Why the homes in US are not built with Concrete and Steel as the rest of the world do?

Question

Due to touch down of tornado in New Iberia, LA the whole town razed to ground and two innocent lives are also lost. Had those homes are built with Cement and Steel like rest of the world do there wouldn't have been any loss of lives and property. US claim that it believes in recycling. Yeah we recycle petty things but we build our homes with 100% non-recyclable wood. In our homes every single thing used is non-recyclable and comes from trees the Structure Frame to Roof to Cub Boards in our kitchen. Not only single family homes even multistoried apartment complexes are also built totally using wood. The federal government oversees so many things but conveniently ignores this type of wastage there by allowing the cutting of trees and global warming. The lame excuse we give for this type of wastage is building homes with concrete and steel is very expensive because labor involvement is

Answer 1

I suspect you don't live in America ... you lack any actual knowledge of the building industry here. You are unaware of the building codes followed during construction and your claims of multi-story wooden apartment buildings if fiction. At the very least, Americans have the option to live in actual houses built specifically for that purpose. We don't get the materials from the 'cardboard only' dumpster behind a local store.

What country do you know that actually uses reinforced concrete to build individual homes ... there are a few of those everywhere, but they are the exception, not the rule. We see a lot of the worlds' housing on the TV news. A lot of it looks like cardboard from refrigerator boxes, scraps of corrugated metal from old roofing, and sheets of plastic scraps from the trash to me. I guess that's recycling, but it's not really housing and certainly isn't concrete and steel.

A tornado will destroy even the best build home. Pick another subject for your next rant ... this one is invalid!

Answer 2

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Answer 3

First of all, you are mistaken. Most other countries have no more concrete and steel homes than we do. The rest of the world? Obviously you did not follow the tsunami very closely. Most of the millions of homes that were destroyed were not concrete. I have also lived in Britain, and although many buildings there were made out of brick, many of those were still built around a wooden frame. Second, the cost of labor is only ONE of the factors in the cost for building houses. Materials are more expensive for concrete and steel houses. Also, the cost of maintenance and utilities would be more than most people, American or not, could afford to take care of. Wood breathes. Wood is cheap. And "cheap labor from across the border" isn't going to make any difference. For one thing, most people want them kicked out of the country anyway (thought I personally disagree with this). For another thing, you still have to train them, and it is not like picking cherry tomatoes. You can't pay construction workers $2.00 an hour in the United States, regardless of where they come from. Third, if you think that a tornado cannot bust up a concrete home, you are gravely mistaken. There are examples where pieces of wood have been found imbedded in steel beams, and windows are not made out of concrete. That said, there is no question that a wooden house is potentially more of a danger, but they are actually quite safe in general. Most people who die in tornados do so because they do not take cover, or live in mobile homes. There are exceptions, but they are just that: exceptions. Then, the cost of rebuilding is MUCH cheaper than if you had to rebuild your concrete bunker house. Fourth, the fact is that the federal government has little to do with it, so they are not a good part of your argument. People choose to build houses in a way that they can afford. Hardly anyone in the country would trade their nice house for a bunker. Hardly anyone would trade a wooden house for NO house, which is the alternative for most people, who could never afford the houses you are talking about. Finally, steel is made from iron. That is a finite material. If EVERYTHING were made from it, then we would have iron shortages. At least you can grow more trees. That said, I think your concern with recycling is spot on. Concrete is a good substance for use, due to the ability to recycle it and the fact that it is made from very common material. Global warming is a concern, for sure, and I appreciate your concern for the deforestation issue. Unfortunately, that does not cancel out everything I've listed above, and that is why houses are not made out of concrete or metal.

Answer 4

I disagree with maddog. I don't know whether Kiran lives in America or not but certainly maddog did not travel beyond his county like many Americans. I live in Atlanta, GA right on Interstate 85 at Exit 91 a huge multistoried apartment building complex a coming using totally wood right from frames to every thing. In India every home including single family homes are built with Concrete and Steel and they are not only cheap but strong enough to bear any kind storms including Tornadoes(they are called Typhoons there). We Americans listen what the big corporations tell us whether it is our homes, cars or any damn thing.

Answer 5

I've always wondered the same thing. I'm from Italy - thousands of years of concrete buildings - still standing.

Answer 6

steel and concrete come from ore found in the ground, once it is gone it won't grow back. we grow trees every day. so your logic is that we push down all the trees, and start open pit mining to build all the homes in the us, yep makes perfect sense!