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Friend of mine said that before moving to US he always thought that scenes in Hollywood movies about guys and girls punching and kicking through the walls were
by fpoling 7y ago
Friend of mine said that before moving to US he always thought that scenes in Hollywood movies about guys and girls punching and kicking through the walls were totally ridiculous. After living in Seattle for a while he no longer thinks so. The walls are indeed much thinner than in Europe. He supposed that this was due to earthquakes. What was the point to make home heavier/more robust if it still is not enough to protect against strong earthquakes while making evacuation harder? That and the culture that prefers to rebuild from scratch rather than maintaining older things leads to houses that are only good for 30-40 years...
- pjc50 7y agoDifferential availability of materials makes a huge difference - the US has a lot of cheap wood, leading to lath-and-plaster construction, especially in milder climates. This can be found in traditional European construction ("half timbered"), but we used up the forests so many areas switched to stone or brick. E.g. this Scottish vernacular cottage: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Du2mYluV4AAipYU.jpg https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Du2mYluV4AAipYU.jpg The only piece of structural timber was the roof beam (now missing), which could be covered by branches and thatch. I think "settlement persistence" makes a difference too, as new greenfield houses in the UK tend to be poor quality, but more central ones are more durable.
- dillonmckay 7y agoI have only seen lathe and plaster in ‘quality’ built and historical homes, but the majority use drywall. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drywall https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drywall