I am Swiss and did my engineering degree back home. I worked in Switzerland, Germany, Israel, England, Ireland and am now in North America. Building codes and technics believe it or not are generally similar in their bases everywhere while their standards are impacted mainly by cost and the present climate. Switzerland has high building standards where noise and room insulation are most important for its clientele. Privacy is an essential aspect of any Swiss House development with Energy efficiency closely followed (Energy costs are much higher in Europe (especially Switzerland) than in North America). The buildings in Switzerland are a lot more expensive to build and purchase (on average) than the US home while being a lot smaller in sq ft. North American building techniques are sufficient and cost-effective - in fact, some newer home builds in Europe have started copying the North American Style House building (they call it Scandinavian House Type) with additional outside insulation layers to overcome the climate challenges (Germany and France) to achieve cheaper housing purchasing prices and speed up development times. From my experience, Europe has better quality control and standards when it comes to building supplies - whereas here in North America the contractor is responsible for the quality assurance of the raw materials. Anyway, long story short - any building method has its benefits and disadvantages. With the exchange of information and technologies any building code develops and improves over time - no matter where. There is no better way of building than building for the existing market and given environment. I highly doubt that an average North American Householder would be ready to pay for a Swiss House type in his or her home town when getting a lot more sq ft and space for the same price. For us builders - higher spec and technology are always of more interest. Thank you for your great videos - I am following PR Buildings for a long time.

It's great! My shed has been completed and it turned out nice looking and sturdy and it is way better than the sheds that many of my neighbors had put up. Of course, I'm pleased with the outcome and this Ryan's kzfaq.infoUgkxGZedDTcDfgD7fG_uU4esfx_EgxzlY2_1 Plans was extremely useful to me as a guide.

I lived in Switzerland for three years in one of these modern multi family builds with all these details. 0F in winter up to 90F in summer and not one time did we turn on the heat. No aircon installed and we were never uncomfortable. You do not want to know the price of these units…

As I'm from Europe (Belgium) I found it surprising on how mesmerized you were by the windows, as for us almost all windows are thay way!

You and I had the same reaction! I was a carpenter building homes in California for about 5 years. After moving to Sweden, I was blown away at the quality difference between lumber and other materials compared to California. Glad you get to see the European way!

Construction quality in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland is world-leading. They simply don't do doors and windows that leak. It would be a scandal.

Building codes here in sweden with our cold climate demands thick insulation. My parents new built house have 400mm insulation in the Walls and 600mm in the roof. 500mm of styrofoam underneath the concrete slab. 6000kWh in a year is needed to heat the house. Mean temperature during a year is 7C (44F).

Good stuff!!!!! Switzerland follows Passive House guidelines. I loved Ben's response to a house breathing. Very true that "the physics does not lie". Once everyone here in the US understands "the physics", we can start to see more builders adapting to most of the techniques shown in your video. These are proven methods that work.

It is not overkill ! it is quality . American condos has no sound barrier you hear every sound from upstairs

Awesome content Kyle. Really interesting how different things are built in Switzerland compared to here in the US. Big beefy buildings well insulated. Would love to have a house built like that.

I just love watching stuff like this, your enthusiasm just puts a smile on my face

As a home owner and novice builder in the PNW, I really appreciate the high quality lumber and laminates. Last couple projects I've done, I've struggled getting quality lumber (and it's costly no matter what). How cool would it be to not have to wrestle with warped boards and inconsistent dimensional lumber... Thanks for sharing the Swiss way.

I am astonishing! Just WOW!

Those 8" solid boards are insane. Blows my mind to think about cost. Thanks for sharing!

Very cool look at how they build in Switzerland! My son is currently living in Zurich and is an architecture major attending ETH university. He is really enjoying his time there learning how they do what your showing in the video!

Those building details are insane.

Ive just come back after 1 week of backpacking Switzerland... The builders are incredible there.

This is awesome content! Appreciate you doing this!

That is amazing how they do construction over there. I think we could and should learn something from them. Thank you for letting us tag along and for showing the building science included with this.

Keep it coming brother!!!!!

Great series . It would be great to hear the wall systems explained by a vendor like you see at trade shows. Usually they have cutaways on display that really showcase the benefits and differences. Hope the suggestion helps. ...

VERY nice content Kyle! This is the way to build structures....

Swiss precision. thank you for the video.

not overkill at all. construction like that needs to come to the United States. ASAP.

Just Wow !

I definitely like those details on the wall assembly, love the T&G rockwool.

Awesome video, really cool to get a knowledgable comparison between US and european construction.

