A home made of wood: Consumer experiences of wooden building materials

Having a home is a central part of the everyday consumer experience. In our study, we focus on Finnish homeowners who have recently bought an apartment in a multi-family timber-framed building. With its merits in sustainability, the number of timber buildings in less-traditional urban applications is increasing, yet, research on living in a wooden home is scarce. To fill this gap, the study analyses how homeowners perceive the wooden material before and after living in a wooden home for one year. Thus, besides the acquisition of a home, the study examines the consumers' appropriation processes and aims to gain insight into the cultural sense-making behind the appreciation of wooden homes. The results of this qualitative study indicate that traditions and memories related to wood affect consumers' appreciations, for example, regarding the cosiness of a wooden home. The consumers discussed the weaknesses assigned to wood, such as fire and moisture susceptibility, yet, they considered them to concern all construction materials, not only wood. After habitation for one year, the usability of the home becomes particularly relevant, including the ease with which shelves can be mounted onto the walls, enjoying the echoless soundscape, and living with clicking sounds and vibrating floors. The study suggests that the meanings of consumers' daily experiences concerning the usability of wooden buildings are under negotiation and cannot be reduced simply into positive or negative but carry elements of both.