The "Hotel & Spa SeezeitLodge" wellness resort on Lake Bostal in the Saar-Hunsrück Nature Park is a retreat surrounded by nature. Designed by GRAFT Architekten, it delights architecture fans, wellness vacationers, athletes, connoisseurs, and culture and nature lovers alike. In addition to 98 modern rooms and suites, a bar and restaurant, they will find a spacious lobby with a lounge and an expansive terrace with a fireplace, conference rooms, and a spacious spa area with a Celtic sauna village. Shielded from the public, the spa and wellness area offers unique spatial qualities – with an outdoor sauna and infinity pool as highlights. For the flooring of the terrace around the pool and in the area of the spectacular outdoor sauna, a material was required that simultaneously met the sophisticated overall concept of using natural materials and the required performance characteristics, such as barefoot-friendliness and slip resistance.
 

The internationally active Berlin-based architectural firm GRAFT, the winner of the architectural competition, was responsible for the hotel's design. With the idea of integrating the hotel as much as possible into its natural surroundings on the shores of Lake Bostal, they integrated all communal areas, such as the lobby, spa, and restaurant, into the hilly landscape of the property, nestled within an oak forest. Only the building housing the rooms and suites was constructed as a two-story, block-like structure.

Craftsmen from the region built with high-quality and sustainable materials

The hotel grounds are so cleverly integrated into the hilly landscape that guests approaching through a dense oak forest are only presented with an unobstructed view of the lake through large glass facades upon entering the hotel lobby. The building was constructed using high-quality, solid construction. The felled trees from the exposed western slope ideally transform into the "dress" of the house, thus illustrating the project's commitment to sustainability. The facade consists of wooden slats made of local wood, shimmering silvery-black thanks to a flamed surface. The result is a house that reflects the power of the location, harnessing its strengths and creating a new living environment in harmony with it. The owners placed great importance on having the work on and in the building carried out by regional craftsmen.
One of the unique selling points of the Seezeitlodge is its exceptional 2,700 square meter spa and wellness area, Christian Sersch told the local press at the opening. Due to its immediate proximity to a Celtic ring wall, the planning incorporated a nod to Celtic culture by designing the outdoor sauna area like a Celtic village. The concept, developed jointly by the owners and GRAFT, was based on the idea of tapping into and amplifying the powers of the place.

Construction expert convinced the building families of the advantages of the wood composite material

During the construction phase, the owner families relied on the project planning expertise of Peter Lauer. Together with his son Patrick, the graduate engineer (University of Applied Sciences in Structural Engineering/Architecture) runs the construction and planning office BTB Lauer, which he founded 30 years ago and is based in Losheim am See, Saarland. With his experienced team, Lauer oversaw the entire construction process through every single phase and also assisted the owners with detailed questions. This included the question of the most suitable material for the pool terrace and the outdoor sauna area. Originally, according to Peter Lauer, a concrete paving stone was planned for these areas. However, experience has shown that concrete heats up considerably in the summer and is therefore less suitable for an area that is predominantly walked on barefoot. A larch wood floorboard, like the one installed on the hotel balconies, was also discussed. But this option was also abandoned because, especially in areas close to water, this surface would be exposed to excessive weathering, and there would also be a risk of injury from splintering wood.

Compact meets the requirements of sustainability and safety

Wood is one of the dominant building materials throughout the hotel, and in keeping with the hotel's philosophy of naturalness and sustainability, a recyclable material was essential for the pool area as well. At the same time, it had to be robust, durable, and, above all, very easy to maintain. Ultimately, the choice fell on NaturinForm's Compact solid plank, which was installed over an area of 100 square meters: a plank with the natural appearance of wood, but without the limitations of weathering and splintering. The clients were also impressed by its slip resistance. In the TÜV Rheinland test , Compact achieved the highest slip resistance level R13 according to DIN 51130 and Class C according to DIN 51097. Another factor was its ease of maintenance. "During the past few months, when the hotel was unable to welcome guests due to the pandemic, the terrace and sauna area were not cleaned every day," explains Peter Lauer. "But the traces left by the weather were immediately and easily removed." The Völklingen-based carpentry company Bernardi was commissioned to install the floorboards, which also carried out the waterproofing work on the flat roof. The substructure presented no special challenges for the craftsmen. The substructure consisted of a concrete slab, into which the slope for drainage was built, so the Bernardi team only had to install the floorboards on stilts and an aluminum structure. A somewhat more complex task, however, was the construction of a platform accessible via a few steps, on which the tubs belonging to the outdoor sauna were placed.

Extensive color spectrum and two surfaces

Compact is available in a wide range of colors. In addition to the three standard colors brown, anthracite, and gray—as installed on the terrace of the Seezeitlodge—customers can choose from a wide range of special colors from the NaturinForm color edition, as well as from a selection of many single- and multi-colored tones. The surface can be selected between a classic grooved side and a side with block stripes. With custom lengths of up to 13 meters, a thickness of 21 millimeters, and a reversible surface, this solid plank is versatile in its application—preferably not only for new construction projects but also for renovations when the installation height of a terrace or balcony cannot be too high.
During production in Redwitz ad Rodach, Franconia, waste wood fibers from the timber industry are combined with a single-variety polymer in a sustainable manner. This component gives the natural product longevity and exceptional robustness by preventing moisture from penetrating the flooring. The planks are neither varnished nor treated with oils, yet are completely weather-resistant, even in unusually humid or very sunny locations. To maintain them, it is sufficient to occasionally clean the surface briefly with a water hose. The factory-brushed surface roughens the flooring slightly, making it slip-resistant and barefoot-friendly. Height-adjusting swivel feet are used to install profile strips at the desired height (including slope) with millimeter precision, and the floorboards are then laid on top of them. A practical and stable plug-in system connects the planks to each other and to the profiles.

NaturinForm produces its decking boards in a strictly ecological manner. No trees are felled during production, and only wood fibers from certified sawmills are used. The wood is PEFC-certified from ecologically managed, local forests. No environmentally harmful chemicals are used in production, and no fungicides or pesticides are used. Furthermore, the decking boards are 100% recyclable and, after being tested for this purpose, can be returned to the factory in Redwitz, where they are processed and returned to the production process.

All NaturinForm floorboards and façade profiles are subject to Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) prepared in accordance with international standards. All products are continuously subjected to quality controls and stress tests to ensure consistently flawless and first-class wood-based material quality. The company offers a five-year warranty on its products.