Great information, Kyle. It is all about the cost and square footage on person living in this apartments - very different from what you are used to in US

I want to build my next home for retirement using a Post Frame Swiss Chalet... Being a Mechanical Engineer I respect the Swiss for their expertise and practicality. Look at a way to combine metal roofing and wall panels with the wood decorations for the chalet details and large eaves.

I was putting this off to watch, but I'm so glad I came back to it This is insane on every level! I would love to see this come over to the states when it comes to that wall detail. The only thing I could see is cost pushing many people away. but with sheathing staying so high in price maybe it's a welcome time.

That’s incredible! The cost of oil and natural gas in Europe is so high that building it this way cost lest to heat, cool and climatized keeps molds from growing. Again just an incredible video, thanks for sharing.

Very, very interesting building techniques and materials!!

Love the fact Matt Risinger, NS Builders and now RR Buildings all go to a job site in Switzerland with a comparable design and basically make the same video. Well, since the swiss lift wood construction to the highest level, cant blaim them.

For those wondering, not only is mass timber a fully sustainable and recyclable way of building, the building itself will sequester a huge amount of carbon over it's lifetime , nice win for the environment. It also does a great job as an insulator and thermal break across the building. Seems stone age but is actually the future. Unreal!

Great video guys! Glad your showing us what is being done in other parts of the world... You might as well be on another planet because of how foreign these details are to the north American market.... North America likes to trap vapor where the Swiss let it move.... It's very similar in their roofing systems as well 👍

Very cool and intersting to see how it's done in other parts of the world.

Interesting reportage!

That's some pretty wild stuff

Is Greg the camera man? He is doing a great job panning and zooming between you and the construction details. The camera is always pointed exactly where it needs to be.

Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) is really starting to gain momentum in the states. The University of Washington just finished a building on campus with that design.

With energy prices raising every month in Europe, this insulation is not overkill.

That's awesome they seem to do good work out there I'd love to see it years from now when they remodel and see how everything is holding up!!

Great video like your unbiased views

welcome in Switzerland. So you can understand that I am so surprised when I see how you construct!

Welcome to Switzerland.

Crazy 👍👍

Excellent content! This is how we should be building.

Great video

The reason for the very thick floors is to create heat capacity; I presume that the floor heating will be rather low-temperature (maybe 35°C). So, the whole block will be slowly heated up, and it will keep that heat for some longer time. This is needed because the walls are very well insulated, but their heat capacity is not very high.

In the states we think of time in generations, maybe. In Europe it’s more like centuries. Just a very different approach. Interesting stuff, thanks!

Man, when the music started I thought I was in a SteveWillDoIt video 😂😂

Great video. I live in the UK, never seen anything like this 👍

All of Europe do there building different Kyle. It’s mad but good to see how everyone builds. 🤙

That is something new and different

Ben said the houses don't need to breath. In some clips in the video you see the windows sealed of from the window to the floor to create an air tight seal. That's more commen in Europe the last years. But no vapor bariers is new for me. Cool video i really enjoyed it and learned some things!!

Very interesting

well yeah as an European I always watch in disbelieve how not insulated those houses can be in US I specifically remember a video of a guy spray foaming gap under the window and he went on on a 10 minute rant of how this will help the insulation and so on well that was the bear minimum we were doing in Europe 20 years ago :D :D

🏆🏆🏆👍🇺🇲🙏. Thank you for sharing.

Great info. Proves U.S. doesn't always have the best ideas. People build for the environment. Cold, cold in Alpenland Definitely not overkill. Appreciate thermo barriers sound deadening qualities.

Great video presentation and veddy interesting. Has to be quiet as a tomb and so comfortably draft free. On the other hand, even if costs were no object, we know people who would choose 20 gables of asphalt shingles enclosing a 1/2 mile of hanging ductwork every time.

uau muito legal!👍👍👍👏👏👏

Forester- So how many trees do you need for this apartment project? Switzerland- ….all of them!

Wow! That is something else! Insane floor/ceiling thinkness! They surely are well insulated for temperatures and sound! Where we use 2x4's it seems they use 4x4 posts or 2x10's! It would be great to raise the American build standards to something similar! Better insulated and heavy duty structures would surely withstand hurricanes and tornadoes much better! These type of builds should be mandatory in major storm zones. Very interesting! Can't wait to see what else they do different...

Im from Norway. And this is very similar to how they do it there. I believe its a very good system.

Another thing about those windows is that if you set handle position mid-way between vertical open and horizontal open, it's still closed but there is air gap all around window seals to let some air in

In the US, check out Innotech windows and doors. Many off the same setups and very secured against outside irritants.

