One of the chief reasons people decide to build their homes is because the houses available for them to buy simply do not satisfy their needs and tastes. It could be that the perfect location cannot offer up a house that suits you or vice versa. When you get to this sort of impasse you may find yourself unwilling to compromise on either location or design, in which case your best option is to build your own house.

The perfect home will be laid out to meet the exact needs of your household. When you are building your own home you are in the enviable position of being able to figure out the design yourself. However, not all construction methods allow for flexibility.

Timber frame construction is the best choice for homebuilders who want to have ultimate control over their interior layouts and designs without having to feel held back by architectural problems and stumbling like internal weight-bearing walls. As the timber frame takes the weight of the house, you can draw plans for the rooms as you wish, allowing for large open spaces and high ceilings.

Consult a timber frame specialist and run through some ideas in terms of home design for your self-build project.

Timber frame construction is growing in popularity as a building method here in the UK. The advantages to building with timber frames as opposed to other methods have to do with cost-effectiveness, environmentally-friendliness and design flexibility. All homebuilders look for the best in each of these areas.

Cost-effectiveness

Timber frame construction is widely lauded for allowing homebuilders to reduce costs significantly. This is largely because of the speed at which a timber frame home can be built. Timber frames are cut in a factory once the design stage is complete and then delivered to the site where they are constructed. You will save money on manpower, energy and machinery.

Environmentally-friendliness

More and more people are concerned about lowering their carbon footprints. Timber frames houses are with ecological concerns in mind, reducing energy waste by incorporating extensive insulation solutions. Building with renewable timber can save resources and energy. Saving time on site also saves energy.

Design flexibility

There are now internal weight-bearing walls in timber frames homes. This means that you have ultimate flexibility in terms of layouts and room design. Externally you can cover the frame or leave it exposed depending on your preference and the restrictions of the local area.

There are many reasons why you may want to build your own home. It could be that you want design the perfect living space for you and your family. It could be that you want a more ecological home to reduce your carbon footprint. It could be that you want a hand in producing a really impressive house or a mixture of all of these things.

That said, one of the most appealing factors about living in the house you have built yourself is the fact that you can save a great deal of money, especially if you choose timber frame construction.

Construction

The construction process of building a house can be fraught with difficulties. Fortunately, this is very rarely the case with timber frame homes because an intensive design stage means the house can be built exceptionally quickly. This saves money on staffing and on energy and resources.

Energy

In the long run, timber frame houses represent a significant money-saving option. These houses can be engineered with energy-saving in mind right from the beginning of their design. Saving energy through quality insulation and so on means a major reduction in utility bills which represents potentially massive yearly saving.

When you decide to undertake a large scale self-building project you will have to think very carefully about your design plans. Opening doors in terms of design is likely to be one of the driving forces behind your decision to build your own home, so no doubt it will be a source of considerable excitement when you come to drawing up plans.

Sometimes your designs will be bound by certain restrictions because of the building method that you choice to employ. However, with timber frame construction, many of these restrictions do not apply. This is largely down to the fact that the frame of each timber frame house takes the whole weight of the house itself. As a result, weight-bearing internal walls are not required.

The most immediately obvious advantage this gives rise to has to do with open spaces. Freed from the constraints of weight-bearing internal walls, you can design vast open spaces inside the home and take advantage of open plan living areas. You can also take advantage of the wonderful options available in terms of the interior walls. In some parts of the house you may prefer to leaving the frame exposed; in others covering it with plaster or bricks.

Consult a timber frame construction specialist to talk through your plans.

Many different factors have seen timber frame construction become more and more popular with self-builders and with housebuilding firms embarking upon development projects. There are economical advantages and advantages regarding style and design, but one of the major advantages that appears to be attracting builders at present is the ecological appeal of timber frame.

Sustainability

The timber components of a timber frame home are sustainable materials that are source from ethically maintained forests. This means that you can rest assured as far as the ethics of your housing project are concerned.

On-site energy saving

Saving energy is a major priority for individuals and businesses alike. Timber frame houses can be built exceptionally quickly thanks to the factory conditions under which all components of the frame are produced. Saving time means saving on the energy required to keep a project going.

Continued reduction of waste

When the timber frame house is built you can continue to save energy and reduce waste. This is because timber frame homes are designed to preserve heat all year round. They are insulated effectively to reduce the level of heat that escapes from the house thereby contributing to the nationwide effort to lower the UK’s carbon footprint.

Over the years, timber frames have become one of the most used forms of building construction. These days, one in ten homes built in the UK is self-built –and many of these homes are constructed using timber frames. Therefore, one of their instant advantages is the fact that they are tailored to suit self-builders.

