Sunday, January 2, 2011

Query on house with wood

QUOTE

Happy New year to you. What is your opinion about wooden log houses in Kerala. Can it withstand our torrential rainfall . I have some land in Vagamon where i want to build a custom made wooden log house but my friends are discouraging me saying its not an ideal construction material for Kerala climatic conditions but my argument is log houses are more prevalent in extreme snowy countries where snow accumulates on the roof top. What is your opinion about this.

DR.Thomas Thomas

My Reply

Traditionally our old houses in Kerala were mostly made of wood.
Just click on link below where I have written on a Pathinaru Kettu house of erstwhile Maharaja of Travancore in Kayamkulam where he used to say during his vacation
 
http://kerala-architects.blogspot.com/2010/08/krishnapuram-palace-at-kayamkulam.html
 
If you look at the pictures you will notice that majority of building parts are made of wood
So there is nothing wrong in using or building a house with tree logs.Good seasoned wood will easily withstand our rains
But wood has become extremely costly in our place now.That is why use of wood has gone down.
Basically I would suggest you to plan a trip with your chosen Architect to the site and discuss in detail with him about your dreams for the house.
A qualified and experienced Architect can convert your dreams into reality and advise you properly
Of course,we can  also act as your Architect if you are interested

1 comment:

  1. as a corollary, I was interested in building a house using traditional methods - brick wall construction with a timber roof clad in clay tiles and a false ceiling made up with plaster (gypsum) board nailed to timber joists and finished with cement/sand/gypsum plaster.

    I was told that it is possible to substitute steel girders instead of timber joists and purlins - any advice comparing the two methods cost and ease of construction wise, and also thermal characteristics.

    Do Kerala builders use a semi-permeable membrane (Dupont Tyvek or similar) under the tile layer to keep damp out.

    Thanking you.

    ReplyDelete