Americans React: Why Are U.S. Homes So Flimsy Compared to Europe? 🤯

[@abofrey]

We used all our trees in Britain to build a Navy, because bricks don't float.

[@claregale9011]

That's true, Henry the vlll had most of our forests cut down to build ships

[@raybenstead2548]

About 3000 Oak trees to build HMS Victory and we had fleets of first rate ships of the line during the Napoleonic wars.

[@AndrewAHayes]

Boats and barges have been built from reinforced concrete for hundreds of years and so I suppose one could be made from clay and then fired, I don't know why anyone would want to though.

[@meanlean3095]

Then with no trees left they decided to build steel ships 😂

[@claregale9011]

@@meanlean3095 lack of foresight 🤣🤣

[@weepair2]

British houses are built to withstand British weather. The way American houses are built would be termed sheds here in the UK or maybe even chicken coops.

[@markwilkie3677]

My mate lives in US, and his roof shingles are the same material as I have on the roof of my shed.

[@diogenesegarden5152]

I don’t know. Looking at uK new builds, that argument no longer stands (‘scuse the pun).

[@paradisekohchangstyle2150]

​@@diogenesegarden5152Yup. New builds suck like a Dyson. Built by cowboys with no pride in their trade plus cost-cutting developers. Stay away unless you have a budget to build your own house and can cherry-pick decent craftsmen.

[@sheilagalvin9342]

But they are big and look nice which is all most Americans care about

[@mnomadvfx]

Not only sheds - many residential extensions use similar roofing materials, albeit usually non wood based framing.

[@belladonnichazeyjane4887]

I've heard over the years about people getting angry and punching holes in their walls and I just always thought how the hell do you punch a hole in your WALL. Makes sense now. If I tried to punch a hole in my wall I'd probably break my whole arm.

[@Rachel_M_]

Our walls hit back 😂

[@HeatherFirth-ky4fx]

😅 as do ours!

[@Enhancedlies]

im the same! i was so confused for the longest time...

[@dcallan812]

they just hang plaster board onto the wood frame, sometimes adding insulation. Not like the UK brick thats been plastered.

[@jmillar71110]

As someone who has made this mistake before.. don't do it😂 you will end up with a broken hand😂

[@rachelquirey7099]

My stone house was built in 1790 with rocks from the beach and lime cement. The amount of 80mph storms that have hit us direct, stands to show the strength in the solid structure. My neighbours roof is made from an 1800 shipwreck timber.

[@LunarisArts]

Oooh. That roof sounds like it'll last longer than the house itself.

[@mnomadvfx]

Ship timbers were usually of the highest possible quality, so it makes sense that they would be a great building material to salvage from.

[@reactingtomyroots]

Love stone houses!

[@laurabailey1054]

@@reactingtomyrootsgo visit Kingston, Ontario Canada. It was a British military base and home of Fort Henry. There are Martello towers there. Kingston is called The Limestone City and is over 350 years old. It is a very British city in Canada.

[@aaronburdon221]

only 80 mph? I think our hardest tornado was like 320 mph in Oklahoma. That shit will literally eat a brick house and yank the foundation out of the ground. They average about 120-140 depending on what state you're from though. Our weather in America ain't no joke. We have the greatest diversity of weather in the world here. We deal with forest fires, flash floods, tornados, hurricanes, earthquakes, landslides, mud slides, blizzards, hail storms with hail the size of hockey pucks. Australia is known for it's wild animals. America should be known for it's wild af weather. The largest temperature change in 1 day was recorded here. It went from 102 degrees F to -4 F in 1 day.

[@clareturner6078]

My brick house in the UK was built nearly 200 years ago and still as solid as ever!

[@mnomadvfx]

Depends on the foundations though. Wood framing is far less likely to suffer the problems of subsidence. This was unfortunately a problem my dad had to deal with for the kitchen extension to our house causing cracking in the walls.

[@Appleduck2007]

My grandparents' old house was built in the 1640s and it is still as solid as ever too!

[@-_YouMayFind_-]

@@mnomadvfx Wood is just not realistic in most countries, looking at natural disasters, storms, floods and in general that we don't want to built new homes every 70 years. We have chosen to built structure to stand for hundreds of years.Extensions are always risky and you have to do it in a correct way. You can also not just take out a wall without letting an expert looking at it. This counts for all homes wooden or stone.

[@CrispeeCrisps15]

@@mnomadvfxalso far more likely to rot from damp

[@jimbodimbo981]

1840 and it’s still going strong

[@stephenhodgson3506]

I have been told by a number of both bricklayers and painters here in the UK that you should never, ever, ever paint brick. Brick breaths naturally and allows moisture to leave the building. If you paint the brick you are creating a barrier for the moisture to escape from. The moisture has to go somewhere so it will go indoors and create damp. I had an uncle who was a bricklayer who used to compete in competitions to build the fastest house out of brick. With a team of four labourers he could build a two storied brick house in a day. His elder brother who was a master builder would say that you would never want to live in it though. Most of the UK's timber, particularly oak, was used to build our navy before iron and steel came along. When building a house from wood I have been told is to look at how close the rings are in the timber. In old growth the rings are very close together in new growth the rings are much further apart. You can use timber from old homes again in a new build but new growth is of little use but firewood.

