then take over our lives in ways large and small.

So, we’ve begun to step back, to build our homes to shelter us and to allow us to live comfortably.  We make a decision to design our homes to have space that fits our lifestyle and not to build out just because we can.  We become happier with smaller.  And maybe happier because we’re living smaller.

So, think through the way you live.  Think about the rooms that are seldom used and the size of the rooms that you do use.  Bring everything into the human scale and you’ll live easier and more comfortably.   So we encourage you to live smaller, live more simply.  Don’t forgo elegance and charm, live smaller and live better.

Timber frames allow us to build smaller.  We have no wasted space for bearing walls and hallways.  Space is divided to best fit the way we live.   Timber frames and small homes, what a great concept.

Thanks for letting me share, Bonnie Pickartz.

 

 

 

 

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What’s Old Is New Again in a Timber Frame Home

July 21, 2011

When we built our timber frame home, we made every effort to work with reclaimed, recycled, reused, repurposed, and re-just about anything materials. It was important that our home felt old while living new.

One of the choices we made was to buy a washer-dryer combination that was energy efficient and let us put clothes in to wash and take them out (of the same machine) dry and ready to fold or hang.   There were several models on the market and we decided that the LG unit would serve us best.  Except…there wasn’t one new unit to be found.  The older model was off the market and the new one wasn’t yet available.

So we searched for a gently used unit that would not only let us know if we really could live with a washer/dryer combination that took 3 hours to wash a dry a load of clothes, but would also save us money.   Craig’s List came to the rescue and a short trip to Atlanta landed us just the right piece of laundry equipment.  Since our timber frame featured lots of gently used items, this wasn’t a problem for us.

Now, we thought we were onto something unique and new.  We couldn’t find anyone who had used one that wasn’t a smaller apartment or RV sized unit (which didn’t rate very well).   We loved the concept of no washer to dryer switch (and no moldy smelling clothes if we forgot to switch them).

And today, we still love our washer-dryer.  It serves us well and fits well into the laundry closet we designed into our home.  Timber frames allow for lots of flexibility in room placement, so our laundry space is tucked off of a hallway, accessible to the bedroom and bath.

And now, the surprise for us.  We think we have the latest technology and love showing off our “easy” washer/dryer.

I’m looking through some old magazines (really old …1956) and find an ad for a Philco Duomatic.  Surprise…it’s a washer/dryer combination and sold for a whopping $369.95.  Who knew?  So while we aren’t dismayed, we were a little shocked that it never took the market by storm.  Maybe it was before it’s time.  Most people didn’t have dryers in 1956 (at least in my neighborhood).

So old is new again in our timber frame home.  And we are loving it.  Washing, drying, now if someone will just invent a machine that folds clothes.  We would be “cooking with gas”….but that’s another story.

So, plan your home, build it, and fill it with things you love and that you’ll use and enjoy.

And that’s enough for now.

See you soon, Bonnie Pickartz.

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No Ducts in the Attic of a Timber Frame

June 23, 2011

Summer brings to mind not only warm evenings and flowers, but the cost to cool a home.  Timber frames are uniquely qualified to withstand the onslaught of summer heat because by the nature of the design, the ductwork is inside the building envelope.  If you consider that just something to work around as you design your timber frame home, you’ve missed a very important point.

Timber frames are typically enclosed in an insulated envelope.  That necessitates having all the ducts and plumbing inside a conditioned space.  Doing just this is really a “best practice”, but timber frames do it naturally.  The importance means lower cooling costs and less loss of cool air to the heat.   If ducts reside in an unconditioned attic, the loss is compounded by the superheated air that accumulates in the attic. The air conditioning unit works harder to produce less cool air.   In warmer climates, this is a significant loss.

In cooler climates, the reverse is true.  If the ducts are run through an unconditioned attic, the heat is sucked away from the warm air before it can get to the rooms it is meant to heat.

An excellent article on the Energy Vanguard Blog makes the case for getting the ducts out of the attic.  They linked to an article by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory “Ducts in the attic?  What were they thinking?” that offers statistics and real numbers that impact the comfort of a home and the energy used.

So why am I saying all of this.  Because it’s a problem that timber frame homeowners don’t have to deal with…ever.  The ducts are inside the conditioned shell in timber frames.  The way it should be done is the way it’s done in a timber frame.

