It is the intention with this paper to provide knowledge

SCANDINAVIAN TIMBER about Scandinavian timber frame building and give techni-
FRAME HOUSE CONSTRUC- cal background for comparison with similar constructions
in other countries. It is also hoped that the paper shows the
TION flexibilities of timber frame design and its possibility of
TECHNICAL DESIGN AND adapting to local environmental conditions, thus providing
background for a consideration of utilizing the wooden
FUTURE TRENDS house concept also in areas without a tradition with this
type of houses.
Trond 0. Ramstad and Age Hallquist, Civil Engineers,
Norwegian Building Research Institute, Oslo, Norway
Design principle
Characteristically for timber frame construction is the use
of several materials or products in combination. Each pro-
duct serves only one or a few functions as part of the total
Summary system, and being specialized and refined for these func-
tions particularly.
The paper reviews the present position of timber frame
Wall construction starts with a load-bearing frame of timber
house construction in Scandinavia. The purpose of the pa-
per is to provide knowledge about the technical design studs and plates as shown infigure I . This frame is com-
pleted with a number of other materials to form the finished
principles and the materials currently in use. Some future
wall, using the design principle indicated infigure 2.
trends and developments towards new designs for timber
frame construction are also discussed.

Resume
Cet expose presente la position acutelle de la construction
en charpente de bois en Scandinavie. L'intention de l'expo-
se est de procurer connaissance sur les principes techniques
de la construction et les materiaux actuellement en usage
aujourd'hui. Certains tendances futures et developpements
vers nouvelles constructions en bois sont aussi discutes.

Introduction
Timber frame house construction as presented in this paper
is based primarely on Norwegian design solutions. How-
ever, timber frame houses in Sweden and Denmark are
technically very similar, and the main design concept is also Fig. I . Basic structural timber wall frame. Walls can be
closely linked with the traditional North American con- build in ttstick,, on site, or prefabricated. The degree of
struction practice. prefabrication may vary from the basic frame with one
In Norway low-rise houses are now accounting for close to layer of sheathing to completely finished wall panels.
80 % of all residential buildings (house units), and more than Wall frames are erected directly on a concrete floor slab,
95 % of these are timber frame construction. Also in Swe- concrete floor elements, or on a timber floor structure
den are wooden houses dominating residential building to as shown here.
approximately the same extent.
A majority of these houses are financed through the State
Housing Bank, being built to a standard and cost reflecting Timber floor and roof construction is based on the same
the government's social policy programme. Privately fi- design concept, by completing a load-bearing structure of
nanced housing, also to luxury standards, is also usually wood beams or trussed rafters with additional materials on
timber frame design. both sides and filling the cavities with thermal insulation.
In 1978 over 60 % of all houses were built by the use of An important feature of this design is the very large number
standard drawings (catalogue designs). Apart from residen- of different building products and makes which can be
tial building is timber frame construction also widely used utilized. With the same basic construction technique and
for building low-rise schools and kindergartens, smaller design work the choice of materials can be adjusted to local
industrial and service buildings etc., in addition t o an im- material supplies, product prices at the time of buying,
portant market for secondary homes like cottages at the special appearance requirements etc. Timber frame struc-
seaside or in the mountains. tures are dry construction and light in weight. The same
 lining on all exterior walls the wind bracing is considered
E x t e r n a l c l a d d i n g ( ~ a i nb a r r i e r ) satisfactorily. Let-in corner bracing is used only when there
is timber boards both for cladding and lining, breather paper
Ventilated space
and no sheathing.
Wind b a r r i e r

Thermal i n s u l a t i o n between s t l l d s

Vapour and a i r b a r r i e r

Lining

Fig. 2. Construction of timber frame exterior wall, in

principle. Several building products are combined,
each product serving only a limited number of func-
tions.

basic design concept is used whether the house is t o be built

completely on site with a minimum of tools, or being prefa-
bricated in a factory with highly automated machinery.
The dissimilarities in how timber framed houses are built,
both within Scandinavia and between various other coun-
tries, reflects mainly the difference in local availability of
building products and materials. But there is also significant
differences in a number of construction details, particularly
in connection with external appearance. The design princi-
ple is nevertheless mainly the same.

