Honka Lux is an overall experience for leisure time housing
Villa includes Vallox ventilation unit, as well as an MLV duct radiator that maximises the energy-efficiency of geothermal heating.
Timo Äkräs wanted to build a modern villa by the sea. The result was a complete selection of villas, which has been carefully thought-out down to the finest detail of interior decor style options. Äkräs values quality in all details of construction and, subsequently, chose a Vallox ventilation unit for his villa, as well as an MLV duct radiator that maximises the energy-efficiency of geothermal heating.
Timo Äkräs, the designer of the new Honka Lux selection of Honkarakenne, built a villa by the sea in Uusikaupunki for his family. The driving idea of the selection is that at least one of the facades is completely glazed, which not only lets natural light into the building but also maximises the pleasure provided by the landscape and its variation during the day and through the seasons.
The connection to nature and natural material has also been taken into account in the ready thought-out interior decor options of the villas: “In fact, I tend to begin the design from the interior”, says Äkräs. Äkräs has worked as an entrepreneur in the restaurant sector for a long time. For him, designing is a hobby, even though in addition to many restaurants and their interior decor, he has also successfully designed residential buildings. His designs include, for example, the winner of the Best House prize of the Laukaa Housing Fair 2003 and the winner of the Best Holiday House prize of the Hartola Holiday Housing Fair. The latter was also a log building.
A log house requires ventilation
Log buildings are often described as being houses that breathe. This is true in the sense that logs even out variations in the relative humidity of the air by binding humidity and releasing it until the humidity level of the logs is the same as the relative humidity of the air inside the room. Jukka Rintamäki from Honkarakenne says that the ability of log buildings to breathe does not mean that ventilation is not needed in a traditional log house.
“Even though logs even out the relative humidity of the air, air cannot pass through the logs. In an energy-efficient new log building, there are no leaks between the logs, but the building is airtight. Therefore, controlled mechanical supply and extract air ventilation ensures that air is being replaced.”
Miikka Roos from Aerplan Oy, who prepared the ventilation plan for Äkräs’ villa, also emphasises that supply and extract air ventilation with heat recovery is the right choice when the aim is that ventilation works and is energy-efficient throughout the year. In summer, when the difference between the outdoor and the indoor temperature is not sufficient, natural ventilation does not work, whilst in cold weather, extract air ventilation does not enable energy-efficiency.
Duct radiators enable getting the most out of geothermal heating
Äkräs emphasises the high quality of material choices and the work. For his own villa, Äkräs chose the Vallox 110 MV ventilation unit: “I read about the various ventilation unit options and became convinced relatively quickly that Vallox would be the best choice. I was impressed by the fact that spare parts are also available for Vallox units after many years of use, as I consider this to be part of the quality of the products. The comprehensiveness of maintenance services was also a key factor. When our HVAC designer also recommended Vallox based on previous experience, the choice was easy to make.”
In addition, a Vallox MLV Multi 200 duct radiator was installed in the Äkräs villa, which can be utilised for the preheating of cold outdoor air in winter and for the cooling of hot outdoor air in summer. The IV designer Roos states that the MLV duct radiator enables getting the most out of the geothermal heating system, as, thanks to it, no electricity is needed to heat the supply air even in below-zero weather. He reminds, however, that even when the unit is equipped with a duct radiator, the supply air of the ventilation unit is not, by most people’s standards, sufficiently cool during the hottest heat waves. For this reason, the Äkräs villa also has an air-to-air heat pump, which takes care of the cooling.
Overall wellbeing is even more important after a tough project
Äkräs says that the construction project that took one and a half years to complete was hard work. Finding skilled, meticulous, and reliable workers was challenging, but the two COVID-19 infections that he caught during the project and some even more serious health issues also took a major toll. Probably partly because of these health problems, the quality of the indoor air is now even more important than before to Äkräs and his spouse. They say that they replace the filters in their detached house frequently, sometimes even once a month, in order to guarantee healthy and fresh indoor air. “We strive for overall wellbeing here in our villa. For this reason, the basic requirement was good indoor air, which has an enormous impact on our energy levels and recovery.”
In addition to healthy Finnish logs, all Honkarakenne house packages have the connection of the residents with nature in common. Vallox ventilation solutions have this same goal. In Finland, the outdoor air is still, mostly, clean and fresh. One must also be able to experience the same indoors, as the air that we breathe has such a major impact on how we feel and how much energy we have.
Read more about the breathing log houses in the Honkarakenne blog (in Finnish)!