So, as our energy bills languish (our running tally for the past twelve months is $1026 to heat/cool and supply electricity to all lights and appliances), we once more get to offer yet another reason why timber frames are sustainable and energy efficient.

Building a timber frame home is simply the best choice.  And when you build remember to Build Boldly.

 

 

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Comfort in Timber Frames

June 3, 2011

The heat of summer arrived early this year.  With temperatures soaring to the 90′s, we’re seeing days as hot as we’d expect in August.   But it seems timber frames with insulated panels are a good place to be when the weather doesn’t cooperate.

We haven’t had to turn on the air conditioning yet at our house.  The nights are cool, so we open the windows and sleep in the cool night air.   Then, in the morning we close the windows before it gets hot and we head off to work.   The house holds the cool, so when we come home late in the afternoon, with the temperatures hovering around 90, inside is fresh and cool.  We turn on the fans and are comfortable until it’s time to open the windows again.

Timber frames are energy efficient.  That’s a fact.  Most people who build them insulate them well and are concerned about sustainability.   Structural insulated panels (ours are R-24 wall and R-40 roof polyurethane panels) make saving energy easy.

So it’s summer time and the living is easy…in our timber frame.

 

 

 

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Timber Frames – The Structural Advantage

April 12, 2011

The structural advantage of timber frames has been substantiated in the centuries old buildings worldwide.  Wood, when joined by craftsmen using old and time tested techniques, is a forgiving and enduring material.

Wooden buildings centuries of years old are still used daily around the world.  We visited a chocolate shop in France and were far more interested in the joinery than in the chocolates (but we did enjoy them).   Seeing the timbers that have sustained through hundreds of years of use and even abuse was rewarding.  We celebrated not only the chocolate, but the historic building.

To think that the structures that we are building today will be visited with awe and that they will serve as inspiration for new buildings centuries from now is humbling.   It’s easy for us to get caught up in the beauty and drama of a timber frame, but the structure is really the most important element.

So, if you live in a timber frame, celebrate the structure.  If you don’t live in a timber frame home, you might want to join this celebration…it will go on for centuries.

Another of Goshen Timber Frames “Educate Yourself” Webinars will be presented on May 20th.  Contact Bonnie Pickartz at bonnie@goshenframes.com for more information.

 

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Building A Timber Frame

March 24, 2011

Building a timber frame home is an adventure, a challenge, and at the end of the day, a reward.  John and Janice have taken it very seriously.  They’ve built their own home, working early and late, a labor of love.  And they blogged it along the way.

And the reward is near.  Their home is almost finished and their love of timber frames shows, along with their artistry and talent.  So, today we share with you Building Our Timber Frame – The Suttons . They’ve shown us all how there is beauty, character, and space in a small timber frame home.

Each person or couple will ultimately decide how involved they will be in the process of building their own timber frame home.  Some will be up to their elbows in it, drilling, painting, hammering, and cleaning up. Others will watch from a distance, none the less involved and enjoying. Some will be somewhere in the middle, doing the work they are comfortable with and leaving the rest to others.

Soon, very soon, they will be living in their new home.  They’ll marvel at the beauty of their timber frame and will smile as they walk up to the door each day.  So check out their blog and get to know them. They have not only built the home of their dreams…they have enjoyed the process.

If you’d like to visit the Sutton’s new home, contact Bonnie Pickartz at 828-524-8662.

And when you build…build boldly.

 

 

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Energy Costs for Timber Frame Homes

February 1, 2011

We can all “talk the talk” about energy efficiency and timber frames, but at the end of the day, can we “walk the walk”?  I think so.  I believe that timber frame homes, wrapped in structural insulated panels, exceed all expectations.

Let’s set aside for a minute that the structure is naturally beautiful..that the massive post and beams bring a sense of stability and permanence to the homes.   Let’s forget about all the wonderful windows that bring the outside in and allow us to live comfortably by day without flipping the light switch.  Let’s not even think about the sustainability..that this timber frame home will survive for generations and will shelter each one equally well.

Let’s get down to numbers.  Our home has almost 1700 square feet of living space.  It is considered a “small home”, but there is no wasted space.  The one hall is about four feet long and has a storage closet (under the stairs) and a laundry room (with an energy efficient washer dryer combo) off of it.   The rest of the home is truly lived in.  It lives much, much bigger than a conventionally built home with their necessary bearing walls and hallways.