Framed buildings rely on a timber frame as its basic means of providing structural support. Despite being one of the oldest forms of construction, by utilising the best of modern technology, timber frames are now extremely cost-effective. The fact that buildings utilising a timber frame construction will meet the increasingly high environmental standards expected these days, it is no wonder then that the eco-friendly timber frame is growing in popularity.

Timber frame homes are an excellent cost-effective option for the UK construction industry with the current price pressures it is facing. The overall sustainability of timber frames is second to none, and with their precision-engineered structure, these strong and durable constructions are certainly built to last.

So, as well as their high quality build which is better for the environment, timber frames are also a quick and efficient means of providing adaptable homes for your construction project.

When you are starting a self build project, as well as the type of home you choose being an important consideration, perhaps the next important factor is the land on which you are going to build your home.

Building land will usually cost you about 40% of the price of a home you will build on it. This is of course an average figure because the type of home you build and the area in the UK where it will be built will play a major factor in the price. Some people like to speculate and buy cheap land that does not already have planning permission. Although risky, this is one way you can save money. And, with development boundaries being relaxed by local authorities, as the need to provide a government guideline figure of 300,000 new affordable homes by 2010/2011, it could be time to chance your arm.

One deciding factor in all this might be any plans you have to build a home that is eco-friendly and hence carbon-neutral. Factors like this have been known to sway local councils when making their decisions. Luckily timber frame homes can neatly fall into this category and are hence the perfect solution for instances like this.

Timber frame construction is becoming more and more popular for new build projects across the UK. This particular construction method has become much more appealing of late for self-builders, homebuilding companies and the government for several different reasons. Some of these are outlined below.

Economics

Building with timber frame makes a lot of sense economically. Constructing timber frames under factory conditions means that the components of a house can be produced incredibly quickly, saving money. Once the timber frame has been shipped to the building site, it can be erected quickly and then builders can start to work on the interior and exterior. Money is saved on manpower and on-site time.

Environment

The speed at which timber frame homes can be built does not only save money, it also saves energy. With the government looking to vastly reduce carbon emissions in the house building industry, timber frame houses provide the obvious solution. Energy-saving ideas go into every stage of the production of each timber frame house. As a result, homeowners can continue to lower their carbon footprints by wasting less in terms of utilities.

Style

In order to benefit from the environmental benefits of living in a timber frame home, you might expect to have to compromise on style. However, this simply isn’t the case. You can expect to have a great deal of control over the design of your timber frame house, thereby ensuring that it is built according to your tastes and needs.

A number of owners of relatively new homes have been expressing their displeasure of late at the poor standards of quality they believe their houses were built with. Many of these unfortunate homeowners are now calling for a change in the system of redress for faults and poor original workmanship that they discover years after the house was built.

One case that has come to light recently is that of Kim Stephenson. Stephenson’s house is seventeen years old and was built by Bryant Homes – part of the Taylor Wimpey group. Mr Stephenson’s garage roof collapsed without warning and the builder he had examine it confirmed what Stephenson expected – namely, that the original workmanship was substandard.

Taylor Wimpey have refused to compensate Mr Stephenson for the work he is having to carry out, but he is pursuing the matter in court.

Bryant Homes in particular have been the object of much scorn, particularly online, with bloggers expressing their disappointment with defects found in the construction of the houses which they can no longer claim for, but that have come to light earlier than homeowners believe is acceptable. The most common faults that have been experienced include problems with central heating, problems with windows, plastering issues, interior door problems and issues with taps.

New regulations concerning new homes built in Scotland have caused controversy amongst house building companies.

The new regulations for the sector are motivated by a push for increased environmental awareness in the housing sector, but critics claim that the new scheme will make it more difficult for people hoping to buy homes as it will raise the amount they may have to pay.

Included in the regulations are targets regarding energy efficiency. All new homes will have to be built using carbon emissions that are 30% less than those recorded in 2007. This figure represents a 70% reduction from the emission levels recorded in 1999.

Homes for Scotland, the body that represents Scottish homebuilders, criticised the rate at which the new regulations were coming in to play. The body has argued that those wishing to buy homes could end up having to spend up to £8000 more on them than they would have if the industry was given more time to adapt. It also claimed that the focus ought to be on improving the energy efficiency of existing homes, rather than placing unreasonable demands on new builds.

In response to the criticism, those behind the scheme argued that the new homes will be more energy efficient thereby saving their owners more money in the long run on utility bills.