[@martinwebb1681]

Don't know why anyone would want to paint brick, the brick itself has a colour that is really nice already and as you say painting the bricks clogs up its ability to breath and release the moisture.

[@harrythompson6977]

you can its just about knowing and learning the correct way to apply layers and products so it still can breathe.

[@andrewadam9544]

depends on the type of paint, quality masonry paint breathes and on modern houses you will see brick vents near the soffits at the top to allow moisture to evaporate up the cavity and out

[@stephenhodgson3506]

@@harrythompson6977 My niece's partner who is a painter by trade refuses to do jobs where painting brick is concerned because he says no matter the paint or the preparation you can never guarantee that you haven't trapped moisture between the paint and brick and over time you are guaranteed to have problems with moisture.

[@jackmason4374]

Modern houses in the uk are utter garbage

[@stuartfitch7093]

I'm from the UK, I own and live in a house built in the 1950s. This would be classed as fairly new in the UK when you consider that there is another house only a couple of miles from where I live that dates back to the late 1300s. I do think however, that the quality of building here in the UK has changed a lot in recent times. A couple of years ago I wanted to hang a small sign on the adjoining wall with my neighbour. I only had to drill two small screw holes. I burnt through two proper masonary drill bits just drilling the two holes I needed. That's how hard the walls are in my 50s built house. Meanwhile I have work colleagues who live in some houses built nearby after 2010. They say that the internal walls are so thin that you can hear other people through the walls and a picture hook is just pulled straight out the wall by the weight of the picture because the wall is basically just plasterboard.

[@Debbie76]

I think of anything built in the 1900s onwards as pretty new, really. A house would have to be built a couple of hundred years ago to be "old". Anything from 1970s onwards is a "new build" 🙂

[@kingofbengland]

I feel that I should say that the newer houses will probably have a masonry layer with a plasterboard skim and you can hang stuff on plasterboard if you have the right fittings.

[@martynnotman3467]

My house is 1900 and whoever built it got hold of some old furnace lining bricks. They are like iron.

[@maryelizabethord7915]

I live in a 50s house built for social housing with materials from Germany. The outer walls are 30cm thick and all internal walls are brick. My daughter lives in a Victorian terrace with a small cellar whose ceiling is the ground floor floorboards, and the whole house is a single brick thickness, too thin for a windowsill! We also have housing and public buildings spanning many centuries.

[@alanaw27]

I’ve stayed in the same house for 50 years and we’e done regular renovations and up grades. My neighbours do the same, so where we live is very pleasant and the houses sell with in a couple of weeks, when they’re put up for sale.

[@lloydcollins6337]

Something the original video didn't mention which I think illustrates the point here is roofing. Here in the UK and in a lot of the EU our houses are roofed with tiles. In the UK we used to use slate a lot (because it splits relatively easily into thin flat tiles and can be easily worked into rectangles) but these days they're generally mass manufactured concrete tiles which are shaped with interlocking edges so that they hold each other down as they are laid. In the southern EU (Spain, Italy, southern France etc) they generally go for terracotta tiles because they block heat better and the materials to make them are readily available. Whereas in the US I believe you guys have "shingles" made of what we in the UK would call "roofing felt" but which you call "tarpaper". Generally to my understanding they need yearly maintenance, sealing regularly, and replacing every 10 years. Here in the UK you'd only have work done on your roof if there were broken tiles, or to regularly clear the gutters of debris (which happens in the US too of course). We'd never accept a roof which only lasted 10 years.

[@reactingtomyroots]

Didn't even think about the roofing materials! That's a good point.

[@watcherzero5256]

The tiles are usually clay rather than concrete on UK homes, concrete tiles are usually on commercial buildings that would previously have had corrugated iron roofs as they are lighter so need less supporting roof structure.

[@ballagh]

To be fair some people in the uk love a roof that needs maintenance every 10 years. It’s called thatch. Reed thatch might last 25 years while long straw is about 10 to 15 but the ridge and eves will need maintenance at about 10 years

[@jennfox7529]

@@watcherzero5256 nope, most post war properties have concrete tiles unless they’ve been built in Conservation Areas, although the non profiled ones can look like clays 🙂

[@watcherzero5256]

@@jennfox7529 Dont have much post war properties up north with concrete tiles (until you get to the Scottish Border areas), almost all properties are 1910-1930's with post war either having clay tiles or being blocks of flats with flat roofs. Even the infill 80's/90's stuff goes for clay over concrete tiles to match. Concrete tiles masquerading as clay stick out like a sore thumb as they are too uniform in colour and shape.

[@kitglare8800]

My house is brick and flint and was built in 1798, the walls are 18" thick.

[@howey935]

I live in a Georgian house as well but mine is built from local sandstone and has a slate roof.

[@Enhancedlies]

that will stop a cannonball! You would feel very safe during a hurricane like that!

[@michaelatkins4501]

Mine was built in 1600 and made of stone and chalk walls and 1.5 feet thick exterior walls

[@onlyme6362]

Bad internet? My walls are thick also, getting good internet is just awful.

[@michaelatkins4501]

@ I have the same problem but sky are doing multi room for a 5er a month they turned up put a good booster in and then put the mini box in another room. So you get the booster and 1 free mini box and the mini box acts as a booster also but only up to 150mbs so we now have good signal over the whole house and considering that the fireplace is the kind you could fit 4 or 5 people in I’m hugely impressed that it smashed through that

[@pepperpotty]

Every time I see a big storm or hurricane hit the States I'm always wondering why on earth they keep making houses out of wood. In the UK it's such a rare thing to make houses out of wood that you would really struggle to get a mortgage on a house like that as it's considered non standard construction. Usually you'll see the listing and it will say cash buyers only.