Materials and construction details in

current use Fig. 3. Platform frame construction. All walls are placed
Traditionally the balloon frame construction has been used, upon the subfloor, built in ttstick>>or as prefabricated
where wall studs and the roof are erected before the sub- panels. Partition walls are usually erected after roof
floor panels or the floor boards are fastened to the floor completion when they are built on site.
joists. During the 1970's, however, the platform frame meth-
od has become very common. By using water-resistant
materials the floor is made to form a working platform
before starting the erection of walls and roof, figure 3. The Preservation by design is given high priority in all detailing.
advantage are faster erection and increased working safety. This include good ventilation of the roof structure, ventila-
On the other hand the method requires more expensive tion of external cladding, emphasize on water drainage at
floor materials and often more work on floor finish. window and exterior door details and at plates and founda-
A typical section of a house from the 1970's is shown in tions, entrance-doors covered by roof, etc. Special durable
figure 4, whilefigure 5 a, b and c show the most typical wood species are not used, while utilization of preservative
materials currently in use. These different alternatives are treated timber being pressure impregnated normally is li-
combined in almost all possible ways. mited to base plates and balcony structures.
Timber frame construction is limited to two-storey houses In cases where fire safety requires special measures to be
by fire safety regulations. As foundation are basements taken it is common to find solutions with plasterboards
widely used, particularly in detached house construction, covering the timber structure. In row-houses and other type
while alternatives are slab on the ground or suspended of dense housing the permissible area (horizontal projec-
timber floors over foundation strips, piles or a crawl-space. tion) between non-combustible fire walls usually range
Houses are usually designed for snow loads in the range 1.5 from 600 m2 to 800 m2, depending upon size and design.
kN/m2to 3.0 kN/m2, and a maximum basic wind load about Acoustic insulation requirements are normally met by the
0.60 kN/m2 - 0.85 kN/m2. use of double separated framework designs, for walls a s
Wind bracing is given much attention in many countries. well as for floors.
Experience from the timber frame house construction in
Scandinavia shows there is few or none problems related to
horizontal wind forces on a completed house, and structural
calcualations are normally not carried out regardless the
size and shape of the house. With a minimum of one layer
with any of the ordinary sheet type materials as sheathing or
 ' \ Asphalt s h i n g l e s .

Asphalt r o o f i n g f e l t (1600 gr/m2).

1 5 mm t i m b e r board s h e a t h i n g .

Breather paper.

S p e c i a l cardboard, f a s t e n e d t o

150 mm glasswool ' o r rockwool.

Timber t r u s s e d r a f t e r s , spaced
c / c 0.60 rn o r C / C 1.20 m . T h i c k
ness 48 mm, v a r i a b l e d e p t h .

12 mm board l i n i n g .
0.04 mm p l y t h e n e f i l m .
100 mm glasswool o r rockwool.

Timber c l a d d i n g , 1 9 mm boards.

48 mm x 98 mm wood j o i s t s
spaced c / c 0.60 m .

22 mm chipboard s u b f l o o r .

48 mm x 198 mm wood j o i s t s
spaced c / c 0,60 m
200 mm glasswool o r rockwool
over open foundation. 100 mm
over basement o r groundfloor.

B r e a t h e r paper.
12 mm board c e i l i n g .

