A strong, high-performance building product known for its smooth and elegant look, Hebel has become the material of choice for many Australians looking to build their dream home.
Mark King, the Managing Director of leading Sydney-based building company King Homes NSW, is a big fan of using Hebel for floors, walls and facades; in fact, he specifies it for most of the homes he builds – which is about 120 per year.
“Our customers want a clean finish,” Mark explains. “Five years ago, we might have given them a combination of brick and render, but now they want their whole house to have that look. We’ve found the best option is to use Hebel and render.”
King Homes NSW is known for building modern, flexible homes with quality inclusions, and delivering a great all-round experience to their customers. Here, Mark reveals why Hebel is so incredibly popular among his customers and provides practical advice on building a Hebel home.
King Homes NSW is known for building modern, flexible homes with quality inclusions.
A streamlined look
While Hebel can be coated in a range of different acrylic systems, Mark says most of his customers prefer a textured finish. His team then adds acrylic paint over the top to create an even more streamlined look.
Beyond aesthetics, there are many benefits to this approach. High quality acrylic coating systems contain unique material properties that help the surface retain its premium finish and colour for longer.
“Touch up and repainting of the surface is a lot further apart than the usual 10 years,” Mark says. “Our customers love that.”
Hebel can also be combined easily with other materials such as brick and weatherboard to create a dynamic, mixed-material façade. However, Mark says many of his customers opt for Hebel on its own, adding just a few decorative details if required.
“We have a beautiful home we’re building at the moment,” he says. “It’s in a French provincial style, but essentially the whole thing’s Hebel. We’ve added a few little decorative finishes here and there, such as around the windows, and I think it’s spectacular.”
The versatility of Hebel
One of the reasons Mark keeps coming back to Hebel is that it’s a highly versatile building material. Not only does it have an array of applications – internal and external walls, façades, floors and fences – it is also suitable for a range of different environments, including areas that are prone to bushfires.
Whilst building in bushfire zones can be challenging, Mark says that Hebel is a smart, and safe, solution. The PowerPanelXL external wall system is a great choice for facades because it’s non-combustible, fire-resistant, and can achieve up to BAL-FZ. For this reason, Mark often specifies Hebel for homes in rural areas or anywhere with an increased fire risk.
Hebel PowerPanel50 party wall system is idea for duplex/townhouse developments.
“If we’re designing a house and granny flat and they want Hebel, we would use Hebel PowerPanelXL as the external fire-rated wall,” he explains. “For duplex party walls, and house and granny flat party walls, we use PowerPanel50.”
Lifestyle benefits
For larger or noisier households, Mark recommends installing Hebel’s PowerFloor underfoot. PowerFloor provides the feel of a solid concrete floor without the price tag. It is squeak-free with good acoustic and thermal insulation, which is an important consideration – especially for families.
Hebel helps to create comfortable, quiet homes.
“It’s a beautiful product,” says Mark. “I have it in my house and all our display homes have it. You don’t get noise from the floors above or below. It absorbs a lot of the sound.”
Living in a Hebel home
Mark and his wife Veronica (known as @builderswife on Instagram) love Hebel so much, they even chose it for their own home. They wanted a sleek and modern design, using high quality materials and finishes, so Hebel was the natural choice.
Mark and his wife Veronica specified Hebel for their stunning family home.
“We wanted something to capture our attention from every angle of the home,” Mark says. “Our façade has different angles and heights to create something striking, which has been made easier by using Hebel as the main building material.”
The contemporary design and high-quality build has provided them with a stunning family home. They are so thrilled with the result that Veronica has used @builderswife to promote their home build as well as the benefits they have achieved by choosing to build with Hebel.
Ready to start your own home building journey? Check out some beautiful home designs from King Homes NSW here.
Image credit/photographer: The Palm Co