[@susansmiles2242]

We do have timber framed houses but the outer skin is always brick or in some cases stone

[@sallyannwheeler6327]

Me too.🤦🏻‍♀️

[@l.h.3586]

In the Nordic states, houses are typically wooden. But the quality difference is insane.

[@sknox1394]

I live in a fully wooden Scandinavian style house in NE Scotland. My house (along with the others in the estate) were built in the 1970s and are still standing strong. Definitely looks like the materials and build quality of these houses are far superior to those in the US.

[@bordersw1239]

Umm , we don’t have hurricanes.

[@jacobreisser8034]

We live in rural Somerset. Our house has parts that date to the 15th century, the newest part, apart from the roof, is 350 years old.

[@rjmac3095]

I once considered buying a house that was 760 years old, but decided against it in the end, there is such a thing as having too much character! lol

[@CMOT101]

My house is from 1690. Its good for another 500 years at least

[@katherinewithak2865]

So you’re set then lol

[@dcallan812]

yep my home s from the late 16th century, its not going anywhere soon. 👍

[@Kate-v9d]

@@dcallan812 🙏🙏

[@vallee3140]

wow has it got beams?

[@JohnnieAshton]

@@vallee3140 Yes there's a lightsaber in every room🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂

[@beccawoodhouse]

Brits and Americans must have very different ideas of what looks good, if you want to paint bricks. Usually bricks in the UK are only painted if the bricks are so damaged they are no longer waterproof, and the homeowner goes for this cheap option rather than replacing the old bricks.

[@Joseph13163]

Houses built with brick are rare in ireland outside dublin ,its either blocks or massed concrete

[@87CVH]

What do u mean by painted bricks? If i bought a brick house, i wouldnt want it to be the normal red/brown colour. I would paint it black and white (im a British londoner)

[@sallyannwheeler6327]

@@Joseph13163Well I never! You learn something new every day. Lot of old stone houses in the Welsh village I live in.

[@seigeengine]

It's mostly just that some people are deranged. Not all of us over here feel the need to soak everything in paint.

[@polheg1]

Can't see a lot of our new homes in the UK lasting more than 30yrs, the way they throw them up these days.

[@t.a.k.palfrey3882]

Yes, my American cousins. It invariably brings on a chuckle when I see "real" police programmes from the US. Many people have guns at home "to protect my family". Yet the external doors are so flimsy that one bump from a police battering ram and the thing shatters into bits. Wonder World has a KZbin video of police in Europe trying to batter a door of an apartment. 3 minutes later, they gave up. 😂

[@hellsbells8689]

I love the meme that goes around telling everyone in the US to take out the old short screws from their external doors and use a longer, safer, screw. All the while it is still screwed into a wooden frame. A good kick would still take it out, maybe with a bit of frame attached. If someone is trying to kick in your door in the UK, you have enough time to boil one our super fast electric kettles and decide if you want to tell them to buggeroff or invite them in for tea. I'm going with the former.

[@sallyannwheeler6327]

😂😂I love watching the US police programmes and I always think the same thing.

[@aaronburdon221]

@@hellsbells8689 The problem isn't the door. It's usually the giant gun hiding behind it. Cops don't batter our doors down because they know the risks. Instead, they just knock. lol Also, the 4th amendment of the constitution makes battering our door down without a judge signing off on a warrant illegal.

[@genoobtlp4424]

Good luck with a no-knock warrant at a properly locked door, even the windows are probably laminated, so there‘d be a delay between the racket and actually getting in

[@aaronburdon221]

That's because the door isn't the obstacle. It's the dude with the pew pew and his wife with her side arm that are about to end you. My door is unlocked, but don't come into my house without my permission. You'll be leaving in a bag with a toe tag. Cop or not, don't break into my house. It's called the 4th amendment and it literally forbids the cops from doing specifically that.

[@michaelayling8855]

Americans would rather have a large house than a well built house,I lived in Canada and the standard was bad as well.

[@brunsheimmasterbaitwilfrie2811]

What got to me seeing houses in US always was the price. Okay, you want a home, I get that, but that amount of money for THIS?! Built out of the next best thing after cardboard. Its like buying one of these standard IKEA cupboards for 5000$. Simply looks like bad investment.

[@matthiuskoenig3378]

@@brunsheimmasterbaitwilfrie2811 corperations and investment groups in the US and even more so canada have been driveing up the price by buying properties as investments ontop of the copetition of buyers due increased population (due mostly to immigration) that europe has

[@SamanthaH-wo2pb]

A year ago we bought a farmhouse in Offaly, Ireland that is 150 years old. Admittedly it has been retrofit to increase its energy rating, but whenever a storm passes over I don't worry about my home... It has withstood 100's of storms, the "Beast from the East", you name it.... And the named storms that pass over are fierce at times. Even our outbuildings & sheds are sturdy, block-built buildings that withstand any weather. I'll take that over a new build / wooden house any day...