While you're here you should visit Sika and maybe bunkers in older buildings would be interesting to see.

Understanding the level of noise that goes into these spaces would be everything. i bet inside they are dead quiet. They are using 2-4x the materials we use, so it better be amazing.

I dont use 2x4 exterior walls anymore..all homes i build i use 2x6 on 2 foot centers..all my rafters use 2x6 on bottom runs instead of 2x4..it may b more expensive but save money on cooling and heating in long run

btw Kyle, the two layers of gypsum is generally on fire risk areas 👍

energy efficiency of this building verses usa typicall build? these are very high spec buildings . Great video.

❤❤❤

That's insane I think the sound deadening alone would be awesome. How big are the units they are selling. And house is it comparable in cost to same sized condo unit here or however they are classified? Great video, wish it was longer with more up close like the floor layering and all.

HOLY WHAT IN THE BUDGET!

Love to see these European videos as a European. You should come to the Netherlands once though, it's a totally different building technique compared to Switzerland, Austria, Germany

These are all passive builds and I’m from Ireland and we have started to use the same method over the past 10 years and it’s better than any other building method I’ve ever done

RR upload @ 10 pm est on a Sunday? Must be a Swiss thing. Although it is Monday there right now

That is not overkill. My house is brick masonry on the outside, insulation and concrete walls on the inside. 👍😁

Welcome to Europe Construction Sites Kyle 😉

We in the states should be building that way. At least in the northern portion of the country.

Dude, I'd live there, and that view.....

Kyle, I'm from Europe, it would be very interesting if you compared the prices by surface area of the object! Then everything would be clear to you...

This type of construction is not specific only to the Swiss. All countries in europe construct similarly. It's not overkill, it is the norm and well worth it when you can heat your house with a hair drier and absolutely no need for air conditioning. When I see those stick buildings in America, all I can think about is that my grandparents hen-house is built better..

You should do a tour in the netherlands

Curious. I know I’m late to this video but I came back to try to understand this wall design. So, what if you place the vapor barrier on the interior framing prior to drywall? Would this give an additional security for water never reaching the interior as well as additional air barrier? Furthermore, what if you were to do sheathing on the interior framing and then drywall over top? Obviously zip sheathing facing exterior. I know the cost would be extreme but as far build quality, this would be the ultimate in my opinion.

Not over kill, just different methodology. We vapor barrier and allow separate climates on both sides of the wall they eliminate the vapor barrier and allow a climate to exist between both sides of the wall. Because they don't have the vapor barrier they need a thicker wall to allow for drying and to slow the speed with which the exterior climate becomes the climate of the interior and vise versa. We can reduce the thickness of a wall because we separate one climate from the other and stop vapor from penetrating from either side which allows us to get good thermal potential. Well, that's my story and I'm sticking with it! BUT, i really liked looking at what they do, it works and is probable greener and a longer lasting product.

In the Netherlands we could only dream of such high quality construction. Unfortunately we got lazy after gas was discovered. Only in the past few years the building standards have improved, but we are nowhere near Swedish or Swiss standards. This is passive house level, R 6+ at minimum, but I think more likely R 10+. In the Netherlands the standards for new builds have just been updated to R 4.7. Timber frame construction is also very rare in the Netherlands. It is unfortunate, because there are other areas of construction (infrastructure) in which we have been able to be on the front of innovation.

The wooden floor separation is not normal in Denmark, but the rest is. when building in wood construction we become 19,5 inches of rockwool in outer walls, floor and ceiling construction

wow...i want one of those house...i can tell...it will last for 200+ years...

Mass timber built

Incredible technology. Is the cost incredible as well? Thanks

I watched a tv show once about a rich Norwegian that lives it us. He had built his house like in norway. When a hurricane struck his house was the only one standig aftervards. No offence on american way of building but i think it is built a lot more solid in europe😃

I don’t know if the music at 1:12 was a hat tip to stevewilldoit if so well done!

*Swiss cheese please!* 💰

I wish the door and window manufacturers can build to the European standard. To much plastic rollers and parts. I know a lot of it has to do with are disposable mind set here in America. Btw the time I went to Germany I fell in love with the windows.

So is there a sub-ceiling that goes into the rooms or is that wood floor deck exposed on finish? Reason I asked is, the one room you were in had that blue conduit running across underneath wood deck, which wouldn’t look very good left that way!

You don't see that in Spain, seems very luxury.

This is advanced! 🤯

How does that wall system work if the outdoor humidity in the summer is 98% ?

What are they doing for shear? Are there perpendicular concrete walls strategically placed on the interior? What are we missing?