Fig. 4. Typical Scandinavian timber frame design from the 1960's and the 1970's.
Alternative materials are shown in figure 5.
 Cladding
a ) Vertical o r horizontal timber
b o a r d s , 1 9 mm t h i c k n e s s , 95 mm
- 1 7 0 mm w i d t h , s t a i n e d
b ) 1 1 0 mm b r i c k v e n e e r
c ) 9 mm - 15 mm plywood
d ) C o r r u g a t e d aluminium o r s t e e l
- sheets
e ) Asbestos-cement b o a r d s

Ventilation space
0 - 50 m m , u s u a l l y 1 9 mm - 2 3 mm

Wind B a r r i e r
a ) Asphalt impregnated b r e a t h e r
paper (600 gr./m2) b ) Asphalt s h i n g l e s
b ) 12 mm a s p h a l t i m p r e g n a t e d , p- c ) A s p h a l t f e l t , two
rous fibreboard with windtight
layer hermal i n s u l a t i d ) Corrugated a s b e s t o s -
c ) 9 mm s p e c i a l p l a s t e r b o a r d cement s h e e t s
d ) 3 mm a s b e s t o s - c e m e n t - c e l l u -
1 0 s e boercic 225 mm t h i c k n e s s ( b a t s I I I (1I

1I l 1 l1 L
or rolls)
Roof S h e a t h i n g
mrmal insulation a ) Glasswool, 15 o g
a ) 15 mm - 1 8 mm t . & g .

-
2 1 kg/m3
1 0 0 mm o r 150 mm t h i c k n e s s b ) Roc~rwool, 3 3 o r t imber b o a r d s
(bats) 45 kg/m3 b ) 3mm - 6 r n h i g h den-
a ) G l a s s w o o l , 1 5 o r 2 1 kg/m3 s i t y fibreboard (with
b ) Rockwool, 33 o g 45 kg/m3 Rafters 2 o v e r l a p and no a s p h a l t
f e l t on t o p , o n l y com-
Studs Trussed r a f t e r s o r
b i n e d w i t h r o o f i n g on
r a f t e r s on glu-lam
600 mm s p a c i n g , softwood battens )
beams, s o l i d s o f t -
a ) 48 mm x 98 mm c ) 9 mm - 1 3 mm plywood'
wood. 600 mm o r
b ) 36 mm x 1 4 8 mm d ) 1 3 mm - 1 6 mm c h i p -
1200 mm s p a c i n g .
c ) 48 mm x 98 mm p l u s 48 mm x board
48 mm h o r i z o n t a l r i b b o n s

Vamur b a r r i e r
Vapour b a r r i e r
As f o r e x t e r i o r w a l l s ,
f i g . 5a.

Ceiling 1 ~:lyaiti,"O
1:i e ) Plastic film reinfor-
ced with g l a s s f i b r e .

Ventilation space

mm
a ) 0.04 m m , 0.06 mm o r 0 , l O mm
polythene f i l m
b ) Paper covered w i t h polythene
film
As f o r l i n i n g , f i g . 5 a .
L Wind b a r r i e r
a ) Asphalt impregnated
breather paper
Lining b ) 12 mm a s p h a l t impreg-
a) 12 mm c h i p b o a r d n a t ed porolus f i b r e -
b) 1 2 mm medium d e n s i t y f i b r e b o a r d board w i t h w i n d t i g h t
c) 1 3 mm p l a s t e r b o a r d layer
d) 15 mm tongue-and g r o o v e wooden c ) 3 mm h i g h d e n s i t y
board w i t h v a r i o u s p r o f i l e s f ibreboard
c ) 6 mm - 9 mm plywood