[@twinmama42]

German here: My in-laws built a few small apartment houses (2-6 apartments) in the 1980-the and '90s with my father-in-law doing the majority of the work himself (masonry with concrete bricks, all installation - water, sewer, electricity gas, tiling, flooring, bathrooms, even roof-framing and roof tiles, stucco in- and outside). The oldest house is over years old and is (almost) as good as a new one. Recently we had to replace the heating system and within the last 10 years, some of the windows failed mechanically and had to be replaced (2 of 16 windows). Yes, over the years you have to do some maintenance - replacing parts of the plumbing, new tiles in a bathroom because the tenants didn't treat it too well, and floor replacement (switching from carpet to tiles). The porcelain in the bathrooms is the original, the roof is good for another 40 years. 5 years ago the owners repaired the roof of a 120 years old house. The last time any work was done at that house was shortly after WW2 (the roof). German tax law (income tax, inheritance tax) defines the life expectancy of houses with apartments and single-family houses as 80 years.

[@enemde3025]

In the UK we have houses that are HUNDREDS of years old and will NEVER need the roof replaced ! I have lived in my house for 33 years. My neighbour has lived in his since it was built in 1969. Our houses are built from blocks , then a cavity filled with insulation, then the outside brickwork. Our roof tiles are made from clay or concrete. Our windows are double glazed. Our roof spaces are insulated ,to a recommended depth of 1 foot. My longest stay at one of my jobs was 18 years.

[@cornovii3012]

I have a slate roof that is now falling to bits, no roof lasts forever sorry. I need a whole roof replacement now.

[@aaronburdon221]

Look at the weather and natural disaster patterns in the USA versus the UK and you'll find out why there is a massive disparity in ages of buildings.

[@isabelxavier6890]

I live in a 100 years old house in Portugal and it's not so old at all! The walls are 80 cms thick stone.

[@editfazekas3854]

So do I in Hungary. Instead of mortar the stones sit in cob yet the walls are not wet. No cement or plastic based staff can be applied on them to let them beathe.

[@andytopley314]

In the South West of England a common method was Cobb building. This is a mix of straw and clay (and sometimes dung) packed into the space between two wooden panels. Once dry (which can take months) the panels are removed and the wall is painted - many of these houses are centuries old. The modern equivalent is to use straw bales like bricks on a concrete platform with the first two courses pinned in place with steel bars. Subsequent courses are pinned using wooden stakes and at the 3rd,5th, 7th and subsequent increases wire mesh (chicken wire) is wrapped over the wall from inside to outside. When the walls are complete the whole is sprayed with render to weather-proof the outside (the top is left open to breathe to facilitate drying as it can be covered with timber as a way of tying in the roof joists). My brother was the only builder/carpenter on one such build with 5/6 unskilled friends helping - it took about a week to go from concrete base to a weather tight large 5 bedroom, 3 reception 2 storey house. Installing stairs and fitting bathrooms and the kitchen took about 2-3 more weeks. Less than 8 weeks from vacant plot to a house ready to live in and at a fraction of the cost of any other option. Maybe worth looking into if you are serious about building your own home?

[@mehitabel6564]

My sister has just bought a 400 year old cobb cottage, just beautiful. I understand that wall painting materials have to be breathable, and modern paint to be avoided. It is both warm in winter and cool in summer, and very quiet. It is also thatched, which requires maintenance and replacement roughly every 30 years.

[@andytopley314]

@@mehitabel6564 Our ancestors weren't daft were they!

[@hat9172]

I saw one of those on an episode of Grand Designs. Absolutely loved it. Brilliant way of building a house, am so envious. I was also delighted by watching them shape the recesses for windows and doors using a hedge trimmer!

[@RockyBobbieBuster]

Build for "next to nothing" sell for "bloody hell how much?"

[@chucky2316]

And recycle and give the new tenants less garden

[@AndrewAHayes]

When I see the US on the news after a hurricane and all the houses are reduced to matchsticks I think that the town planners should be made to read The Three Little Pigs, Mandatory! Prior to the Great Fire Of London, our houses and buildings were made of wood, after the fire new buildings favoured stone and brick.

[@chelliebellie4443]

,💯

[@akula9713]

With only the brick chimney remaining. It’s a big clue.

[@hat9172]

Yes I have often been struck by how a tornado can so comprehensively flatten an entire neighbourhood in a few minutes. But I suppose if so many houses are little more than very large posh sheds that explains it.

[@baramuth71]

@@hat9172 And after a tornado hundreds of thousands of dollars for the garbage can and for many the bankruptcy, and so many go past the ass because you get no help.

[@nigelbundy4008]

In 1666 the wood houses with the upper floor overhung, caused a nearly unstoppable fire. Only stopped when Charles 1 had a row of houses blown up and cleared away to give a fire break. Near destroyed the whole city. After that houses in London were built with brick.

[@NanaKaren1953]

Why can't America make bricks?? DONT paint your brick house!! 1. It adds to the annual maintenance and 2. There are some beautiful bricks in the UK. Yorkshire Heritage and other Yorkshire bricks make for stunning buildings. Also Cotswold brick, the pale yellow/beige. Nana Karen UK

[@RealConstructor]

You can easily paint your brick with Keim. It is specially for brick facades and has proven itself for more than 100 years.

