Timber-Framed Panel Houses

Short construction duration, excellent thermal insulation properties, and a possibility to make your visionary home a realityare only a few advantages enjoyed by those who opt for a timber-framed panel house. It is one of the simplest and most economical ways of building a home, offered by Litimbera.

People often ask what a timber-framed house is, how it is different from a panel house, which of them is superior, and why these two terms are combined.

In fact, they supplement each other. Wooden panel houses originated from timber-framed houses.
It is a long-known, simple, and economic way of building a home. Archaeological excavations have shown that people were building wooden houses in different parts of Europe already 3,000-4,000 years ago. Nowadays, such houses are most common in Germany, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and other countries.


For timber-framed houses, the entire process of erecting a frame, insulating the structure, and completing the interior and exterior finish takes place at a construction site. A disadvantage of constructing a timber-framed house is that work depends on weather conditions.

Meanwhile, a timber-framed panel house is brought to its future location in the form of factory-assembled large-sized panels. This results in shorter construction duration, reduced amounts of waste, and a minimal impact of weather conditions.

Technology, Known Since Ancient Times

The history of timber-framed construction technology began in the most distant past: The first manually built homes were nothing else but timber-framed houses. They were known to people in Ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome, and China. The Ise Grand Shrine, located in Japan, is considered to be the oldest wooden timber-framed structure that has survived until today. It was constructed of cedar wood 1,300 years ago, in 690.

The timber-framed house construction technique was developing synchronously in various regions. In the East, the walls of such houses were light partitions. In Europe, the cavities of the partitions were filled with different materials: stones, clay, sand or sawdust. In Western Europe, the timber-framed construction technology flourished in the Middle Ages, when the middle class was formed and the need for affordable and comfortable good-quality homes arose.

Middle-class townspeople could not live in wooden shacks or stone castles. Hence, in the 15th century, German specialists devised a fachwerk house, a type of structure that was suitable for low-rise buildings. These houses, that had a stable wooden frame filled with a mixture of straw, manure, and lime, and later – with stones and bricks, became widespread. Already back in those days, the framing technique was suitable for fast construction and ensured a visually impressive result.

The filling of the frame had to be replaced regularly. If the replacement schedule was observed, a building served for several centuries. This explains as to why many fachwerk houses that were built 300, 400 or 500 years ago still stand today

In time, timber-framed construction technologies were also applied on the other side of the Atlantic. One of the first modern prototypes of a multi-layered panel originated there. It was invented in 1930s by American architect Frank Lloyd Wright, who wanted to design simple and affordable good-quality houses for his middle-class clients. Using a frame allowed to reduce construction costs. This had a big influence on the nature of planning and putting up buildings in American suburbs.

Timber-framed homes are still popular today. Affordability, energy efficiency, and low construction costs are the characteristics that are attractive to everyone, everywhere.

Manufacturing and Erecting

We advise to pre-plan the construction process on paper. It helps to crystallise ideas and solutions, while saving actual working time and materials. Our constructors will draw a spatial model of your visionary house using specialised home design software. They will then assess it and improve any complex points, connection blocks or the whole product. 

We prepare detailed assembly drawings for each wooden structure. When timber is processed at the CNC machine, all the components get numbered. Thus, any carpenter or builder, not just a professional, will be able to assemble them at the construction site.

                                                    

Litimbera has extensive experience in manufacturing and erecting timber-framed panel houses of different architectural styles and parameters in Lithuania and abroad. We offer professional advice and help in choosing solutions that meet your wishes, capabilities, and priorities.

What is your dream home?

Please call us at +370 46 451 899 or send us an email at info@litimbera.lt.