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[–] 69 points 2 years ago* (11 children)

Always amses me to see you guys build your wood houses. This looks so much like a construction game for children, I want to play too!

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  • [–] 43 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    I live on a fault line along the pacific ring of fire, and so building with wood was an absolute necessity for us so long, as they were structurally more lenient to the constant earthquakes. Even now I believe our old government building is the largest wooden building in the Southern hemisphere (and it's only 4 stories tall). These days as construction techniques have changed, we've obviously built things with concrete, steel, brick, etc., but the wooden tradition remains strong, with a huge majority of modern houses here still being built like this.

    That aside, wood was also just a much cheaper material to build with, so it was the most economical material to use for a long time for much of the "new world".

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  • [–] 9 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    Right. Buildings were mostly wood and mud in Europe until the 18th Century. By then, cities became so dense that big fires were extremely deadly. Little by little people started building in stone, then bricks and now reinforced concrete.

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  • [–] [S] 32 points 2 years ago (8 children)

    you guys build your wood houses

    What do you normally build houses with?

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  • [–] 51 points 2 years ago (7 children)

    Here in Europe, we use mostly cinder blocks or bricks. I guess wood is more common in Northern Europe and Switzerland

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  • [–] 43 points 2 years ago (16 children)

    In California we use wood because it flexes during earthquakes. There may be damage during a big one but at least the house is less likely to collapse on you.

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  • [+] 9 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (1 child)
  • [–] 5 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    isnt brick an excellent insulator?

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  • [+] 4 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (2 children)
  • [+] 13 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (1 child)
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  • [–] 17 points 2 years ago (5 children)

    If we did that in the US west coast, they would crack and fall apart from tectonic plate shift. You need to build things to be flexible for earthquakes and general shift.

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  • [–] 11 points 2 years ago

    I live in a 100 year old farm house in California and every spring and fall we have to move the strike plate (thing the door latch nubbin goes into) on the front door up or down about 3/4 inch due to seasonal house shifting. The door stops closing and we know it's spring time!

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  • [–] 3 points 2 years ago (2 children)

    Steel reinforcement is what keeps them up. At least it's supposed to.

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  • [–] 15 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    That's because Europe has had many more centuries worth of deforestation. The greatest resource the Americas had to offer to Europe was essentially unlimited lumber.

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  • [–] 11 points 2 years ago* (3 children)

    In Florida houses are also built from cinder blocks because wood is too weak against hurricanes.

    Edit: interiors can be built from wood, but all exterior walls are made with cinder blocks.

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  • [–] 7 points 2 years ago (1 child)
  • [–] [S] 7 points 2 years ago (2 children)

    That appears to be a military bunker of some sort

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  • [–] 3 points 2 years ago

    It's not like it's a "wood house" though just the framing is softwood lumber. The foundation is reinforced poured concrete, there's steel support braces, the ties and hardware are likely zinc coated steel, roof is asphalt shingles or steel, wind bracing is lumber or steel rods depending on code, could even have exterior brick or vinyl siding.

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  • [–] 8 points 2 years ago (6 children)

    Wouldn't the inside of your house still have wood framing structure like this though? Looks like this neighbourhood uses vinyl siding, but you could easily have a brick/stone/stucco exterior.

    Isn't it way harder to run plumbing/electric through cinder blocks, let alone hanging drywall? Or do you build a cinderblock box first and then frame the inside with wood?

    This place looks like it doesn't have a basement, which is a must in Canada, and all our basements are generally concrete pour or cinderblocks, but we still have framing on the inside walls, and usually everything above the basement is wood + facade

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  • [–] 3 points 2 years ago

    Typically, yes. In the US at least, cinder block houses are common particularly in Florida and coastal regions. The inside would still likely have a moisture barrier and insulation on modern homes, so you will typically have wood framing for interior walls to allow for wiring, plumbing, and insulation that is then drywalled over.

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  • [–] 4 points 2 years ago (3 children)

    I'm genuinely curious. I am in the southern US, Alabama specifically with the heat and humidity that entails. There are cinder block homes here, but they're mostly looked down upon and almost always have mold and mildew problems. How is that handled with brick and mortar or concrete construction?

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