Fig. 5 a. Alternative materials in current use for exterior Fig. 5 b. Alternative materials in current use for roof
wall designs. designs.
 Building timber frame means the use of light materials,
which is equally important in transportation as for the
handling o n site. This allows also small builders with light
and inexpensive equipment to operate effeciently. The dry
building process allows fast completion as problems with
L ~ l o o rc o v e r i n g
the drying of in situ concrete etc. are minimized. It is also
important that timber frame construction can go on conti-
a ) Vinyl ( r o l l o r t i l e s )
b ) Carpet ( r o l l o r t i l e s ) nuously through the cold winters.
c ) P a r q u e t , hardwoods and s o f t - The quality of framed houses depend on skilled workers
woods, 1 5 rnrn o r 2 3 rnrn
d ) S o l i d softwood t . & g . boards,
who understand why good workmanship is needed in a
2 1 rnrn number of critical details. This may be details related to
( p l u s c o r k , t i l e s , l i n o l e u m rub- air-tightness, to avoid excessive moisture content causing
ber etc.)
- Subfloor rot or paint blister, squeaking floors etc. Lack of skilled
a ) 22 rnm c h i p b o a r d workers may sometimes favour other building systems. On
b ) 1 8 rnrn plywood the other hand prefer most habitants houses made of wood
c ) 2 1 rnrn - 2 3 rnrn t i m b e r b o a r d s because they are familiar with this material and are able to
p l u s 6 - 1 2 rnrn medium den-
s i t y fibreboard carry out maintenance, rebuilding and alterations themsel-
ves.
1 L 'Thermal insulat,ion
One of the most important competitive features of the tim-
200 rnrn thicE,neas o v e r open found-
ber framed house is the adaptability t o increasing thermal
a t i o n , 100 mm t o 200 mrn o v e r
b a s e m e n t , 100 rnm between h e a t e d insulation requirements. Design work is easier than with
room- , ( E a t s o r r o l l s ) other construction systems, especially because the structu-
a ) G l a s s w o l l , 1 5 o r 2 1 kg/rn3
b ) Rockwool, 33 o r 45 kg/rn3
ral components d o not form severe thermal bridges.
Total cost figures from Norway, including the running cost
Floor j o i s t s of maintenance and heatloss, shows well insulated timber
600 rnrn s p a c i n g . framed walls t o be the cheapest external wall construction
S i z e v a r y i n g from 36 rnrn x 1 9 8 rnrn
t o 7 3 rnrn x 223 rnrn, s o l i d s o f t - on the market, along with steel framed systems based on
wood beams. cold-formed steel profiles. Economic considerations indi-
cates that timber frame construction will continue to keep
[C e i l i n g o v e r h e a t e d room o r
basement its strong competitive position in Scandinavia.
As f o r l i n i n g , f i g . 5 a , p l u s
b r e a t h e r p a p e r when open j o i n t s .
Future trends and new designs
C e i l i n g o v e r open f o u n d a t i o n
It is believed that the following factors will be among the
a ) 12 mm a s p h a l t i m p r e g n a t e d
most important affecting the further development of timber
porous f i b r e b o a r d w i t h wind-
tight layer frame design as far as materials and construction techni-
b ) 3 mrn - 6 rnrn h i g h d e n s i t y ques are concerned:
fibreboard
. .
c ) 1 5 rnrn t & g t irnber b o a r d s - Energy conservnrion. New building code requirements
p l u s k ~ r e aht e r p a p e r with lower U-values are already introduced t o save energy
d ) G rnrn - 12 rnrn plywood on a national level. The effect of heating cost on private
economy may even result in the use of better thermal insu-
Fig. 5 c. Alternative materials in current use for timber lation than the minimum code requirements. Better control
floor designs. of air infiltration and ventilation may also affect the design
ofjoints between building elements and the use of materials
for barriers against air penetration.
- Skilled w)orkforce. A shortage of skilled carpenters and
Competitive position other specialized building workers is foreseen as a n increa-
Wood has always been the traditional building material in sing problem. This leads t o stronger efforts in the develop-
large parts of Scandinavia, due to availability from local ment of prefabricated components where fast and simple
resources. But a prime reason for today's strong position of erection on site is a primary goal. More prefabrication is
timber frame house construction in Scandinavia, as indica- also required t o meet demands related t o more stationary
ted in the introduction, is its adaptability t o changes in jobs and sheltered working places.
technology and requirements. - Individual house design. Areas with a large number of
The construction principle allows the designer and builder houses looking almost totally standardized are now being
t o select between various materials and construction tech- avoided. There is a need for using systems which offer
niques t o provide an optimal performance/cost solution. maximum oppo~tunitiesin individual design, combined
One result of this process during the last 25 years has been a with the economic benefits of using long series of standard
reduction in wood material used for an ordinary house t o building operations and purchasing materials and compo-
about one half, while construction time has been cut t o one nents in as large quantities a s possible. Effective combina-
third. tions of prefabrication and building o n site are required.
 Wood f l a n g e s ,

