DORES homes
The tradition of building log houses in Latvia goes way back in time – we only had to take the best of these traditions and combine them with contemporary solutions and modern technologies. As part of our efforts to remain at the forefront of a new era in construction, we have developed a new trademark that reflects the core values of Dores. EVETM stands for ecology, vitality and economy. All our log house designs are developed by taking into account principles that meet the needs and requirements of people today and for generations into the future.
Ecology
The right design, layout and location of a house helps you save money and sustain natural resources. The use of materials produced by energy-efficient means will also cause less environmental impact.
Latvia is a country rich in forests – more than half of it is covered in woodlands. With a careful and sustainable approach, timber is an unlimited renewable resource.
Timber is the only 100% renewable construction material. The use of timber compared to non-renewable resources considerably reduces emissions into the atmosphere. Energy consumption in the production of timber construction materials is 50% less than that of cement and 80% less than in the production of bricks. Timber logs do not emit harmful gasses or particles.
Concentration of CO2 in the earth’s atmosphere promotes the greenhouse effect and global warming. This can be combatted by reducing the emission of carbon dioxide or promoting carbon sequestration, both of which are achieved by the forestry industry and wide scale use of timber.
A cubic metre of timber will absorb around 1 ton of CO2.1 As the forest grows, the carbon is stored within the timber. If the timber is burned or rots, the carbon is returned to the atmosphere, in what is essentially a carbon neutral process. However, timber products and long-lasting timber housing will act as a long-term storage bank for carbon.
By replacing other construction materials with timber, each cubic metre of timber will reduce the amount of CO2 emissions into the atmosphere by an average 0.8 tons.2 Adding this amount to the CO2 absorbed by the timber growing, each cubic metre of timber material reduces carbon dioxide in the atmosphere by almost two tons. As defined in the Kioto protocol, even a slight increase of 10% in the construction of timber houses worldwide would cause a considerable reduction of CO2 in the atmosphere.
Our log house production process further promotes the health of the environment by using absolutely all the timber supplied to us in entirety. We even use all the small cut-off bits for the production of other materials.
1 Edinburgh Centre for Carbon Inovation2 European Commission – Enterprise and Industry, 2003
Vitality
Life in a timber house means life in a healthy and natural environment – essential components of you and your family’s vitality. Central heating in homes causes the air to dry out, which is why humidifiers often need to be used. Timber, on the other hand, has the ability to regulate the microclimate inside a timber house. Timber takes on moisture from outside in order to keep a balance between inside and outside. This also creates optimum oxygen levels inside the house. You could say that timber breathes and is the only construction material with this unique ability. People of North have over time developed various ways to naturally ventilate their timber houses. In today’s world, this also means extra savings.
Pollution and other factors influencing air quality depend on the relative air moisture within your house. An ideal moisture level indoors is between 30% and 55%. This helps stop the development of microscopic fungi and dust that can cause allergies. The level of dust, bacteria and viruses considerably increases once moisture levels drop below or over these levels. This can promote respiratory illness, asthma, allergies, fatigue and headaches.
Dores homes ensure an optimum microclimate with air moisture at ideal levels. This is also why static electricity is not accumulated, significantly reducing air-borne dust particles. This is especially important for people suffering from allergies or lack of breath.
Children can safely play on timber floors, as timber will not emit toxic fumes, as may be the case with poor quality materials often used in the past for the construction of apartment blocks and other buildings. Your family will find it hard to even get a splinter from a timber house built with modern technologies and processing methods.
Economy
In order to choose the right construction material you have to take into account the energy used to produce it and opportunities for energy conservation during the lifetime of a building.
Dores homes can be assembled very fast, thus gaining time and financial economies. In the processing of timber, the material is dried to an internal moisture of 12%, which means that you can live in it right away, unlike our ancestors, who would have allowed a constructed log house to dry out and settle for three to five years before moving in. Dores log houses also use less timber in the production process than standard log houses. Even Dores patented corner joints save an extra 10% in timber, as the corners don’t have protruding cross-joints
Dores homes let you save energy throughout the building’s lifecycle. The structure of timber grains creates superb heat insulation, which is 15 times better than that of concrete, 400 times better than steel and 1770 times better than alumium.3 Some sources claim that a 2.5 cm thick timber board can hold heat better than a 11.4cm thick brick wall. Furthermore, solid timber accumulates solar energy and tries to balance air moisture as the weather changes. All these factors together help reduce bills for heating in winter and cooling in summer.
Timber houses are warm in winter and stay cool in summer. Special attention is also paid to roof and floor insulation, which are crucial to keep warmth indoors during winter. Nevertheless, your needs and demands may require different solutions, which is why we can proudly prepare log sizes and configurations tailored exactly to your needs.
Dores also produces its own patented corner joint, which reduces wind and rain penetration to a minimum. The patented joints include special insulating pillows with the design of the bevelled joints preventing water from entering the building.
Timber houses are sometimes blamed for poor energy-efficiency, because natural timber often splits and cracks. The deeper the cracks in a timber house, the less energy-efficient it is. This is why Dores uses special laminated logs – beams made by gluing together several planks. This reduces the depth of any split in the timber to just one layer. Laminated beams are a more efficient way of using timber, as less material is needed. Laminated beams can be combined with just about any other material.
The efficiency of a timber house isn’t measured only by smaller heating or electricity bills. If a house is designed well, the people who live in it will also have a more comfortable and affordable life.
3 INTERREG IVC European proect FUTUREfores
