Why are the houses over here all made out of wood. WHY?

Question

When a hurricane happens, and you see house or roofs being blown off, I wonder why. Why don't people make houses out of bricks. Yeah maybe this will stop houses from being so destroyed. I bet if there is a house made of bricks and a house made of wood side-by-side, and at the same time they're both in a hurricane, I'm sure the wood house will sustain more damage than the brick house. Everyone says, wood is a good insulator, well what about houses in Europe, they're made of bricks, are you telling me the houses over there are not insulated?

Answer 1

Wood is relatively abundant and inexpensive inthe US. Bricks and mortar construction is much more expensive and the supporting structure which would be required for the weight of the bricks would be much much more than for the wood roof. Some part of the country have a lot of clay tile roofs which resist hail damage better but don't stand up to hurricanes any better than wood and shingles.

The thing about hurricanes and their smaller, more intense sisters tornadoes is that the wind force is such that re-inforced concrete is necessary to withstand, which again is very expensive.

Finally, bricks are indeed poorer insulators than wood, but it's not the insulation properties of wood that are most important - it's the price.

Answer 2

That's because there aren't any forests left for you to take wood from in the UK. Before the forests were all cut down most houses and even a lot of castles in England were built of wood. Houses here are made from and with many different materials. Many use the materials most commonly found in the region where they're being built. A wood frame makes it very easy to install insulation, wiring and piping. Exterior coverings may be wood, brick, native or manufactured stone, stucco, adobe, aluminum or vinyl.

Answer 3

I'd rather get hit by a peice of wood than a brick when it comes down to it (hurricanes are pretty fierce) and because wood was around way back when this country was made, not bricks. (I don't think bricks came over on the Mayflower) I have a feeling wood is cheaper also.

Answer 4

Well if you are in America, not all homes are made of wood. There have been concrete houses since the early 60's and they are making a comback. NOW they are comparable to the cost of building wood structures, yet in the long run they are much more efficient. there is one built around the Twin Cities (minneapolis/St.Paul) that is 7500 square feet. It has the geo-thermal heat/cooling system. And thier average electric bill per year is $550 YES I said $550.

Answer 5

Good Q, but eventually everyone will note that Block, preformed concrete slabs, and/or any other material, such as composites, will become the Usual.

We, in the USA can't grow all the wood we need to house everyone in the country, and by now WOOD is far more expensive than most other materials. Beyond that, especially after storms, Contractors can starve waiting for material to build houses.

I like your reference also, to Europe. So many of the homes over there are far older than Our Country, much less our houses.

Rev. Steven

A recent trend I've noted, explored by some adventurous entrepeneurs is housing built from containers, similar to 18 wheeler truck trailers.

Answer 6

simple wood is cheaper and hurricanes are only recently intensifying. since ANDREW national code has stiffened 20 fold.
in florida all good homes are cement block single story.with trusses but what do you tell a poor family i'm sorry you can't have a home because this area see's a major hurricane once every 60 years? New York has many 2x4 3floor homes and never seen a hurricane unless you mean winds of 20mph. so it really comes down to how much doe ray me your willing to spend and how important you rank your families saftey if you live in a hurricane zone.

Answer 7

It is based on the fact that they (europeans) have no earthquakes.

Wood is fexible compared to brick and mortar. So during an earthquake the house is able to sway in one piece a little bit. So the Brick will literally crubmble.

Answer 8

I live in a hurricane state (Louisiana) and in a wooden home fortunately for us we have had no major damage ever. Several major hurricanes have past thru us including the last with Katrina and Rita. Most homes were built in 20's, 30's, 40's. Most homes here are antebellum, ranch homes, farm houses and materials back then easier and cheaper to come by was wood for the home and tin for the roof from the area. Some have brick with them, some used stone for columns. Most damage from hurricanes besides wind factor is the flood issue. It doesn't matter in that case if u have wooden or brick homes u cannot stop water from coming into your home. Several cities here including New Orleans were built under sea level or just above sea level. So the most factor was rivers, lakes, ponds, the Gulf overflowing into the city. Usually we don't have tornadoes but some times do. Each state in the US is prone to something whether hurricanes, tornadoes, rock slides, earthquakes, fires, floods. So if all people could afford to build up their homes and use brick r any better materials they would. Nowadays here some are using brick with siding but these are the newly build homes. Hope this gives u a better understanding.

Answer 9

Most of the homes in FL in hurricane areas are CBS. Concrete block and stucco.

Answer 10

why don't you compare a Volkswagen and a semi truck. Or a prop plane and a jet. Or a row boat to a yacht