[@aaronburdon221]

We CAN make bricks, we just don't want to. Bricks are extremely dangerous to build with especially in the western and mid USA. In the west, earthquakes will collapse a brick house. In the midwest a tornado will take chunks off of a brick house and launch them with frightening speeds at people and things. Would you rather be hit by a chunk of wood or a heavy af brick? UK's average tornado is about 70mph. The US's Average tornado is about 120-140. Our biggest tornado topped out at 320 mph (or 520 kph because yall like metric).

[@matthiuskoenig3378]

@@aaronburdon221 there are plenty of brick buildings in europe in earthwake heavy zones. it just is more expensive. in europe this is still viable because of the wood prices are higher than in the us, and long term costs are cheaper with bricks. Tornado proof brickhousing is also possible, but even more expensive than earthquake proof bricking. its not that you can't make brick safe for american expreme weather, its just the initial cost is high enough that builders prefure wood.

[@grahamgresty8383]

Go for the modular option then you can stipulate the amount of insulation to keep you cooler in the summer and warmer in winter. Modular homes are available in Europe, for example SIPs (structurally insulated panels) that can be assembled in 1 day. For alternative building methods look at 'Grand designs' a UK TV programme that's available on youtube. Find an episode that you're interested in the method of building.

[@listerofsmegv987pevinaek5]

Many years ago, a friend of mine was in the Royal Navy. He ship needed spares after exercise for the air conditioning unit. He ordered them. Twice the amount of what he ordered turned up. He contacted the supplier, who told him he would need them. When asked why. The response was that we don't make anything to last in the US. Three quarters of the way threw the next part of his tour he needed replacements as they had been used up.

[@goldenfd475]

I lived in a Welsh long house for over 30yrs built entirely with stone and dirt with 4' Thick walls and tiny windows. Still standing about 400yrs + since it was built even though it had no foundations and was built directly on top of the rocky hillside.

[@lechatel]

We love in normandy long house which is 400+ years old. Just like yours it has no foundations as such. The weigth of the house keeps it in place. We have a chimney and fireplace in the middle of our house and it has extra stone lintels in the ceiling to provide extra weight to hold it all in place. It stays cool in summer and keeps warm in winer.

[@RaXXha]

I can say for sure that in Sweden, most new single family homes being built these days are wood framed modular homes like the ones described in the video, and thats been the case for at least two decades. In central and southern europe brick and concrete is more common.

[@Morten_Beck_Knudsen]

I am a bricklayer from Denmark and here we expect about a year to complete a house, wooden frame houses are also something we use here, but we often have bricks as the outer wall or another durable material. what it sounded like in the video was that in the post-war period, the USA mass-produced houses with wood, while we did the same thing just with concrete or aerated concrete.

[@christinetucker5432]

Aerated concrete has proved problematic recently - a lot of public buildings like schools and hospitals were built between 1950 and 1990s using it - and it's proved to be structurally unsound. My local running track club house was built using it and they've had to condemn the building because it was that unsafe. Reinforced autoclave aerated concrete known as RAAC.

[@skipper409]

I live in a converted barn that’s about 200 years old - it’s stone 18” wide up to 6 ft off the ground, then it’s oak, and block + clapboard. Also, UK forests (south of Scotland) tend not to be softwood suitable for rapid building. They’re old (not counting new planting softwood), so oak was used for building, but in the age of sail, the navy got first choice of the good stuff.

[@colincase-mw3oi]

We live in a 300 year old stone built cottage, the walls are 2 feet thick

[@missusgumby]

Same level of wall width here, except it was a Victorian school house. 👍

[@Tanjaaraus]

I live in Norway, where we mostly use wood for houses as the local rocks are not good for building with. I also work in construction. not with the Lumber, but as a plumber. and imho our houses are buildt to last. We regurlarily get drop-by inspectors to make sure nobody takes shortcuts and there is plenty of systems to catch errors. Normally on an outside wall it would be (from out to in) painted planks on the outside. Then an outside waterproof plastic or fabric sheet. a 2 inch insulation layer (like rockwool), then another 3-4inch isolation layer, then another moisture proof sheet. and then drywall or wooden sheets. For inside it's just the 3-4 inch insulation and drywall. but outside and bathrooms need the moisture sheets. And there is thick food framing aprox every 24inches. Add in that the pipes and electrcity is inside pipes in the walls. so you can change them without having to open the wall, and if it leaks it's not inside the wall, but inside the tube that is lead out. The fireproofing is that the drywall is fire resistant,and with the thick layer of insulation and even framework, the drywall is pretty dang sturdy. it may also be thicker than what is used in the US, but don't quote me on that :)

[@sbjchef]

The story of the Three Little Pigs should be construction 101 on day one. The Ancient High House: Located in Stafford is reputed to be the largest surviving Oak timber-framed town house in England. It was built around 1595 for the wealthy Dorrington family and showcases intricate timber work.

[@KingBuster90]

We had schools in Scotland, at least 1 in Edinburgh & 1 in Glasgow that are over 900 years old they stopped using them as main campuses I think in the 70s or 80s, but I think The King's School, in England is about 1,427 years still in use i think i could be wrong about some details

[@The.Android]

The UK learned its lesson with timber framed houses in the Great Fire of London in 1666.

[@josiecoote8975]

Yes I thought that!

