German houses: design and construction

Half-timbered architecture can be recognized immediately. It is associated with the houses of Germany and Europe. Often, the roofs in such structures are covered with a tiled roof. To date, such a canonical view of residential buildings is used as a design refinement. And on the other hand - it's a symbol of German quality. But in fact, in Germany the buildings of the XV-XVI centuries, which are still in operation, are preserved. Therefore, many argue that houses on German technology have an extended life.

History of German houses

In fact, the famous German houses, whose photos are fascinating, have appeared for a reason. The structures of structures in which the main material is a tree are characteristic both for wooded areas and for coastal areas. In the countries of the Baltic and North Seas (Germany, Denmark, Great Britain, Holland, etc.) there were many skillful carpenters who built quality vessels. These masters knew how to build a reliable construction of wood, so they started building and structures.

For the construction of the first houses, the pillars were dug directly into the ground, and above them, the connecting beams, rafters were laid, and then they began to construct the roof. Of course, after 15 years, the columns were comparatively fast decayed. Over time, they began to install on the prototype of the stone foundation - immersed in the ground before the huge boulders. The service life of poles, and therefore of structures, has grown tens of times. But it was necessary to compensate for the binding to the ground by a multitude of transverse slopes, rods, puffs and ties.

For skilled carpenters, such a connection was not a problem. They were carried out by naval methods and methods. Today, all connections are replaced with simpler ones, using steel fasteners (anchors, screws, clamps, threaded rods).

Design Features

In fact, the German house is a special frame made of elements of a large and medium cross-section, with the filling of the sinuses of the external temperature contour. The rest of the structure (roof, foundation, partitions, walls) can be manufactured in the same way as in other houses.

A reliable frame is not a problem for skilled carpenters. But filling the sinuses is a difficult task. Because of this depended on the quality of the walls, and therefore the fate of the entire structure. At that time sinuses were filled with saman or clay material. This material was used on all continents. Today it also becomes popular, it is used in eco-building.

In the beams, slots were cut into which a twinned or woven grid of twigs was inserted. An adobe was put on her. The sheet material for exterior decoration of the building at that time was not invented, and it was too expensive to use the boards for this purpose. Therefore, the buildings were plastered, but first the solution was not able to be applied to wooden beams.

Therefore, the walls remained with visible beams, which later became the business card of German houses.

A distinctive feature of the half-timbered house

Many ancient German houses have one distinctive feature. Looking closer, you can see that every new floor of the house hangs over the previous one. At first sight it looks unusual. The explanation for this construction is quite simple. In coastal areas, rains and precipitation often flow, draining the walls, water falling on the lower floors. Their walls were very wet. The upper floors quickly dried up due to wind and sun. Bottoms due to moisture could rot, but this is unacceptable. Therefore, the upper floors carried forward.

This feature of construction has become ineffective with the invention in the construction industry of quality waterproofing materials. Modern facades, foundations, walls and wood are reliably protected from frost and moisture. Therefore modern German houses have absolutely equal planes of walls.

The changes also affected the roofing material, due to the weight of which it was impossible to take out the visor even by half a meter. Today, use light sheets that can drain water from the wall to a meter, or even more.

Is it Canadian technology or is it German?

Old German homes can be safely called the foundation of all technologies of frame construction. After all, in modern construction of wireframe technology, virtually everything has been repeated. In systems there are no lateral beams, supports, slopes. Today, experts only use a different material thickness (modern beams are slightly thinner). Many believe that the technology of frame construction is Canadian, but ready-made structures are often called both Finnish and German. And this is true, because this technology was built buildings before the discovery of America.

Today in frame houses it is difficult to see old European houses, because they have a characteristic advantage - sheathing with high-quality sheet material and finishing the building from the outside. The structure of the structure has been improved, and nature has won, because the wood consumption has significantly decreased.

Ancient method of housing construction and modern materials

Thanks to the sheathing with a solid OSB sheet, the construction has become even stronger, more rigid and more reliable. Now you do not need to use the powerful beams and racks at the initial stage. Exterior finish and sheet material reliably protect the wooden frame from the negative effects of the environment: solar burnout, weathering, freezing. Thanks to this protection, the lifetime of the structure has increased significantly.

A good German home has a business card - visible beams of the structure. Today they are used only for decorative purposes. Of course, the walls of adobe and clay are in the past, and the space is filled with high-quality and ecological insulation. Today, straw is also used as a filler.

Previously, the sinus treatment was a problem, and today this process takes up as much power as the interior decoration of the walls. Thanks to the use of modern façade fillings, this process is easy and simple.

The frame of the structure remained a model of the reliability of the entire structure. The metal elements helped to speed up and simplify the process of mounting the German house.

Conclusion

The German house is a quality, reliable building. Its construction practically does not differ from other houses. Remember, having decided to build such a house, you can realize your dream and live in a house in European style.