FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Everything clients ask us about solid timber houses, A-frame kits, glulam, saunas, windows and doors, and how a project actually runs. Type a word below and the answers filter as you write.
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Solid timber, deeper
How does a solid timber wall behave in a fire?
In a fire, massive wood chars at a known, slow rate, roughly 0.65 to 0.7 mm per minute under Eurocode 5, and the char layer shields the wood behind it. The wall keeps carrying its load for the fire-resistance period set in the structural design, which is exactly what fire engineering asks for.
Engineers size our walls and beams with that charring reserve included.
Do mass timber walls need a vapour barrier?
An MHM wall needs no internal plastic-foil vapour barrier in our standard build-up. The wall is solid wood, mechanically fixed and free of glue, so it stays vapour-open: moisture can migrate through the wall and dry out again. The insulation layer outside the timber is chosen to keep that drying path open.
This vapour-open build-up is one reason the indoor air in a solid timber house feels the way it does.
What happens if solid timber gets wet during construction?
Rain on site is normal and planned for. Massive wood can take moisture during assembly and release it again. What matters is that the structure can dry, so we sequence the build to close the roof quickly, and moisture is checked before the envelope is closed.
A soaked lightweight frame with mineral wool is far less forgiving than a massive wall.
How good is the sound insulation of solid timber walls?
Sound insulation benefits directly from mass, and a massive wood wall carries several times the mass of a stud wall, which helps with airborne sound. The layered mechanical build-up also damps vibration. Between rooms and floors we combine the timber with the right build-ups to meet the acoustic targets of the project.
Tell us what is next to what, and the wall build-up follows.
Do timber houses overheat in summer?
Solid timber houses overheat less than lightweight ones. Massive wood walls store heat and release it slowly, so indoor temperature swings are flatter: the house takes longer to heat up on a hot day and cools overnight. Shading, glazing choices and ventilation still matter, and we plan them with the house.
How are electrics and plumbing routed in solid timber walls?
Services are planned before production. Cable routes and boxes are milled into the massive wall at the factory, while wet services run in installation layers and interior walls where they stay accessible. That is why we ask for the electrical plan early in the project.
Late changes remain possible, they are simply easier while the wall is still on the machine.
Can mass timber be used for multi-storey buildings in Europe?
Yes. Mass timber panels are used across Europe for multi-storey residential and commercial buildings, and our own portfolio includes multi-unit projects built from massive wood. Height limits come from national fire rules, and they differ by country.
For a specific building, we check the local code with the engineers first.
Energy and performance
Can a solid timber house reach Passive House performance?
A solid timber house can reach Passive House performance with the right envelope. The massive wall gives a strong airtight base, and with insulation thickness, glazing and ventilation designed to Passive House targets the certification maths can work. Whether certification is worth the fee, compared with simply building to a very low energy standard, is a project decision.
We model the envelope against your target.
What U-values matter most in a timber house?
Walls, roof and glazing matter most, because they make up most of the envelope. A balanced envelope beats one heroic number, so we look at the whole assembly, including windows and installation details. National rules set the minimum; your energy target sets the rest.
Ask us for the build-up sheet of a current project to see real numbers in context.
Is airtightness more important than wall thickness?
They solve different problems, and a good house needs both. Airtightness stops warm air leaking out through joints, which is a comfort and moisture issue as much as an energy one. Insulation thickness slows conduction. A massive wall with machined joints gives a naturally airtight structure to start from.
The blower-door result is decided by detailing, and detailing is factory work.
What heating system suits a solid timber house?
Almost any heating system works, because the envelope does most of the work. Low-temperature systems, heat pumps with underfloor heating in particular, pair well with massive walls and their thermal storage. A wood stove remains a popular companion in our houses, for the ritual as much as the heat.
Sizing comes from the energy calculation of the actual house.
How do you avoid thermal bridges in a timber house?
Thermal bridges are decided at the junctions: base connection, window reveals, balconies and roof edges. Those details are engineered and produced in the factory rather than solved with foam on site. Massive wood helps here, because timber conducts far less heat than concrete or steel.
Every recurring detail in our system has been drawn, built and improved before your house uses it.
A-frame, deeper
How much usable floor area do you lose under an A-frame roof?
A well-designed A-frame loses less floor area than the silhouette suggests. The steep sides cost standing height along the edges of the upper floor, which is why our A-frames put full-height living downstairs and plan the loft around beds, storage and seating, where lower headroom does not hurt.
Dormers and gable glazing win back light and perceived space.
What foundation does an A-frame kit need?
The same options as any house: an insulated slab or strip foundations, chosen for your ground conditions. A-frames concentrate loads along two long edges, so the foundation is engineered for line loads rather than point loads. We supply the foundation plan with the kit; local groundworks build it.