[@hr35rasmus]

Basically in the UK, we chopped all the trees down centuries before to build our enormous navy, both merchant ships and naval ships……….😊

[@seigeengine]

Even this just undersells the issue. Most of your forests were chopped down thousands and thousands of years ago to make farmland. Portions of the Americas (especially North America) were a bit special, because they were only sparsely inhabited prior to colonization (most of the indigenous population were farther South in warmer climates), meaning we had practically an entire continent of barely touched forest for us to chop down.

[@christophermoffatt5144]

I'm a tradesman (electrician) and work for a small construction company, timber frame homes are becoming increasingly popular here because of speed and cost, but often the timber frame has a single skin of either brick, stone or masonry outside of it to make it durable and also provide a cavity for insulation and moisture drainage. So from the outside it looks like a traditional brick/stone build. The timber frame builds I've been involved in have all been like this but rather than using 2x4" the external panels are at least 6x2" with structural plywood or OSB "sterling" board on the outside. On a side note, we don't grow much timber in the UK but almost all the timber we use comes from Scandinavia (mostly Sweden and Finland) or baltic countries (mostly Latvia) the cold climate produces good quality timber

[@kathchandler8189]

Living in Northumberland I'd say, don't include us in your idea that wood comes from abroad ie Scandinavia, we have the largest, sustainable forest in Europe,( Keilder, look it up!) grown to provide wood for use here, we, in this area have no need of imports, the poor old south may, we don't!

[@christophermoffatt5144]

@@kathchandler8189 very true, I've often been impressed with the size of forestry operations up north, I have encountered UK grown timber before, I'm just speaking from experience of what we get provided at work by the big merchants (Jewson, Travis etc.) Or when we have a prefab timber frame done by a local company. As you guessed though I'm way down south (North Cornwall) some timber grown around here but usually specialist stuff or Christmas trees, not much in the way of softwood construction timbers

[@akula9713]

It is very difficult in the U.K. to get a mortgage on a wood built house, they don’t generally last. The bank wants to ensure the building they are lending money on is going to last. Imagine having a 25 year mortgage, defaulting in the final year and the bank see that the house they repossessed is rotten, can’t be sold on? Also fire risks. My first property, a Victorian flat was built 1897, my current house built is newer, built 1930😂.

[@chucky2316]

1930s house will be solid

[@sknox1394]

It’s actually not that difficult to get a mortgage on a wooden house and when built well with the correct materials they actually do last a fairly long time.

[@bordersw1239]

Not true, some of our oldest houses are wood.

[@akula9713]

@ A small minority of houses.

[@AncientBriton1948]

I live in the north east area of England in what used to be a mining area. My home which I rent was built in the 1930s is a solid brick built building, it's a small 2 up 2 down centrally heated with double glazing a slate tiled roof. It's about 95 years old and will be here for at least another 95 years. 🇬🇧

[@CeiStockport-nx2qi]

My flat was built in the '60's. Putting up something like a TV wall mount takes a 1500watt hammer drill (the 1000w drill MELTED) and a set of tungsten drill bits that are all blunt afterwards.

[@martinwebb1681]

I have that same problem 😂... Always buying lots of new drill bits.

[@tracyholliday361]

Same here!

[@hellsbells8689]

When I moved into my 1850s house as a young newly wed mid 1980s, of course I wanted to hang a few pictures and mirrors around the place. So I took up my hammer and nails and couldn't believe how the nails seemed to be melting as they failed to go any further than the plaster. I still can't beat my mother who was putting something up in the kitchen of a new build early 1970s. She got out her nails and rolling pin. Now it may have worked had it not been one of those "keep your pastry cold" rolling pins by PYREX! hahaha

[@sallyannwheeler6327]

Same here. It’s like the drill bits are made of marshmallow😂

[@judithmitchell9065]

The house I grew up in (built early 1970s) seemed to have concrete for plaster on the ceiling as you couldn't get anything in it. Obviously not true, but the plaster was so hard that, when decorating the house for Christmas we had to sellotape the streamers and paperchains to the ceiling as nothing could be 'persuaded' to get through whatever they used. We had all sorts of workmen in over the years for various bits and bobs and none of them could tell us what was used to plaster the ceiling - no one's ever come across whatever it is before!

[@pauld9261]

I grew up in the UK but I now live in Japan, I think earthquakes are the major reason why the houses are torn down and rebuilt here, the codes on how a building is meant to be built is always being updated, and Japan can suffer 1000+ small earthquakes a year , just think a house last 20-30 years, that's easily 1000s of earthquakes it has been through, would you want to live in a house like that, so they knock them down and rebuild them.

[@fiskurtjorn]

7:31 Please make sure you use a paint that lets the brick breathe. You know, moister regulation. 9:16 Houses are in short supply. Often children need to stay with their parents until they are 25 before a house becomes available. That is if you apply young enough. Waiting lists for a first house can extend to ten years! 12:50 Our houses usually increase in value. Mine gained about 30% in 15 years. But before you envy this, when I sold and bought another, that price also went up about the same. I still need to save if I'm planning to upgrade. 14:42 Joints and strong glue also make a house more fire-resistant. Those popular spike plates make construction fast. But in a fire these very quickly lose the binding strength. A good joint is buried deep in the wood and keeps its strength way longer in a fire.

[@Enhancedlies]

I've just realized that that is one of the main reasons Europe, and especially the UK, doesn't have much air conditioning. We all live in brick houses, and they hold a microclimate much, much better than wooden houses, so the need for that isn't there?

