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Great Reasons to Use Timber in Your Home Design

As one of the foremost timber suppliers in Australia, we have talked to a lot of people about timber. In addition, we consider it our personal and company responsibility to keep abreast of all developments and uses of timber in the building industry. Here are some great reasons why so many people are using timber when they design their homes.

Great Insulator

In the “old days” when most homes were built out of timber, they didn’t have fibreglass insulation. Luckily, they didn’t need it because wood is a superior insulator. Basically, wood doesn’t conduct heat nearly as fast as other surfaces. For comparison, aluminium conducts heat 7000 times faster than wood, while steel conducts heat 1650 times faster and glass conducts heat 23 times faster than wood.

In today’s society, this means that you save a lot of money on energy costs, as it takes less energy to heat or cool your home.

Quick to Build

The process of building a wooden home is quite simple. In addition, the materials are easy to work with. It is possible to build a home measuring 100 sqm in seven days when constructing it out of timber. This saves time, which means it saves labour time, making a timber home less expensive to build.

After building, it is much easier to make adjustments to a wood frame home than any other kind of building.

Friendly to the Environment

The carbon footprint is the most accepted metric of environmental friendliness and wood is neutral, even after taking into consideration the CO2 used in hauling. The reason is that wood actually absorbs environmental CO2, which means that its net footprint is zero or neutral. Wood is the only construction material that leaves no carbon footprint.

Many westernised countries now require that for every tree which is cut down, another must be planted. Since younger trees actually absorb more carbon than older trees do, there a lot of environment benefits every time an older tree is cut down: its lumber is used for building and a new tree is planted in its place. This means that there is more carbon absorption.

Aesthetic Versatility

Wood is the most aesthetically versatile of all building materials. There are over 5000 varieties of wood, all with different strengths. Some are great for acoustics, some for appearance and some for structure. Some are light and some are heavy. Some are sturdy and some are flexible. No matter what you need, there is a variety of wood that will suit your needs.

Wood can be stained or painted to any colour you desire. It can be given a clear finish and allowed to shine through its natural colour. It can be cut, carved, nailed or glued. It is the most versatile of all building materials.

Tensile Strength

We aren’t going to bog anyone down with too many scientific numbers here. Suffice to say that some varieties of wood have more tensile strength than steel does, by almost 50%. It is also much more workable and more accommodating to any design than steel.

Light, Safe, Durable and Sturdy

For its weight, wood is the most sturdy of any building material. Its sturdiness allows it to support a building, while its flexibility allows it to adapt to sudden changes or shifts in the foundation without causing cracking.

Water Resistant

While many varieties of timber absorb water, four of them are among the most water-resistant of all building materials: Sitka Spruce, Western Hemlock, Douglas Fir and Western Red Cedar. Some woods are used because they absorb a lot of water, while some are used because they don’t. Whatever characteristics you want, you can usually find a variety of wood that will provide it.

Great Acoustics

Wood can dampen sound a little, reducing echo and helping to insulate areas from sound. Many concert halls are made of wood to provide the best possible acoustic characteristics.

Call Us Today

At Narangba Timbers, we have timber for virtually any application you can imagine. Our timber is of the highest quality and our customer service is second to none. Call 1300 477 024.