Probably, many travel lovers paid attention in Western Europe to charming fairy-tale houses. They themselves are a bright attraction. Today, such houses are beginning to be built in Russia, America, and Australia. Nevertheless, the most familiar place for them is Germany. Of course, many of our readers have already guessed that we will talk about half-timbered houses. What it is? Let's get it right.
Learning Fachwerk
This is a special building structure of a certain type. In other words, this is a rigid frame made of timber, which is formed by a system of horizontal, diagonal, vertical elements - racks, beams, braces. The gaps are filled with insulation material. At first, clay, stone, adobe were used. Today, half-timbered houses are built using modern heaters, sandwich panels. The choice of such materials today is huge, so it depends on the preferences of the customer and his financial capabilities. Now you understand what fachwerk is. Let's see where and how it is used.
The facade of the half-timbered house in the old days was different - it was left in its original form, then they began to clad the building with brick and stuccoed. The most prosperous masters sheathed him with wooden panels.
Today, the facade of a half-timbered house can be decorated in more diverse ways. Often the walls are sheathed with moisture-proof plywood, and then they are finished in accordance with the wishes of the owners - sheathed with brick or natural stone, lining or a variety of panels. There is only one invariable feature: half-timbered construction is a structure in which the frame is visible from the outside. When the house is plastered and painted, the frame remains untouched. The whole point of this style is that the racks, beams, beams and braces originally divide the walls of the building, thereby giving it a special appeal.
As a rule, a half-timbered house has a gable roof, less often a gable roof. Today, many designers claim that fachwerk is an architectural style. But initially the meaning of this term is translated from German as follows: Fach - section, Werk - construction. Therefore, fachwerk is a construction of sections. We figured it out.
Fachwerk: what is this design
According to some sources, this technology has more than five hundred years, according to others, it has already celebrated its 1000th anniversary. But despite this, construction methods have not undergone major changes. Just like several centuries ago, the building is being built on a rigid wooden frame. True, if previously used ordinary timber, today glued timber is used as the most durable. It has no cracks and knots, and therefore it looks much more aesthetically pleasing. For such a structure, this is important, since the frame is also a decoration of the house.
Building half-timbered houses these days is no more complicated than quickly erecting buildings from lightweight metal structures. Many people thinking about building their own home are interested in half-timbers. What kind of structure is this, how much is it more profitable than modern buildings built from new materials using modern technologies? Let's try to answer these questions.
Style features
A half-timbered house, the photo of which you see in this article, does not accept the use of metal - screeds that can ruin the interior. Elements are still connected by a tree - spikes, notches, pins. I must say that such compounds were used in homes that are already 400-500 years old. Agree, this is a good advertisement for this technology.
The fachwerk frame is lightweight, this allows you to build houses on a shallow, inexpensive foundation. Decorating a half-timbered house opens up great opportunities for glazing. You can create whole walls of glass. Blank wall openings are usually insulated with glass wool or lightweight aerated concrete. Inside, they are sheathed with gypsum-fiber sheet, which significantly improves sound insulation, and in addition, serves as additional protection from the cold.
Where to start construction
Of course, with design. A high-quality home project is half the success. This means that with the proper quality of construction work, the house will serve the owner for more than a dozen years. It is better to order an individual project, which even in small things will suit the customer.
Construction time
Today you can buy ready-made frames made at the factory, allowing you to erect half-timbers. That this will significantly speed up the process, there is no doubt. It takes two to six weeks to make it at the enterprise. At this time, the foundation is being prepared at the construction site. The frame is installed, filled with insulation, the roof is being erected, the external and internal walls are finished. It takes another two to three months. It is necessary to create a heating system. It can also be different - stove, steam, water, etc. Laying communications will also take some time. At the same time, it can be said that the half-timbered building is built quite quickly, like any other frame structure.
Fachwerk in Russia
This technology is applicable only for the construction of houses for permanent residence only in a warm climate. This was thought until recently. However, the technology is constantly being updated, and today architects building half-timbered houses in Russia use the “warm floor” technology, use high-quality double-glazed windows, fill the frame with sandwich insulation, and additionally sheathe the exterior walls with bricks. As a result of such operations, the good, old half-timbers become reliable, comfortable, and can withstand very low temperatures. That this is a house that is suitable for permanent residence, is beyond doubt.
Half-timbered interior
This issue should be approached creatively. You can’t hide the existing system of beams, and is it necessary to do this? They carry the spirit of antiquity. They just need to beat the original. For this, you can use any style - from minimalism to German country.
Beams can be artificially aged, if desired, in the interior to use more natural wood, on the floor to lay a board or tile "antique". In this case, use solid solid furniture. Get coarse textiles, self-woven rugs. It is better to hide modern technology behind the facades of cabinets.
If minimalism is closer to you, think over glazing of the big areas in advance. The rooms will become spacious, flooded with light. Paint the frame and beams white and lay the bleached parquet on the floor. The walls must certainly be soft light colors. Set a laconic and compact fireplace, a minimal amount of furniture, and the gingerbread house from a fairy tale will turn into a strict and light house of a modern person.
It should be noted that there is no particular style in which fachwerks are framed. What kind of style it will be, the landlord decides. From time immemorial, such houses were united only by the presence of a hearth and a frame.
Fachwerk style interior
This is a very conditional name. In fact, such a house can be issued in different ways. Focus on the frame by painting it in a contrasting color. Floors can be any - wooden, stone (tiles are used for this). As with the outside of the house, the frame should be visible on the internal partitions. The walls in the half-timbered house should be light. For this, textured plaster is most suitable. Beams can be used to organize lighting, in addition, they can be used as shelves or brackets for storing various utensils. It is permissible to use forging in the half-timbered interior. It could be a horseshoe or even a cartwheel.
Today you learned a little about cute half-timbered houses, you learned what their design is, how much time it takes to build and how you can arrange them. We hope that this information will be useful to you, and you will someday use it in practice.