[@seigeengine]

It's mostly just you have relatively mild weather, except for in recent years. Huge portions of the US get extremely hot, ranging from full on deserts to subtropical swamps. Like, the warmest parts of the UK are some of the mildest parts of the US. Much of the US is like... Spain in terms of temperature, and parts of it are even hotter still.

[@LunaBianca1805]

Regular half-timbereds as found in e.g . the UK and Germany do much better, too :) Heck, I bet even the exterior insulation finishing systems on wood frame or brick walls do, simply because the load bearing structure is sturdier and the insulation thicker....

[@seigeengine]

@@LunaBianca1805 Even the fast growing species used for building houses in the USA are just as strong as bricks are in compression, and much stronger against other loads. Plus since we can put insulation IN the wall instead of ON the wall, we don't lose tons of potential floorspace in the process. And nothing prevents us from making thicker walls if we need more insulation. Normal walls are framed of 2x4, but 2x6 is also common for nicer homes, and above that it typically shifts towards having two walls built, one within the other, thereby creating an unbroken insulation cavity which vastly improves acoustic and thermal insulation by decoupling the interior and exterior wall surfaces.

[@Lynnpjjbdndji]

We had 96 mph winds last week in the UK and it rattled our Wheely Bin Lid ! The same destroyed Florida. LMAO !! Remember Governments Sets Building Standards... If your looking for someone to Blame !!!

[@janiceturton7756]

I live in a house that was a mansion but now divided into 2 semi detached properties that was built in 1867. It was the coal mine owners house for the former pit village we live in. All that industry has gone now . But the pit employees houses remain and they are all solid built

[@yaonyaon9460]

In Europe buying a house is expensive and often takes the life of a whole generation. Thus, the next generation will often inherit the house, live in it, repair it, and pass it down to their own children in turn. Prices, less job hopping, and other factors matter as well, but the abovementioned process also creates a particular mindset and attachment. To many Europeans such houses that hold memories and history are not just simple dwellings but homes. And this, I think, is the biggest difference with the USA where people seem to prefer shiny new things...

[@colinbirks5403]

The thing that horrifies me, is Plasterboard walls. (American? Plaster with a paper coating.) You can't fall over without going through a wall.

[@robheyes6470]

I think they call it drywall or sheetrock

[@TheDizzydiana]

i live in a village (South Yorkshire) area. We have a brick factory and a quarry, it's been there all my life, I'm 65 and I know it's been there years before, they have some lovely bricks, most of the houses and new houses in the village have been built with these bricks.

[@oliverbamford2879]

Where abouts I Live in Kilnhurst quite a few quarrys around here

[@TheDizzydiana]

@@oliverbamford2879 A few family members worked there over the years

[@michaelcockerill7654]

My house in the UK was built in 1898 and is as solid today as it was when it was built. If you are over in the UK you are more than welcome to stay here in Halifax, West Yorkshire. You would have to look after yourself as I'm a widow but you would have your own bathroom and clean sheets on the beds.

[@josiecoote8975]

I bet it's built of stone, too.

[@ohwiseowl9163]

Always gets me why wood frame houses are built in tornado alley,, build brick won't blow away as easy

[@chelliebellie4443]

I know! Didn't people read the Three Little pigs as kids?!

[@paultaylor9498]

Is it cheaper to repair the damage.

[@maddermax74]

@@paultaylor9498 you saying its cheaper to replace a hole house than it is to replace a few windows and couple of roof tiles ? when they nuked japan the only buildings left standing was brick ones so if it can survive that a tornado is easy

[@jonc-1989]

I've always assumed it's because they're cheaper to replace and repair

[@36iRealisedImOldToday]

Put a brick house in a tornado and see what happens... We have little weak tornadoes here and they get destroyed.

[@felixalbion]

In America everything is about show and never about quality. The reason a lot of houses in America are built from wood is because its quicker and cheaper so you can build a larger home ( looks more showy ) than you could build in brick for the same money. Does not matter if it does not last long. Its bigger. Every year when you see on the news that a storm has hit somewhere in the US you see images of the damage. Its always giant piles of firewood and the only thing still standing is the brick chimneys.

[@0KiteEatingTree0]

The UK was massively forested. We lost massive amounts of woodland , over 50% for wars, as boats were made of wood, . Also a massive area was cleared as land gave way to modern agricultural methods. There are big drive to reforest as much as possible. There is also the fact that much earlier the romans used cement in its early form, and we also decided clay bricks were a better material. Where you see stone buildings it’s usually because stone was the nearest available material at the time.

[@wasp6594]

Countries build according to their resources available. The US has an abundance of trees, thus making them a viable building material. On the other hand ,the English Midlands is the largest region for brick making in Great Britain, accounting for more than half of the country's total production. The majority of clay in the UK is found in the south of England, particularly in Cornwall and Devon. The London Clay is a type of clay that is well developed in the London Basin and the Hampshire Basin. Which is why our houses are built of brick.

[@watcherzero5256]

Its not that clay is more available in the south or midlands, its that stone is less available than in the north, so traditionally they used timber framed cob. The exception is the Chilterns which did have an abundant source of stone.