Screw piles can suit light garden buildings; houses normally sit on concrete.
Can an A-frame be engineered for Alpine snow and coastal wind?
Yes, that is a calculation, not a hope. The A-frame geometry sheds snow well and resists wind well, and each kit is engineered for the snow and wind loads of the actual site under Eurocode rules, from Baltic coast plots to Alpine valleys. The load figures go into the structural design before production.
Send the plot location and we take the loads from the national maps.
How do you insulate an A-frame roof properly?
In an A-frame the roof is the wall, so it gets wall-grade attention: a full insulation build-up above the visible structure, a ventilated cavity to keep the covering dry, and airtight detailing at the ridge and base. Done this way, the loft is easy to keep warm in January and liveable in July.
This one detail decides whether an A-frame is a four-season house or a summer cabin.
Can an A-frame have full-height bedrooms or a mezzanine?
Yes. Full-height rooms live on the ground floor, and the loft works as a mezzanine or sleeping level under the ridge. Where the brief asks for more standing height upstairs, we adjust the footprint, the roof pitch or add dormers. All of these are engineering decisions the kit is designed around.
The section drawing answers this best, and we produce one for your layout.
What roof covering works best on an A-frame?
Standing seam metal is the usual choice: light, weathertight and low-maintenance, and it sheds snow cleanly on a steep pitch. Shingles and profiled sheet also work, and the choice is mostly aesthetic and budgetary. Because the roof is the facade, the covering decision shapes the whole house.
We advise per project and can deliver the roof as part of the kit.
Glulam engineering
Is glulam stronger than steel?
Weight for weight, glulam competes with steel, and it wins on several practical fronts: it carries comparable spans at far lower self-weight, it keeps its structure in a fire without added cladding, and it arrives as a finished visible surface. Steel still wins where sections must stay minimal.
We compared the two in detail in the journal.
What is the difference between GL24h and GL28h?
They are strength classes of glulam: the number is the characteristic bending strength in N/mm². GL24h is the everyday structural workhorse. GL28h carries more in the same section and appears where spans or loads push harder. The engineer picks the class, and the eye cannot tell them apart.
Your structural calculation names the class for each member.
Can glulam be used outdoors, for a carport or terrace?
Yes, with the right detailing. Outdoor glulam wants constructive protection first: caps, drips and distance from splash water, so the timber stays dry by design. Species and glue class are chosen for exterior service, and the finish is maintained on a simple schedule.
Detailed this way, a glulam carport can serve for decades.
Can glulam stay exposed inside without fire cladding?
Yes, where the member is sized for its required fire-resistance period. Structural timber is designed with a charring reserve under Eurocode 5, so the beam meets its fire resistance as bare wood, without a plasterboard box. What you see is the structure itself, sized to survive the design fire.
Can glulam be curved for custom roof designs?
Yes. Glulam is laminated from boards, so members can be produced curved or tapered, which is how timber halls get their arches. In houses, curved members appear more rarely, usually as a deliberate architectural gesture, and are priced as one.
If the design wants a curve, we produce to the drawing.
What does an engineer need to size a glulam beam?
Span, spacing, the loads above it, the deflection the design will tolerate, and the fire resistance target. With those, sizing is routine Eurocode work. The part that separates a supplier from a table on the internet is connection design, and that is where timber structures are really won.
Send the drawing and we come back with sections and connection details.
Saunas and the garden
Where should an outdoor sauna be placed?
Level ground, sensible clearance from fences, branches and the neighbours' sightlines, and a door you can reach in winter without an expedition. Think about the walk from the house, where you cool down, and where the stove flue exits. Local rules on distances to boundaries vary by country and municipality.
Placement decides how often the sauna actually gets heated.
What base does a garden sauna need? Can it sit on grass?
Not on grass. An insulated garden sauna is a real building with real weight, and it wants a level, drained base: a concrete slab, pavers on a prepared bed, or screw piles with a frame. The base keeps the floor dry, the doors square and the stove safe.
We send base requirements with the model drawings before delivery.
Electric heater or wood-burning stove? How do I choose?
Electric is convenience: press a button, sauna at temperature on a timer, no flue. Wood is ritual: fire, crackle and the löyly people cross continents for, at the cost of a chimney and a little patience. Both are proper saunas; households split on temperament, not physics.
Our garden line is built for either, and we advise per model.
How do you ventilate an insulated garden sauna?
Fresh air usually comes in low, near the stove, and stale air leaves high on the opposite side, with the flow planned so the room breathes while you bathe. After the session the sauna needs to dry, so airing positions and vapour-open detailing look after the structure between uses.
Poor airflow shows up within a few years as tired, damp-smelling timber. Good airflow is invisible.
