Use
Most northern Europeans spend 80-90 per cent of their time indoors. At Troldtekt, we want to help ensure that acoustic comfort and a chemical-free indoor climate are key elements in construction.
Most people choose Troldtekt for its acoustic properties, but what they actually get is a multifunctional ceiling or wall surface that also has a positive effect on the overall indoor climate. In other words, Troldtekt cement-bonded wood wool creates value for building users in several areas.
1. Acoustics
The acoustics of a room can have a huge impact on our wellbeing and concentration. Hard and smooth surfaces like concrete and plaster bounce back the sound waves, and the long reverberation time results in a echoing soundscape.
By contrast, materials with an open surface structure – like Troldtekt cement-bonded wood wool – guarantee good acoustics with short reverberation times. In fact, a construction with Troldtekt and mineral wool backing can absorb up to 90 per cent of sound, whereas a hard concrete surface typically absorbs 1-2 per cent.
Troldtekt is therefore a popular choice in most types of buildings, including schools, offices, sports centres, restaurants, cultural venues and private homes.
2. Indoor climate
A building must be constructed with consideration for the environment, economy and people, including ensuring an indoor climate with good air quality. Poor air quality and very dry or humid indoor air can result in low productivity in the workplace, poor learning at school and more sick days.
In addition to ensuring good acoustics, Troldtekt cement-bonded wood wool absorbs and releases moisture. This helps to ensure the right level of humidity in a building. The same air will feel better in a room where the materials absorb moisture – and this can reduce the need for ventilation. The Danish Technological Institute has documented that Troldtekt acoustic panels can withstand rooms with a moisture load of up to 98 per cent (+2 per cent/-5 per cent) at a temperature of 40 degrees.
Troldtekt ceilings can also be used to provide comfort ventilation, for example in schools, offices, conference rooms etc. With a Troldtekt ventilation system solution, fresh air flows from a space above the ceiling which is under pressure and through the acoustic panels into the room. The air flows at low pressure through so-called active Troldtekt panels, which typically make up 10-20 per cent of the ceiling surface. This means that the air is distributed evenly throughout the room without draught or noise.
Troldtekt is Cradle to Cradle certified and all of the ingredients in Troldtekt acoustic panels are analysed down to 100 parts per million. It has thus been documented that Troldtekt is free of substances which are harmful to humans or the environment. Troldtekt has also obtained a number of certificates that document the effect on the indoor climate.
3. Certifications
A healthy indoor climate is a key part of a well-functioning building, and in this sense Troldtekt contributes to a number of valuable properties as described in the previous section. During use, Troldtekt further contributes to good operational efficiency, as the acoustic panels require no maintenance after installation. Also, they have a long service life, which means that they can ‘live on’ in connection with the refurbishing or repurposing of buildings. The panels can be painted over and over again without compromising their acoustic properties.
The indoor climate and life cycle costs in the use stage are examples of areas where Troldtekt contributes positively to the leading sustainable building certifications (DGNB, BREEAM, LEED, WELL etc.).
4. Fire safety
Wood is an organic and flammable material, but every single wood fibre in a Troldtekt panel is encapsulated and protected by non-flammable cement. This is why Troldtekt panels have low flammability and emit very little heat during a fire and almost no smoke.
Troldtekt acoustic panels are fire-classified under the European standard EN 13501. Under the standard, Troldtekt acoustic panels are classified as B-s1,d0, which denotes the material's reaction to fire. In practice, it means that Troldtekt panels are only weakly combustible and emit little heat and smoke.
5. Durability
Troldtekt cement-bonded wood wool panels combine the strength of cement with the breathability of wood. On the one hand, the panels are extremely robust and dimensionally stable – even in humid environments such as swimming pools. There is no warping over time. However, thanks to their flexibility, you can easily saw and screw into them during installation.
Moreover, the combination of wood and cement ensures that Troldtekt panels can absorb and release moisture, have a long lifespan of at least 50-80 years and are documented to be free of harmful chemicals – which are all key advantages during the use stage.
6. Design
Troldtekt can also make a difference to the aesthetic comfort of a building. Different colours, structures, edge designs and suspension systems allow considerable freedom to design scalable ceiling and wall surfaces using Troldtekt. This goes both for the classic Troldtekt acoustic panels and for the series of design solutions, where the surface comes with milled grooves or expressive patterns.