7 ms·

I mean there is no reason wooden structures shouldn't last over 100 years if not double or triple that except for lack of maintenance, usually involving leaking

I mean there is no reason wooden structures shouldn't last over 100 years if not double or triple that except for lack of maintenance, usually involving leaking roof or a negligent design that traps water. I grew up in a house that was 150 years old and the only thing not wooden on it was the roofing material, although when it was first built it likely was cedar shake. The walls were wood, the floors were wood, the siding was wood, and any interior plaster was backed with wood. We never had to question any of the woods condition despite the majority of it being completely original.

manmal 5y ago
Let’s add a lack of termites, no lightning strikes, and great care about open fires to the list of requirements. While I personally like the idea (and smell!) of pure wood houses, I would not want to live in one permanently. Wood is a great material for sure, but why not mix it with other materials to make things safer and more sturdy.
- insaneirish 5y ago
  > but why not mix it with other materials to make things safer and more sturdy. Because wood is a renewable resource, not a source of carbon emissions (like concrete), and is absolutely strong enough for single family homes.
- belval 5y ago
  One other drawback of wooden houses is that wood absorbs moisture so in winter you have to run a humidifier because the air moisture is basically non-existent and that will irritate your nose and throat. I'll take a typical drywall panels on a wooden frame over wooden walls.
  - Johnny555 5y ago
    Wood can't continually absorb moisture, at some point it would become saturated. I always thought that the reason that winter air is dry is because warm air can hold more moisture than cold air, so as you heat it, relative humidity decreases. So, for example, if it's 5C outside with 50% relative humidity, if you heat that air to 22C, then it will have only 17% relative humidity. But modern houses (even wood ones) are so well sealed that even in winter you could end up with too much humidity inside just from normal activities (cooking, bathing, breathing).
- xyzzyz 5y ago
  Termites are not a problem in huge swaths of the world, lightning strikes are… very unlikely, and fires will destroy any house, wood or not. All in all, correctly built wooden houses are pretty much as safe and sturdy as anything else.
- syoc 5y ago
  Wood houses do not burn very well. Pure wood houses (think lumber cottages) are especially hard to set fire to. The things that do burn are furniture, paint, drapes etc and are present in any house.
  - manmal 5y ago
    > The material used in this type of wood can go up in flames much faster than traditional lumber does, meaning in a house fire, new homes will be more susceptible to something like a floor or roof collapse. Firefighters say it will happen quicker, too. https://www.google.com/amp/s/idahonews.com/amp/news/local/how-fast-can-new-houses-burn-much-faster-than-they-could-decades-ago https://www.google.com/amp/s/idahonews.com/amp/news/local/ho...
    - mason55 5y ago
      The article also says you’ll die of smoke inhalation long before the floor collapses
- horsawlarway 5y ago
  Because wood is plenty strong and safe. I've lived in wood houses all my life, all of them built between 1920 and 1950. Balloon construction has, generally speaking, been great. The frames are strong and light, easy to run cabling/utilities, easy to modify/remove/renovate (You know what else I've done in every house I've owned? Moved at least one wall - in my current house we just completely modified the layout of the upstairs. Moving the walls cost on the order of a few hundred dollars each, since they weren't structural supports, and it's just wood and drywall) Basically - They're cheaper, better for the environment, and when cared for last a LONG time. Do they have some specific downsides? Sure. But overall they work fantastically well. Also - if you think concrete is sturdier than wood frames... in most cases I suspect you're wrong for residential homes. I live in a temperate rain forest (Atlanta, GA) the pine trees are HUGE, and they fall constantly - they hit houses a lot. Most take damage, but it's usually easy to repair, and honestly, the wood frame alone usually keeps people inside safe. Hundreds of houses a year take tree hits, and having someone die is rare enough it usually makes the news. Wood is tough. I've seen a 100ft pine literally bounce off a house.
- eloff 5y ago
  The no termites thing is a big deal. I would not build with wood in the jungles of Panama. At best some solid wood beams, hardwood, properly treated. For aesthetics. Termites are a constant battle for my parents there in their concrete home. I can't imagine the carnage with a wood frame home.
  - dmos62 5y ago
    What happens to a concrete home in termite country?
    - eloff 5y ago
      It's fine. They still invade the home through any opening they can find, build nests in the ceiling, eat cardboard boxes, exposed wood and trim, and furniture. They don't eat concrete, thankfully. I lost a piece of furniture there living in a condo, downtown in the city. The termites are industrious.
      - dmos62 5y ago
        Imagine concrete termites. Yikes.
  - quartesixte 5y ago
    TIL about concrete eating termites and now I’m absolutely horrified. Thanks.
- rootusrootus 5y ago
  IMO this is the kind of stuff people worry about who don't really have any knowledge about wood structures. In some ways they're the safest and sturdiest choice, especially if you get any earthquakes in your region. FWIW, if you are concerned about fire, you should be aware that it's really the contents of the house that pose the greatest risk. You can get to flashover temperatures in a matter of minutes before any of the wood structure is burning.
- falcolas 5y ago
  Yeah, so, fire. Why don’t we go to the - primarily built from stone - Notre Dame and ask how that went.
  - bombela 5y ago
    The roof is/was wood. That's what burned.
    - falcolas 5y ago
      Well, technically, the roof was lead/tin shingles. The support beams for the roof (and a good many parts of the church, like the bell supports) were wood. My point is that building of brick/concrete doesn't guarantee you're rid of flammable infrastructure.
  - koyote 5y ago
    Well if you take into account that the roof framing that caught fire was made out of timber I think that highlights that even just using wood as part of the building is a massive fire hazard.
- aiisjustanif 5y ago
  > Open fires Time to bring the Latvian video back up again: https://youtu.be/G-J86Ka9MkQ https://youtu.be/G-J86Ka9MkQ

manmal 5y ago

Let’s add a lack of termites, no lightning strikes, and great care about open fires to the list of requirements. While I personally like the idea (and smell!) of pure wood houses, I would not want to live in one permanently. Wood is a great material for sure, but why not mix it with other materials to make things safer and more sturdy.