Can a garden sauna be used all year in a cold climate?
Yes. The insulated line is designed for year-round use: with a proper insulated envelope, a January session is routine. An uninsulated pod is a summer building, whatever the brochure says about winter.
Northern winters are the design case for these models.
Can a garden sauna include a shower or wet room?
Yes. Models and custom builds can carry a shower room, a cool-down room or a small terrace, provided water and drainage reach the building. The wet room is detailed like a real bathroom, with waterproofing and ventilation.
Tell us how you bathe and the plan follows.
Are wood-fired stoves allowed in residential gardens?
Often yes, where local rules allow it, with conditions: a proper flue at the right height, safe distances to combustibles, and in some countries an approval or a chimney sweep's sign-off. Rules differ by country and municipality, so we point you to what applies where you live.
The stoves and flues we deliver are CE-marked appliances, installed to the manufacturer's manual.
Windows and doors in use
What U-value should wooden windows have in Europe?
For new builds, look for whole-window values around 0.8 to 1.1 W/m²K with triple glazing; national codes set the ceiling and energy-conscious projects aim lower. The frame material matters less than the whole assembly: glazing, spacers, seals and installation decide the real number.
Our windows are made to measure, so the window is built to the value your project needs, and we quote the whole-window figure for your exact sizes; the technical documentation for our units goes down to around Uw 0.7.
How often do timber windows and doors need repainting or oiling?
Factory-finished modern coatings are not the window paint of childhood memory. Expect a maintenance check every few years and a refresh of the finish when inspection says so, sooner on exposed south- and west-facing elevations, later on sheltered ones. Alu-clad versions need almost no exterior maintenance.
A wipe and a look once a year buys years of coating life.
How are windows installed correctly in solid timber walls?
Massive walls simplify installation: the window fixes into solid wood, with an airtight seal inside, a vapour-open weather seal outside and insulation in the joint. There are no hollow reveals and no hunting for studs. Done this way, the window performs at its tested values.
Installation is part of our scope precisely because the joint decides so much.
Can rot in a wooden window be repaired, or is it a replacement?
Local damage in a well-made timber window is repairable: sections can be cut out, spliced and refinished, which uPVC cannot offer. Widespread rot in a neglected or badly detailed window is usually a replacement case. The difference is detailing and maintenance.
Are triple-glazed timber windows worth it?
In most of Europe, yes for new builds: the comfort gain near the glass and the energy numbers both argue for it, and the price step from double glazing is modest inside a whole project. In mild coastal climates or renovations, double glazing can still be a rational choice.
We price both for your sizes and let the numbers decide.
Can windows and doors be supplied together with the house kit?
Yes, and it is the tidy way to do it: one factory, one set of reveals and tolerances, one delivery, and the envelope arrives matched. Our windows and doorsets are made in the same workshop culture as the houses.
Separate supply is possible when a project needs it.
Process: order, delivery, assembly
How does a project go from enquiry to an installed house?
Enquiry, then a real conversation about the brief, then design and engineering, then a fixed offer, then production, delivery and assembly. You see drawings before production and a schedule before delivery. No stage starts on assumptions.
The configurator is the fastest way to start that first conversation.
What information do you need to give a real quote?
To prepare a real quote we need the plot location, the intended size and layout, drawings if they exist, and how far you want us to go: kit, weather-tight shell or turnkey. With that we can engineer, and only engineered projects get honest numbers. Anything quoted without those inputs is a guess wearing a suit.
The configurator collects exactly these answers in a few minutes.
How is a house kit delivered across Europe?
On trucks, as engineered packages loaded in assembly order, with the crane plan and unloading requirements agreed before the wheels turn. Freight is priced by distance and route; the product is the same everywhere. We deliver across Europe from Latvia and plan the route with the transport partner per project.
Site access, crane position and storage are checked before dispatch.
What happens if parts are damaged in transport?
Damage is documented at unloading, against the packing list, and the affected elements are remade or repaired by us. Transport is insured, and the insurance and remedy process sits with us; the paper trail from factory to site exists for exactly this moment.
This is one of the reasons delivery and assembly are better bought together.
What is included in the kit, and what is not?
The kit is the engineered structure: walls, floors, roof elements, fixings and the assembly documentation, plus windows and doors when ordered together. Site works, foundations, electrics, plumbing and interior finishes are local trades, and the drawings tell them exactly what to do.
The offer lists the scope line by line, so the boundary is clear before you sign.
How long does kit assembly take with a local builder?
The structure of a house goes up in days, not months: massive elements arrive finished and are craned into place in assembly order. The weather-tight shell follows within weeks, depending on size and roof. What consumes calendars is everything after the shell, and that is true of every construction method.
We give a per-project assembly schedule with the offer.
