Wooden House Box Construction

Wooden Box Design

• Wooden box construction relies on interlocking box forms. Many wooden box homes consist of two separate boxes, one on top of the other in an offset position. The overhang of the top box produces a roof for a larger first floor or a covered deck or entryway. Inside the home, the two boxes are open to one another, though the individual boxes may still be identifiable. Wooden box homes typically have large, open interiors that combine common areas such as living rooms, entryways, kitchens and storage space.

Materials

• Wooden box construction is named for its use of wood planks or wooden walls that form the box shapes of the house. The construction process, however, typically makes use of many different materials. These include construction materials such as poured concrete, glass and steel, all of which are more common in commercial and industrial construction than in residential construction. Wooden box house construction typically does not use vinyl siding or wooden shingles.

Benefits and Drawbacks

• Wooden box construction requires more specialized building techniques than conventional home building. This means that not all contractors have the experience and equipment necessary to build wooden box homes. That wooden box homes are less common than timber frame homes means they are likely to take longer to build and cost more in some cases. Even so, wooden box homes offer eye-catching facades and innovative interiors with large amounts of usable space.

Applications

• While some wooden box homes are constructed for residential use, others are meant to be architectural models, concept designs and proof of concept for certain engineering and material designs. Architects who design wooden box homes may seek energy efficiency that conventional homes can't offer or attempt to make more efficient use of materials as a way of suggesting alternatives to conventional home construction methods. In addition, homes architects use wooden box designs for commercial buildings, museums, galleries and classrooms.