'-1-
- Timber resources. A shortage of sawn wood with large ,+ Wood f l a n g e s , 45 mm x 4 5 rnm
dimensions and good quality is gradually becoming more 35 mnl x 4 5 rnrn
significant. At the same time new technology leads to more F i b r e b o a r d web,
F i b r e b o a r d web,
P m,
possibilities in automatic production of composite materials 6mm

and components, in particular based on gluing techniques

Stud section Eem section
combined with automatic handling and quality control, h = 2 0 0 mm - 3 0 0 mm h = 200 rnrn - 4 0 0 mrn
The effect of new thermal insulation requirements in natio-
nal building regulations have already had a noticeable effect
on Schandinavian timber frame design. The thickness of
mineral wool in external walls is now increased to 150 mm
El +-
- Vent i l a t i o n
Board-type
wi rid b a r r i e r
or more. This is obtained by switching to wider studs and/or
placing horizontal ribbons to one or both sides of the studs
as indicated in figure 6.

T y p i c a l c r o s s s e c t , i o n o f r o o f wit, h t?.er!nal i n r , i l l s t i o n

- Vapour
barrier
Fig. 7. Example of I-sections for studs and beams,
4 8 rnrn x 4 8 rnrn - commercially available for timber frame housing (Ma-
s p a c e d c / c 0.6
o r 0.9 m sonite of Sweden). The beams will have a longer permis-
sible span than solid wood members, thus providing
38 mm o r 1 4 6 mm better opportunities for roof and floor designs.
studs
Laminated timber may be more widely used in ordinary
house construction. Laminated members are often used for
the architectural effect and the appearance alone, particu-
larly in more expensive house design. However, the effect
of high material cost for lamination can partly be offset by
Fig. 6. Examples of external walls with horizontal rib- fast erection. The use of a simple load-bearing structure of
bons to provide space for increased thermal insulation. large laminated beams and posts combined with prefabri-
cated elements and components is a concept that already
Increased thermal insulation in roofs is now resulting in has proved to be economically interesting. New develop-
larger members for the lower chords in trussed rafters as the ments in stressed-skin and sandwich panels are expected to
thickness of mineral wool and not structural calculations appear on the market in increasing numbers. Specialized
are governing the design. sealing systems for joints, like polyurethane foams, rubber
I-shaped profiles made of wood and structural, woodbased sealing strips etc., will probably be more widely used in
sheet material have so far mainly been utilized as plywood wodden house building.
beams for more specialized structures. Time seems now Solid timber boards are still the most popular external clad-
more ready for the introduction of I-sections in ordinary ding in Scandinavia, particularly in Norway and Sweden,
timber frame house building. It is now possible to produce even for the most expensive houses. Brick veneer does also
this type of members to a competitive cost when thick walls have a strong position, having good appearance and vir-
(minimum 200 mm) and high roofbeams or floor joists (mi- tually no need for maintenance, which partly make up for a
nimum 250 mm) are required. An example of commercially high initial cost. A number of new cladding materials are
available I-sections are shown in figure 7. This type of marketed every year, mainly metal- and woodbased sheet
members combine high strength and stiffness, little shrin- materials. These are often claimed to require very little
kage and accurate dimensions, and they can be produced by maintenance. However, it looks like private house owners
using rather small timber dimensions. Another I-section in particular are ready to do the necessary maintenance
design, from USA, is using a plywood web and flages of themselves on traditional timber claddings, as well as other
<<micro-lam>> instead of solid wood to ensure a more uni- parts of their wooden houses.
form quality.