Do you provide assembly drawings and remote support?
Yes. Every kit ships with assembly documentation a competent carpenter can follow: sequenced drawings, fixing schedules and the crane plan. They are the same documents our own crews build from, and our engineers stay reachable during the build, with a video call when a detail needs eyes. And where the client wants certainty instead of coordination, our own team assembles the structure.
Do you deliver outside the EU, to Switzerland, Norway or the UK?
Yes. We deliver to non-EU destinations such as Switzerland, Norway and the UK; the difference is customs paperwork and lead time, which we plan into the schedule with the transport partner. The engineering side is unchanged, because loads and standards are calculated for the destination country from the start.
Tell us the plot country early and logistics are planned from day one.
Money
Why is there no fixed price list?
Because a serious house is engineered, not picked from a shelf. Size, site loads, energy target, glazing and finish level move the number substantially, and a price published without them is only marketing. What we give instead is a firm, project-specific offer for a defined scope and validity period.
Standardised garden sauna models are the exception, with guideline prices per model.
What drives the final price of a custom timber project most?
Size first, then the envelope: glazing area and specification, insulation target, roof complexity. After that, the finish level and how far we go, kit versus turnkey. Ground conditions and site access play their part through foundations and logistics.
The reliable way to control cost is deciding early what matters and what does not.
Can you get a mortgage for a timber house or kit in Europe?
Yes. Banks across Europe finance timber houses routinely; what they want is what they always want: a buildable plot, permits, a credible builder and a complete cost picture. A kit self-build may be financed in stages against progress. Terms differ by country and bank, so ask yours early.
Our documentation, drawings, specifications and offer are what a bank typically wants to see.
Is insurance more expensive for solid timber houses?
In most European markets a professionally built, code-compliant timber house insures normally. Engineered mass timber with documented fire design is not the risk category insurers price against, and premiums differ by country and insurer more than by wall material.
The project documentation we hand over answers an insurer's questionnaire point by point.
How are payments structured?
Project payments are structured in stages tied to milestones: a signing portion, production, delivery, assembly, typically 10, 40, 30 and 20 percent. You pay for stages that have happened, on a schedule written into the contract before anything starts.
The exact split is agreed per project and stands in the offer.
What should a full project budget include beyond the structure?
Land and its costs, permits and design fees, groundworks and foundations, utility connections, the structure itself, interior fit-out, and a reserve that stays untouched until it is needed. The structure is the predictable line; the site is where budgets wobble.
We tell you early which lines belong to us and which to local trades.
Trust, Latvia and sustainability
How do I verify a European timber manufacturer before paying?
Ask for built projects you can visit or verify, certificates for the materials, the structural engineering behind the product, and a contract with staged payments. A serious factory answers all four without flinching. Then visit the production, in person or on a video call.
Our projects page is public and our documents travel with every offer.
Can I visit the factory in Latvia before ordering?
Yes, and it is the best due diligence there is. You see the machines, the timber stock, the people and the current builds in production. Latvia is a short flight from many parts of Europe, and a video tour works well when travel does not fit.
Arrange a date through the contact page and come and see how your house is made.
What documents and certificates come with the structure?
The engineering package: structural calculations, assembly drawings, material certificates including FSC or PEFC documentation, and the declarations of performance behind CE-marked components such as windows. These are the documents building control, banks and insurers normally ask to see.
Documents are part of the product, not a favour.
Who is responsible for local permits and foundations?
Permit applications are handled by the client and the local designer, because permits are granted by your municipality; we supply the drawings and structural data the application needs. Foundations are built locally to our foundation plan. The split is clean: we engineer and produce, local professionals execute local works.
We have walked this path with clients across Europe and can tell you what to expect in your country.
What does FSC or PEFC certification actually change for my project?
FSC and PEFC certify the chain of custody: the timber comes from forests managed to audited sustainability standards, and the documentation follows it from forest to factory. For you it means provenance you can show a bank, a tenant or a grandchild. For the forest it means harvest with a future.
Is a solid timber house healthier to live in?
A solid timber house supports a clean indoor environment in ways you can verify: MHM walls are vapour-open and free of glue, they buffer indoor humidity, and the material list of the wall is short enough to recite. There are no adhesives in the wall to off-gas into your bedroom.
Most owners mention the air quality first. The physics explains it afterwards.
How much carbon does a solid timber house store?
Roughly a tonne of CO₂ per cubic metre of wood, locked up for the life of the building; a family house holds tens of cubic metres in its walls alone. The house stores carbon while the forest that supplied it regrows under FSC or PEFC management.
Compared with concrete and steel, the difference in embodied emissions is large.
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Write to us. A real person reads every enquiry and replies with an answer, not a brochure.
