Embodied energy for construction materials
Wood is such a good natural insulator that, as timber framers throughout the ages have known, it enhances the efficiency of other insulation.
Image courtesey of BBC News
Timber-Frame homes are more comfortable to live in, thanks to the experience and knowledge of timber-framers and the excellent insulation of the timber shell.
A timberframe building heats up more quickly, without any cold areas, meaning lower heating costs.
Better insulation, hand in hand with detailed draught proofing, means a smaller boiler, lower heating bills, and a cosier, more comfortable structure.
Timber is both the ONLY renewable building resource on the planet and has the least embodied energy out of nearly all building materials. (Embodied energy is the amount of fossil fuel - coal, oil, gas - used to produce, process and transport a given material. It is measured in KWh per tonne or cubic metre).