3 ms·

I'm pretty sure tptacek knows how houses are built, loewenskind. I believe his point, though, is that not all of us live in disposable houses - just all the po

by Vivtek 16y ago

I'm pretty sure tptacek knows how houses are built, loewenskind. I believe his point, though, is that not all of us live in disposable houses - just all the poor schmucks who have a house built after WWII, really. I have a carriage house apartment that shows a bit of the transition; it was built in 1946. Instead of slats under the plaster, it has sort of horizontal strips of sheet rock, over which plaster was applied. Most of our workforce - including everybody who did plaster - was gone for several years. Then they all came back and had the GI Bill to buy cheap houses. The market spoke, and we're left with a lot of people who know how to build cheap houses. Now, my house is built of three layers of brick, made right here in town in a factory long gone. Its interior walls are 2x4 studs that actually measure two inches by four inches, and are roughly the consistency of iron after their 130-year drying period. (They still smell nice when drilled for wiring, though - imagine that!) There is half an inch of real plaster on that. You cannot harm this house. I should tell you, though, that drywall is gaining popularity in Europe as well. It's just so cheap and quick, you see.

loewenskind 16y ago
>I should tell you, though, that drywall is gaining popularity in Europe as well. It's just so cheap and quick, you see. What part of Europe? In the parts of Europe I'm familiar with people seem smarter about real savings. For example if you build a pile-of-sticks US style house, yes it will initially cost very little. But maintenance, heating, cooling, etc., etc. will cost a great deal more for the whole time you have the house. Perhaps if utility costs were so incredibly cheap like they are in the US people wouldn't think about it as much.
- Vivtek 16y ago
  England. They generally use a drywall with plaster veneer for new construction there - DIY plaster searches generally turn up a lot of English sites. And a few American ones as well. I'm not saying I've ever seen a studs-and-drywall approach in Europe, no. In Hungary things tend to just be concrete or block or brick construction, and wood is used for looks. This is partly because wood is really expensive in Europe, since the Phoenicians cut down their forests, mostly. We've got Canada. I wouldn't be surprised to see a light steel interior frame wall with drywall and plaster on it, though.
  - loewenskind 16y ago
    Ah yes, you consider England part of Europe. ;) From what I can see the UK is fully embracing the ways of the US for better (e.g. good restaurants/service) and worse (e.g. cheap crap favored over quality in many cases).

by Vivtek 16y ago

loewenskind 16y ago

>I should tell you, though, that drywall is gaining popularity in Europe as well. It's just so cheap and quick, you see. What part of Europe? In the parts of Europe I'm familiar with people seem smarter about real savings. For example if you build a pile-of-sticks US style house, yes it will initially cost very little. But maintenance, heating, cooling, etc., etc. will cost a great deal more for the whole time you have the house. Perhaps if utility costs were so incredibly cheap like they are in the US people wouldn't think about it as much.

Vivtek 16y ago
England. They generally use a drywall with plaster veneer for new construction there - DIY plaster searches generally turn up a lot of English sites. And a few American ones as well. I'm not saying I've ever seen a studs-and-drywall approach in Europe, no. In Hungary things tend to just be concrete or block or brick construction, and wood is used for looks. This is partly because wood is really expensive in Europe, since the Phoenicians cut down their forests, mostly. We've got Canada. I wouldn't be surprised to see a light steel interior frame wall with drywall and plaster on it, though.
- loewenskind 16y ago
  Ah yes, you consider England part of Europe. ;) From what I can see the UK is fully embracing the ways of the US for better (e.g. good restaurants/service) and worse (e.g. cheap crap favored over quality in many cases).