For over a hundred years, people from Fürth have met all around the Kavierleinsweiher on beautiful Sundays. In the winter they go skating, and in the summer they meet for a picknick. Since 2008 a new residential area has been developed in this location. As it was a recreational spot in the past, Schultheiss Wohnbau AG set up its new residential site on a green note. To help residents soak up all the green, unusually large balconies, patios, and roof gardens lure people outside. Using Naturinform’s low maintenance ‘Compact’ patio decks, this is a delightully natural experience.
Residential complex Fürth
Patio decks
Compact in brown
Construction Year
August 2015
Location
Wohnanlage Am Kavierlein BA IV, Am Kavierlein 1-29, 90765 Fürth (Bayern)
As soon as a person from Fürth hears Kavierlein, he immediately thinks of summer days under a blue sky. Whoever buys property here is looking for nature. So, natural products are obviously part of the package – just like Naturinform’s decks. They look and feel like pure wood, but are actually technically enhanced to be weatherproof. This is a characteristic roofer Michael Märkl had already noticed in other building projects. ‘These decks are really unusually durable and stable. They hardly change in shape,’ says Märkl and laughs: ‘We are resolute Naturinform-layers’.
Built to feel good
Märkl’s customer is the Schultheiss Wohnbau AG. The established company from Nuremberg is building owner and acting building company for two sites on the plot of a total of 37,000 square metres. Because of the huge demand with its first property, Schultheiss acquired more land at the north eastern side of the plot, 9,988 square metres in the area of a former allotment site. Until 2017 90 new residential units and a few penthouses will be built. Am Kavierlein means modern living behind clearly cut lime sandstone facades with grey and rusty red veranda elements. The design for the residential site with its total of five building blocks stems from the architect group Loebermann + Bandlow from Fürth.
Large windows provide a lot of light. The façade has right angle juts coming out of it which are especially charming, giving the house its special look – and creating space for as many large balconies and roof gardens as possible in a very discreet manner. The outdoor areas areat least 8 square metres large. Some roof gardens are even 90 square metres big, the size of an average flat. With such large surfaces at a high level, the quality and sturdiness of the materials used is decisive, as the surfaces are obviously far more exposed to weathering than small balconies protected by the wall of the house.‘ Naturinform’s wood composite system has the advantage that there are no tears such as with pure wood. Our clients benefit from this in the long-term,’ says project manager Michael Gührs.
Schultheiss Wohnbau is specialised in high-quality living, it builds on the basis of ‚feeling good‘, according to their clients‘ needs. New owners don’t want to have to clear their new wooden patio of moss every spring, and certainly not have to repaint or oil it after a few winters.
Natural, safe, low on maintenance
This is how the experienced builder came to Naturinform. What is special about the wooden processor’s decks: The naturally beautiful wooden fibres are combined with a thermoplastic polymer. This additional component makes the natural product far more durable; it prevents humidity from penetrating, thereby stopping the decks from rotting. Naturinform’s decks are weatherproof without any need forpainting or oiling, even in unusually damp or sunny sites. All that is necessary to maintain the decks is to clean the surface every now and then with water. Because the surface is brushed, it is slightly rough, thereby slip-resistant and barefoot friendly. And they are – even when wet – so slip resistant that they are suitable for public areas, such as swimming pools, playgrounds, or hotel patios.
Naturinform’s products can hardly be distinguished from traditional wood: With a 70 percent share, wood is the optically and sensorically defining component. Walking barefoot you can feel real wood, but neednot worry about splinters.
Flat with a practical connecting system
A total of 48 patios and balconies were laid using ‚Compact‘ – all together 1,287 square metres. So that water can run off easily there is atwo percent slant: Using height-adjustable swivel feet the decks can simply be laid at different heights at the beginning and end of the patio– by millimetres. Profile slats are laid on the swivel feet, onto which the decks themselves are mounted. Roofer Märkl used 30 millimetre high, square aluminium pipes with 3 mm thick walls as an underlying construction. A practical and stable connecting system joins the decks to each other, as well as to the profiles.
An economic solution
Resilient, yet affordable, even with large surfaces: ‚Compact‘ is Märkl’s favourite from Naturinform’s range. ‘Compact’ as used here is available in many different colours. Besides the three standard colours brown, anthracite, and grey, there are especially colourful special shades from Naturinform’s Colour Edition. As a surface you can choose from a classically striated side and a block stripe surface. With a length of up to13 metres, a thickness of 21 millimetres and because it can be used onboth sides, ‘Compact’ can be used in the most diverse of applications. It is really popular for renovation work when the mounting height of a patio or balcony must not be too high.
Elegant patina
The patios in ‚Am Kavierlein‘ are kept in a warm brown note – a colour that conjures up a fine golden shimmer in the sun. Once laid, Naturinform’s deck’s colours mature for the first four months. Just like wood they receive a beautiful patina. First there is a slight yellow tinge,then silver and golden reflexes develop. This effect is due to the wooden fibres, and, unlike pure wood, is kept in place by the lightproof colour particles in the high-quality plastic. The chosen colour shade is thus kept permanently, it is only enhanced by the patina reflexes.
Environmentally-friendly construction
Naturinform produces its deck strictly ecologically. No trees are cut down for them, and only wooden fibres from tested saw mills are used. The wood used is PEFC certified from ecologically farmed woods, no tropical wood. The organic component of the composite is an environmentally-friendly polyethylene, which is partially from recycling processes. With Naturinform’s decks no environmentally-harming chemicals are used, no fungicides or pesticides are used during production. Additionally, the patio decks are 100 % recyclable and can be handed back for recycling to the plant in Bavarian Redwitz an der Rodach.
Download: Press release
Product information: Compact