Which building material do you prefer?
Just wanted to see what people think
| Concrete | 6 | |
| Stone | 9 | |
| Clay bricks | 3 | |
| Timber | 6 |
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olderdude-xx
Depends what I am building.
Certain stone materials are the longest lasting (10,000+ years or more)... assuming that the mortar does not degrade and you have adequate foundations. The problems with stone buildings lives is almost always the mortar and foundation issues which can show up as fast as 30 years (one well known exception being the stone house they build out of "oil shale" in Dakotas or Eastern Wyoming that promptly burned down once they started a fire in the fireplace: That's how we discovered oil shale).
Properly built concrete can be equally long lived (there is Roman concrete that is in excellent condition after several thousand years... and likely will last at least that much longer - who knows?). Of course, most concrete these days is only built to last 50-100 years. But, we do know how to build it to last many thousands of years (there is nothing secret about what the Romans did) - if you are willing to spend a bit more to do so.
However, for many buildings wood or brick (with mortar) is quite adequate for the intended use and life. Example: most stand alone sheds and garages are build of wood. They can be reasonably maintained and rebuilt when they age out.
So, it really depends on the application and expected life of the building and structure.
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LloydAsher
Cob and other earthen building materials last just as long with the proper conditions.
Honestly I just like the simplicity of Adobe and cob. You are also free to make any shape you want since it doesnt require framing (other than windows and doors)
Cob is made of three things: sand, straw and clay all mixed (usually by hand or feet) and then laid out and left to dry. Most people apply plaster afterwards to give it some external protection. Honestly I think I'm going to build a work shed out of cob at some point.
Cob can be used to build single story structures practically anywhere inbetween artic and tropical conditions.
Water isnt the major issue unless it pools. Cob is naturally fire retardant. Only thing that's kinda crappy about it is that when it's set it's set, so if you want to make modifications in the wall you needed to do it before the wall was made. So when you make the building you have to plan what's going inside the wall as you are building. Also for obvious reasons you cant run plumbing through a cob wall since the condensation will eventually ruin the wall.
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donteatstuffoffthesidewalk
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DADNSCAL
Stone, of course. It’s the most expensive, but will last the longest, and is most beautiful.
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raisinbran
Cloth. I would like to build a three story house out of tarps, pillows and blankets. A swimming pool lined with carpets in the back.
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pastafather
I wld love concrete since pastachild constantly hits the walls with hammers.
I taught him young. Boy, it's mentally unhealthy to hold in your anger. So just beat anything you see. walls, kids, dogs, cats, rabbits, womans, transgernereds. Now the trailers full of holes. We have to patch it up with the cardboard from the boxes we steal off the truck.
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Contrivance
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RoseIsabella
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a-curious-bunny
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LloydAsher
What type? I perfer fieldstone. Not only does it give that rubble look but it's also extremely cheap and practically free.
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a-curious-bunny
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LloydAsher
Yeah fieldstone is naturally found on farming fields that have to be removed before the next crop. They are leftovers from the glaciers cutting through the bedrock and now every year they somehow get to the surface (idk much about geology) but since it's just useless rocks, farmers usually dump them on the edge of their property or make stone walls.
Anyway if you ask for some
fieldstone unless the farmer already sells/gives them to a landscaping company you got a pretty decent chance of getting literal tons of rocks for free.Comment Hidden ( show )-
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a-curious-bunny
I didn't know they had a name. We always found rocks in our fields. Like how does it get plowed every year and always turn up more rocks? One book I read (fantasy book) says rocks grow. I like that theory.
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LloydAsher
Well growing rocks is a term for a field that has unusual quantities of rocks that do that.
Idk I think it's something to do with density the rocks are being pushed up due to a greater force pushing up then the weight of the rock itself. If you think of compressed dirt like a fluid rocks get pushed up from the force.
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[Old Memory]
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LloydAsher
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[Old Memory]
im not sure what wood is used for construction purposes. We got concrete and brick houses over here.
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LloydAsher
I mean theres also different types of construction wood too you know. Most of it is softwoods since hardwood is pretty much reserved for trim and floors.
I suppose I asked a stupid question since no one really cares what wood you use for framing since its covered anyway.
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Mini69