If the various weather authorities (whoever they are) are to be believed, 2010 was one of the hottest on record and January, February, and December certainly delivered the cold.  Taking all that into account, our energy bills should be soaring.

With far more windows than an average home and vaulted ceilings, you would assume that it would be expensive to both heat and cool.   We were willing to trade off some of the heating and cooling efficiency in order to have natural daylight and the expansive ceilings keep our home from feeling small.

The Creekside is heated and cooled with an electric heat pump.  So, it was with a little trepidation that I sat down to calculate our annual electric costs.  I logged in and downloaded all of our electric bills from Duke Energy’s website (you have to love the electronic age).  They totaled $1,043.97 for the twelve months of 2010.   That averages out at $87.00 per month.  In my humble opinion…that ain’t too bad.Energy Efficient Home

So, I’d have to say, “yes”, timber frame homes with SIPs do “walk the walk”, taking energy efficiency and sustainability to the next level.

Plan your next home carefully (and if you’d like some help with that, we’d be pleased to assist) and save money every day.  You can check out beautiful, energy efficient timber frame plans for every lifestyle at Goshen Timber Frames and work with us to design and build your home or you can purchase our timber frame and hybrid home plans at TimberStead – Timber Frame Plans .

Just build wisely and build well.

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Timber Frame Window Walls

January 12, 2011

Timber frames are a natural fit with windows.  The massive posts and beams frame the glass, offering an expansive view to the outdoors.  Never are the views more glorious than in the winter.  As you sit in your timber frame, cozy and warm, you gaze out the windows at nature’s best show.  Snow covers the landscape and you enjoy the view from your comfortable chair.Winter through timber frame windows.

Curved beams in a timber frameTimber frames wrapped in insulated panels are energy efficient.   Tightly sealed and well insulated, they are simply the best built homes today.  Windows are inefficient, so you need to do your research and choose the best windows available for your application.   Double and triple glazed windows are available in different styles and with various finishes.  Windows are not a good place to economize.  Buy quality windows.

So, enjoy your timber frame home, whether you are sitting inside looking out or out in the snow looking in.

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Winter Approaches in a Timber Frame Home

November 2, 2010

Well, like it or not, colder weather is upon us. It’s time to take a few minutes and make sure that your timber frame home is weatherized and winter ready.

Check all your window and doors for leakage. We found a window that hadn’t been closed properly and would have leaked cold air in (and warm air out) during our check.

Clean out your gutters so that leaves and “gunk” won’t let the water flow out. Water frozen in place can damage your gutters.

Make sure that the filters for your heating system are clean and/or replaced. You’ll get maximum efficiency with clean filters.

Surely there is more to do, but this list should get you started for now as your timber frame home shelters you for the winter.

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Timber Frames and Energy Efficiency

August 9, 2010

Well, it’s been hot this summer, some say record-breaking hot, but you couldn’t tell it by the energy usage for our timber frame home.   This timber frame, wrapped in energy efficient structural insulated panels, has met and exceeded our expectations.

Timber frames and SIPs are a great combination when it comes to a well insulated home.  Even with walls of windows, which are notoriously inefficient, and an electric dryer, we are not seeing the high power bills that might be expected.

Of course, we have all Energy Star rated appliances and fixtures, use fluorescent bulbs, and are manic about turning off lights when we aren’t in the room.  However, our 2 ton heat pump and fans are keeping our timber frame home cool and comfortable.

Last month we topped out at $74 and this month we went down to $72. We are pleased at the money we’ve saved…and at the energy we’ve saved.   Our home is 1700 square feet and we cook most days (heating up the house) and embraced daylighting and have more than our share of windows.  We do use our ceiling fans and we keep the house cool during the day just because it’s our “model” home.  I guess I can say our “model energy saving home”, can’t I?

All these years I’ve been encouraging people to consider using panels on their home and I am pleased.  I’d like to know how much energy is saved every year just in timber frames with insulated panel enclosures.  That would be a significant number, I’d think.  Sustainable homes are important to each of us.

So, I’ll sit here and not stress over the heat and high utility bills, and I might hope for cooler weather so we can open the windows and go back to our $30 power bills of the spring.

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