Timber-frame house - Charpente

A wooden house is a construction made entirely of wood or wood-derived materials. It thus meets the criteria of a dry construction, as opposed to more traditional constructions based on the use of concrete, poured cement or cinder blocks, which are classified as wet constructions.

In France today, more than one in ten single-family homes is built of wood, although this varies from region to region. It's a fact: wood construction is continuing the progress it began a few decades ago. Not only has it benefited from technical advances, but also from the ecological and environmental preoccupations of today's society. Wooden homes are becoming lighter and lighter, with increasingly high thermal performance, and some are even "passive".

Of these, timber-frame homes are the most widespread; made up of load-bearing elements prefabricated in the factory, thus reducing site hours, they offer design flexibility and modularity; the roof is supported by a framework of horizontal or vertical wooden elements.

This article deals with the timber frame in the timber-frame house, defining its different structures and designs, and is part of a series devoted to timber construction as a whole. The first article [TBA 1 720] introduces the five constructive principles, then describes the materials used in timber construction, with their specific features and performance. The second [TBA 1 721] describes the structural elements of timber-frame homes, their functions and implementation, highlighting their performance. Other articles focus more specifically on finishing work, exterior skin, structural materials and panels, in order to address the more technical aspects of timber construction and provide concrete support for the construction industry.

At the end of the article, readers will find a glossary of important terms.