What to build a house from: brick, aerated concrete, timber or VELOX?

Choosing the wall material is one of the first and most important decisions when building a family house. It affects not only the price but also construction speed, thermal comfort and heating costs for decades to come. Let's compare the four technologies most common in the Czech Republic.

Brick (Porotherm, Heluz)

Precision-ground ceramic blocks are the long-term favourite in the Czech Republic. Brick stores heat well, offers excellent sound insulation, and a brick house simply feels solid. Modern 44–50 cm blocks often need no additional insulation.

• Pros: longevity, thermal mass, healthy indoor climate, easy repairs and fixing.
• Cons: wet process (curing breaks), higher labour cost, longer build time.

Aerated concrete (Ytong, Porfix)

White aerated concrete blocks are light, precise and very easy to work with. The build progresses quickly and the material insulates well even with thinner walls.

• Pros: speed, precision, easy cutting and routing of utilities, slightly lower price.
• Cons: lower thermal mass, absorbs moisture — needs a proper base course and moisture protection.

Timber frame

Sandwich timber houses are the fastest route to moving in — the shell stands within weeks. Thanks to a thick insulation layer inside the wall they achieve excellent thermal parameters with a slim wall, giving you more living space on the same footprint.

• Pros: construction speed, low heating costs, dry process — buildable year-round.
• Cons: low thermal mass, sensitive to detailing quality (vapour barriers!), weaker sound insulation.

VELOX (permanent formwork)

The VELOX system combines wood-chip cement boards as permanent formwork with a concrete core and insulation integrated right in the wall. The wall ends up thinner than block walls — more living space on the same footprint — and the concrete core works like a thermos: the house is quiet and holds heat superbly. The shell also rises faster than with blocks, at a friendlier price.

• Pros: strength and excellent statics, quiet and warm ("thermos effect"), thinner walls = more living space, integrated insulation, 3–4 week speed, price below block walls.
• Cons: requires concrete pouring (machinery), later structural changes are harder.

Comparison at a glance

What do we recommend?

There is no universal answer — it depends on your plot, budget and how fast you want to move in. Our favourite is VELOX — proven on our own builds: it goes up fast, the house is quiet and warm like a thermos, and it prices better than blocks. For traditionalists we recommend brick or aerated concrete; for the fastest dry construction, timber frame. We'll gladly advise you on your specific project — the consultation is free and non-binding.