insaneirish 5y ago
> but why not mix it with other materials to make things safer and more sturdy. Because wood is a renewable resource, not a source of carbon emissions (like concrete), and is absolutely strong enough for single family homes.
belval 5y ago
One other drawback of wooden houses is that wood absorbs moisture so in winter you have to run a humidifier because the air moisture is basically non-existent and that will irritate your nose and throat. I'll take a typical drywall panels on a wooden frame over wooden walls.
- Johnny555 5y ago
  Wood can't continually absorb moisture, at some point it would become saturated. I always thought that the reason that winter air is dry is because warm air can hold more moisture than cold air, so as you heat it, relative humidity decreases. So, for example, if it's 5C outside with 50% relative humidity, if you heat that air to 22C, then it will have only 17% relative humidity. But modern houses (even wood ones) are so well sealed that even in winter you could end up with too much humidity inside just from normal activities (cooking, bathing, breathing).
xyzzyz 5y ago
Termites are not a problem in huge swaths of the world, lightning strikes are… very unlikely, and fires will destroy any house, wood or not. All in all, correctly built wooden houses are pretty much as safe and sturdy as anything else.
syoc 5y ago
Wood houses do not burn very well. Pure wood houses (think lumber cottages) are especially hard to set fire to. The things that do burn are furniture, paint, drapes etc and are present in any house.
- manmal 5y ago
  > The material used in this type of wood can go up in flames much faster than traditional lumber does, meaning in a house fire, new homes will be more susceptible to something like a floor or roof collapse. Firefighters say it will happen quicker, too. https://www.google.com/amp/s/idahonews.com/amp/news/local/how-fast-can-new-houses-burn-much-faster-than-they-could-decades-ago https://www.google.com/amp/s/idahonews.com/amp/news/local/ho...
  - mason55 5y ago
    The article also says you’ll die of smoke inhalation long before the floor collapses
horsawlarway 5y ago
Because wood is plenty strong and safe. I've lived in wood houses all my life, all of them built between 1920 and 1950. Balloon construction has, generally speaking, been great. The frames are strong and light, easy to run cabling/utilities, easy to modify/remove/renovate (You know what else I've done in every house I've owned? Moved at least one wall - in my current house we just completely modified the layout of the upstairs. Moving the walls cost on the order of a few hundred dollars each, since they weren't structural supports, and it's just wood and drywall) Basically - They're cheaper, better for the environment, and when cared for last a LONG time. Do they have some specific downsides? Sure. But overall they work fantastically well. Also - if you think concrete is sturdier than wood frames... in most cases I suspect you're wrong for residential homes. I live in a temperate rain forest (Atlanta, GA) the pine trees are HUGE, and they fall constantly - they hit houses a lot. Most take damage, but it's usually easy to repair, and honestly, the wood frame alone usually keeps people inside safe. Hundreds of houses a year take tree hits, and having someone die is rare enough it usually makes the news. Wood is tough. I've seen a 100ft pine literally bounce off a house.
eloff 5y ago
The no termites thing is a big deal. I would not build with wood in the jungles of Panama. At best some solid wood beams, hardwood, properly treated. For aesthetics. Termites are a constant battle for my parents there in their concrete home. I can't imagine the carnage with a wood frame home.
- dmos62 5y ago
  What happens to a concrete home in termite country?
  - eloff 5y ago
    It's fine. They still invade the home through any opening they can find, build nests in the ceiling, eat cardboard boxes, exposed wood and trim, and furniture. They don't eat concrete, thankfully. I lost a piece of furniture there living in a condo, downtown in the city. The termites are industrious.
    - dmos62 5y ago
      Imagine concrete termites. Yikes.
- quartesixte 5y ago
  TIL about concrete eating termites and now I’m absolutely horrified. Thanks.
rootusrootus 5y ago
IMO this is the kind of stuff people worry about who don't really have any knowledge about wood structures. In some ways they're the safest and sturdiest choice, especially if you get any earthquakes in your region. FWIW, if you are concerned about fire, you should be aware that it's really the contents of the house that pose the greatest risk. You can get to flashover temperatures in a matter of minutes before any of the wood structure is burning.
falcolas 5y ago
Yeah, so, fire. Why don’t we go to the - primarily built from stone - Notre Dame and ask how that went.
- bombela 5y ago
  The roof is/was wood. That's what burned.
  - falcolas 5y ago
    Well, technically, the roof was lead/tin shingles. The support beams for the roof (and a good many parts of the church, like the bell supports) were wood. My point is that building of brick/concrete doesn't guarantee you're rid of flammable infrastructure.
- koyote 5y ago
  Well if you take into account that the roof framing that caught fire was made out of timber I think that highlights that even just using wood as part of the building is a massive fire hazard.
aiisjustanif 5y ago
> Open fires Time to bring the Latvian video back up again: https://youtu.be/G-J86Ka9MkQ https://youtu.be/G-J86Ka9MkQ