ᐅ Which Building Material – Objective Comparison or Matter of Belief?

Hello everyone,

I have been working for a while now on building my single-family house. Since we have no preference regarding the construction material, we requested quotes for both solid (masonry) construction and timber frame construction.

Now we are in the position to objectively compare the building materials and choose our favorite. Unfortunately, this is not as easy as expected, because each material has its pros and cons, and of course, every builder strongly recommends their preferred material.

Therefore, we would like to get the opinion of the experts here in the forum. We are interested in which option you would favor and why.

The offered materials for the exterior walls are:
#1 – Solid house
= Ytong aerated concrete blocks, 36.5cm (14 inches) thick, without additional insulation.

#2 – Solid house
= Hollow clay bricks with additional external thermal insulation composite system (ETICS).

#3 – Timber frame construction
= Wall build-up: 100mm (4 inches) wood fiber insulation board, cavity insulation with cellulose (thermal conductivity coefficient 0.040 W/mK), 180mm (7 inches) timber stud construction, 15mm (0.6 inches) wood-based panel, installation cavity, 12.5mm (0.5 inches) gypsum fiberboard.

What might also be relevant for the evaluation:
- The house will be built in a rural area without significant traffic exposure.
- It has a large glazed area on the south side.

We would really appreciate any input from your side.

Many thanks,
matze007