Wood is a beautiful material that is also a natural part of the Finnish environment. Using wood creates cosy environments that are good to be in and to live in. Wood is also an efficient and sustainable way to build. Discover the properties of wood that make it an energy-efficient, environmentally friendly and comfortable building material.
1. Wood is naturally sustainable
Wood is a beautiful material, but it is also durable - it is more durable than any other material in relation to its weight. And its softness makes it easy to work with. This makes it possible to use a very rigid as well as a light design language, to create massively strong structures or lace-like decorative details.
The wood's natural properties make it a suitable solution, especially for Finland's variable weather. The thermal conductivity of wood is similar to that of thermal insulation. In addition, wood also has a much lower thermal expansion than steel.
2. A centuries-old, safe alternative
Wood is one of the oldest building materials in history. The long history of wood is based on its natural properties - durability and the ease with which it can be worked due to its softness. Wood is also a safe building material. In particular, the fire safety of wood products has been significantly improved by surface treatment methods and materials. Today, wooden houses meet all the same fire safety requirements as other building materials.
3. Wood construction creates comfort
The simpler, faster and cheaper nature of timber construction allows for more versatile architectural solutions, such as horizontal and vertical staggering.
Wood also has natural, soothing properties. One of these is its soundproofing properties, based on the porosity and softness of wood. Wooden houses are acoustically pleasant. This is one of the reasons why the occupant satisfaction of wooden houses and wooden buildings is significantly higher than that of other living environments.
4. Wood is an environmentally friendly material
Construction currently produces around 40% of the world's waste. Therefore, wood should be the choice of a responsible builder, as it is a renewable resource that is also easily recyclable. One of the greatest benefits of wood is its ability to store carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. A wooden house, for example, stores around 30 tonnes of carbon, the equivalent of 10 years of driving or 10 holidays in the South West.
5. An energy-efficient solution
In new construction and renovation, energy efficiency in buildings is important. Increasing the use of wood in construction will achieve significantly greater environmental benefits than simply improving the energy efficiency of buildings. Wood itself is a low-energy product. For example, the production of exterior cladding panels requires only a fraction of the energy needed to produce the materials that replace them. On the other hand, wood is also an important source of energy.
