Kit Homes

Article Tools

Image Gallery

Print

E-mail

Comments

RSS

Timber Frame (Post-and-Beam)

Many years ago, homes often were built with heavy timber framing. But during most of the 20th century, "stick-built" construction, which primarily utilizes 2-by-4-inch and other dimensional lumber, has been favored. Today, however, timber framing (also called post-and-beam construction) is enjoying a renaissance, and many timber-frame houses, barns and other structures are available now as kits.

For the past 32 years, Shelter-Kit of Tilton, New Hampshire, has been making timber-frame kits that are specifically aimed at the amateur owner-builder. Andy Prokosch, the company's founder-president, says that building your own timber-frame home is not for everyone. "It does take a lot of time and effort, and for some people this just doesn't work," he says. "But a lot of people really want to be involved in planning and building their own home, and I think that's very important. Also, by doing it themselves, they probably are going to save a substantial amount of money."

John Doherty of North Sandwich, New Hampshire, had no previous construction experience; nevertheless, he and his 22-year-old hired helper managed to complete Doherty's house in about five months. Handling some of the long, heavy timbers proved to be a challenge, but the hardest part for Doherty was the roof. "I'm afraid of heights, and working up there with pieces of plywood and bundles of shingles was the scariest part of the whole project," he says. "It was a lot of hard work, but I love the house."

With no interior structural walls, a timber-frame house lends itself to almost infinite flexibility in terms of interior layout. "It's a wonderful type of design to work with," says Doherty. "We found that we could move rooms around from the original plan without any problems; the flexibility is incredible."

Because of their self-supporting design, timber-frame homes can offer large areas of wall space for windows, making them particularly suitable for passive-solar design. A properly oriented timber-frame home with heavily insulated roof and wall panels can be extremely energy efficient. However, almost any well-sited kit home with sufficient south-facing window area and heat-storage capacity can achieve similar passive-solar gains.

Dome Kits

"A dome has plenty of room on the main and loft floors, and lots of light and vault without the waste of attic space that generally is expensive and large in a conventional home," says Linda Boothe, marketing director of Oregon Dome in Veneta, Oregon.

Boothe says that a dome is easier to construct than other types of structures. "Although the owner-builder may have a bit of a struggle the first time they cut a piece of insulation or Sheetrock, after that the pattern is repeated many times," she says.

RSS | Comments | E-mail | Print