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He did it as a challenge though and didn't use any modern tools. With modern tools and knowledge it would be extremely quick, easy, and cheap. I built a 2 sto

by bcheung 11y ago

He did it as a challenge though and didn't use any modern tools. With modern tools and knowledge it would be extremely quick, easy, and cheap. I built a 2 story building with 4 rooms and even a cantilevered walkway for about $3500 and about 120 man hours (combined time of myself and 1 other person working on it). Probably would have been closer to 80 if I had a nail gun but I was poor at the time and didn't want to spend the money so I just used a hammer. Of course it wasn't legal but it worked well and was super sturdy. If I had to built it to code and follow all the regulations I wouldn't have even bothered and it would probably have cost me over $100,000 and taken over a year to build. I bought a book from Home Depot on framing for about $20. It wasn't hard nor expensive to acquire the knowledge. Buckminster Fuller proposed that homes should be built from pre-made components that can be assembled. I believe he (or maybe someone else referencing him) used the analogy if we built cars the same way we built homes, you would have to order all the parts from separate suppliers. You would have to hire an engineer to come up with the plans. Then you would have to hire workers to build it. And at several stages throughout the process you would have to pay the local government money to approve your plan and get permission to build it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YnIXcIQtHvc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YnIXcIQtHvc Technology has made things incredibly cheap, it's a lot of the building codes and regulations that are making it more expensive.

kragen 11y ago
He did use modern knowledge, just not modern tools. If you're using modern tools and materials, you can build a Hexayurt. And you should! My point wasn't that today access to knowledge is restricted or that houses today are expensive to build — quite the opposite! My point was that building a house with Stone Age tools and materials is very expensive, and that this is indicative of the causes of the general problem of pre-industrial poverty. I agree with you on that! I'm curious how much you could ease the process by using more modern knowledge, but starting without modern tools or materials. (You'll note that the OP used modern thermodynamics to design his kiln.) For example, could you smelt iron from sand? http://youtu.be/RuCnZClWwpQ http://youtu.be/RuCnZClWwpQ outlines an approach that's definitely workable, but it's using a bloomery furnace — could you, for example, bootstrap a micro-Bessemer furnace? How about a lathe that you can cut threaded screw fasteners on? (Or even just wooden dowels.) FWIW Bucky's mass-produced-house dream has come to fruition, which is how I was able to live in a trailer park as a child.

by bcheung 11y ago

kragen 11y ago

He did use modern knowledge, just not modern tools. If you're using modern tools and materials, you can build a Hexayurt. And you should! My point wasn't that today access to knowledge is restricted or that houses today are expensive to build — quite the opposite! My point was that building a house with Stone Age tools and materials is very expensive, and that this is indicative of the causes of the general problem of pre-industrial poverty. I agree with you on that! I'm curious how much you could ease the process by using more modern knowledge, but starting without modern tools or materials. (You'll note that the OP used modern thermodynamics to design his kiln.) For example, could you smelt iron from sand? http://youtu.be/RuCnZClWwpQ http://youtu.be/RuCnZClWwpQ outlines an approach that's definitely workable, but it's using a bloomery furnace — could you, for example, bootstrap a micro-Bessemer furnace? How about a lathe that you can cut threaded screw fasteners on? (Or even just wooden dowels.) FWIW Bucky's mass-produced-house dream has come to fruition, which is how I was able to live in a trailer park as a child.