Glued-laminated timber (GL timber, GLT):
Glued-laminated timber (GL timber) is an industrially manufactured product that has a load-bearing application in timber construction. GL timber consists of at least three dried fibre boards or board lamellae bonded parallel to each other and is made from softwood.

Board stack:
The construction of a board stack is generally as follows: dried boards are placed next to each other in an upright position and are joined together with nails; in exceptional cases they may be glued. These solid structural components can be used for ceilings and storey-high walls.

Car-port:
An open shelter for a car, mostly made from timber.

Insulating materials:
Insulating materials are particular building materials, which effect the thermal, acoustic and/or fire protection performance of buildings, or technical facilities – depending on their particular tasks.

Air-tightness (of buildings):
Buildings have to be air-tight, otherwise structural damage can occur! The necessity of an air-tight exterior shell is often underestimated, because many believe that walls have to “breathe” - in other words that they have to be breathable. But what’s really meant by “breathable” is that walls should be vapour-diffusion permeable. However, this diffusion is a slow process and has nothing to do with leaks!

Structural wood preservation:
Structural wood preservation involves structural and physical measures which help to prevent detrimental changes in the moisture content of the timber or timber-based materials. Taking such measures to structurally preserve the wood can result in a component being reclassified in a lower hazard class.

Timber-skeleton construction:
The supporting structure of the timber skeleton consists of visible vertical posts and horizontal beams. The walls have no supporting function, only a stiffening one - they can be placed freely and moved at any time. A wall with interior and exterior fittings and integrated insulation is comparable to a timber frame construction. A timber-skeleton construction allows varied infill and design possibilities.

Wooden-panel construction:
A wooden-panel construction is typical for pre-fabricated houses and the only difference between them and timber-frame buildings is their even higher level of pre-fabrication. The supporting wooden panels allow efficient insulation and they easily achieve a low-energy standard.

Energy performance certificate:
This certificate is comparable to the registration document for your car. It contains many interesting indices regarding your house (e.g. anticipated heating energy use). Depending on where they are issued, energy performance certificates contain different information – even the layout of the document varies. The most important index you will find on all of these certificates is the energy index.

Final energy demand:
The amount of energy which has to be provided to heat a building, taking into consideration the demand for heating, the energy losses in the heating system, warm water requirements and how the hot water is generated.

Half-timber building:
The supporting parts of a wall consist of a framework (skeleton) made from beams and square timbers. The spaces between the timbers (the partition) are filled with wattle, clay or brickwork.

Timber-frame construction:
Timber-frame construction is a standardised and cost-efficient building system. For this construction method the single components are separated into frame segments. These frames are then clad with wood on both sides. This standardized construction method offers almost unlimited scope for design and works well for both residential houses and apartment complexes.

Wood-based materials:
Wood-based materials are industrially manufactured building materials. They are produced from chippings, fibres and veneers of similar types which are then compressed into one homogenous building material. To achieve this, glues of various kinds (synthetic, resin-bonded, wood-based material) or mineral binders (mineral bound wood-based materials) are added. This is how veneer plywood, wood core plywood, chipboard and fibreboard are produced.

Engineered timber construction:
Collective name for timber buildings which are designed from an engineering viewpoint; individual lumbers and their compounds are measured by static analysis.

Air-tight/wind-tight – the difference:
Wind-tight means that air flowing outside (wind) can’t penetrate the insulation. For example, this standard is guaranteed in roofing by installing an under-roof permeable membrane on the exterior of the construction. However, residential buildings also have to be air-tight, as wind-tight just isn’t enough! The air-tightness prevents draughts in the building. Tenders sometimes say “wind-tight“, but they almost always they mean “air-tight“.

Moon timber, moon-phase timber:
Although it has not been definitively scientifically proven, some carpenters and cabinetmakers think that timber logged according to the moon’s phase is more durable (fewer wood preservatives are necessary) and easier to process.

Sustainability:
Defines the pursuit of providing and optimising all forest functions for the benefit of current and future generations. Originally the term sustainability was only linked to timber stocks where it meant that only as much timber was logged as could be regrown.

Net Energy Balance:
A comparison of all the energy necessary for the construction, operation and removal of an energy system to the energy which is provided by the system during its lifespan. An energy converter with a negative energy balance uses more energy than is provided.

Low-energy house:
The term “low-energy house“ is defined in different ways. In Upper Austria a low-energy house is a house with an “overall energy index” of less than 50kWh/m²a. However, in Germany, for instance, the “Gütegemeinschaft Niedrigenergiehaus” (quality control association for low-energy housing) has created a very precise definition. They claim that a low-energy house must have a 30% lower energy demand as proposed by the thermal insulation regulation of 1995, as well as thermal bridge prevention, measured air-tightness controls and a ventilation system.

Passive House:
A passive house has a maximum heating requirement (energy index) of 15kWh/m²a. A conventional heating system is no longer necessary when there are such good thermal characteristics. The house is heated using internal (e.g. the heat emissions from people and devices) and solar profits.

Photovoltaic/Photovoltaic system (PV system):
Photovoltaic systems (PV systems) are now fully developed. Due to varying funding and feed-in tariffs it’s difficult to offer a generalisation about their economic viability. Generally speaking, the electricity produced should not be more than the producing household uses (i.e. the system should not be vastly oversized). Installation is very simple, but nevertheless can only be carried out by specialist companies.

3-litre-house:
A 3-litre-house is a low-energy house in everyday language - a house which has an annual primary energy demand per m² of useful floor space of less than 34 kWhPrim. This complies with a primary energy usage of 3 litres of heating oil. The previous rating for heating demand – e.g. as used for thermal insulation regulation or passive house funding from KfW Bankengruppe – did not take into account heat loss from systems engineering, the necessary operating energy for pumps and ventilation or the type of fuel (gas, oil or electricity). Therefore this index does not provide any conclusions regarding the house’s energy demands.

Source: www.infoholz.de