[@VectorRipper]

Yes, a lot of newer homes in the UK are built within a matter of weeks, the internal walls are breeze block and the external are brick, I used to do the cavity insulation on new builds before the internals were finished and the breeze block always moved, double brick homes are way stronger and easier to do that job as long as there is a cavity which in some cases isnt sufficient to insulate, my home built in the 1940s has actually damaged several good masonry bits just trying to hang a TV on the wall.

[@sheilagalvin9342]

NEVER buy a new house.

[@howey935]

I live in an early Georgian house that was built in 1716 and it’s so much better than the modern houses they build. It has big rooms with high ceilings and big windows that let loads of natural light in. It was built by the church and was the vicarage from when it was built until the late 1950s when the church sold it.

[@martinwebb1681]

Yes, I have friends that live in a house that was built in 1605, it's a lovely house with massive fire places and large rooms. Still has its original stone windows, it's fabulous. I have to make do with a house built in the late 1940s so modern compared to them. 🙂

[@bordersw1239]

How much to heat?

[@howey935]

My combined gas and electric is around £160 a month in the summer and £200 to £250 a month in the winter but it’s due to go up again both gas and electric.

[@baldyhead]

@howey935 crikey you use a lot of energy! My bills are half yours, yet I live in a 100 year old house that doesn't have cavity walls and is difficult to heat.

[@howey935]

@baldyhead I don’t think it’s bad it’s quite a large house I live in with 6 bedrooms.

[@lisanelson9979]

My house before this was built in 1890, labourers cottage, with an acre of land. This house is 1940/ 50s. I love the red brick work as over the years people have engraved dates and initials into the brickwork. So I added, a date and my initials.

[@MINKIN2]

In fairness, to us Europeans the idea of building your own house is a dream. We are always impressed how you guys can just say "we can just build one".

[@jaydemorton9814]

That is so true even jus the prospect of finding a bit of land remotely close to where you want it and having to gamble on even being allowed to build is bad. Americans can just be like yeah demolish that (fairly quick and easy) and pop a new one up.

[@normanwallace7658]

The dodgy housing startef in the UK with an oprrtunised builders called Barrat fortunately they've gone now & brick is the prefered!! we sill have thatched wattle & Daube houses from the 1300 & now with modern amenities that are still lived in yes they've been regularly maintained & the crooked ones are that way because they had no foundations and were built from a large wooden beem framework laid on the ground & built up using interconected joints the inner gaps filled with wattle(Interwoven wooden struts that was filled with Daub a mix of clay,straw,& Dung covered with a lime morter bonded with horsehair althogh it sounds flimsy it is its saving grace as the whole structure is flexible hence the crookedness when the ground settles the house just naturealy adapts ?? The reason for the lack of wood is because it was all traversing the worlds oceans?? and when old ships ended their working use they were dissmantled and everything recycled the wood being used to build look at the department store in Regents street apart from the regebt st facia the rest is made from two redundant warships & is an Art-Deco Marvel?? & I can't remember where but there is a pub in england made out of ships timbers if you go into an old pub look at the beams you might see od holes & adse & axe marks from a former existance!!

[@vijay-c]

There's a small Tudor museum in a Tudor house in my city here in England that was built in the late 15th Century, with the house next door going back another 300 years to Norman times.

[@alexmctear5420]

Timber frame houses in the UK are constructed using prefabricated panels that are manufactured in a factory and then quickly erected on site. The process is highly accurate and efficient, and can create a weatherproof building in as little as 2-3 weeks. Here are some key features of timber frame construction: Factory-made panels: The majority of the shell is produced off-site in a factory, using computer-controlled machinery to ensure accuracy and quality. Load-bearing walls: The core of a timber frame is made up of lightweight engineered panels that carry the weight of the floors and roof. These panels are made up of studs with insulation in the gaps, and sheathing on either side. Weather resistance: External cladding and a breather membrane provide weather resistance. Insulation: Wall insulation is fitted between the studs to improve thermal performance and reduce energy bills. Air tightness: Vapour control layers prevent condensation and limit air leakage. Sustainable: Timber frame construction is more sustainable than brick or block construction, and it generates less waste. Timber frame construction is used for a variety of buildings, including houses, schools, hotels, offices, and sporting facilities. However, some mortgage lenders may be concerned about the quality and longevity of timber frame properties. About timber frame buildings and extensions Most timber frame constructions in the UK use prefabricated panels produced by specialist companies

[@Lloyd-Franklin]

The house my grandmother lives in is nearly 700 years old and survived the 1987 hurricane, a hurricane that won't happen according to a certain Fish.

[@shmupperfromhell]

Didn't the Fish have a kettle or summat? A Kettley type of kettle?

[@ianrose56]

The one and only infamous Michael Fish the weather man..!!! Boy did he ever get it wrong.!! I went into to the job i was on the next morning only to discover the roof we'd just put on the day before not just off, but gone.!!!!

[@tamsinp7711]

@@shmupperfromhell "John Kettley is a weatherman, a weatherman, a weatherman, John Kettley is a weatherman, and so is Michael Fish" (Tribe of Toffs, 1988)

[@Spiklething]

He wasn’t wrong. It was a storm as strong as a hurricane but wasn’t a hurricane as by definition, the UK can never get a hurricane. Hurricanes form in tropical areas and the UK waters never get warm enough for a hurricane. What happened in 1987 was an extratropical storm - extra meaning outside. It formed outside a tropical area and therefore was not a hurricane

[@ianrose56]

@@tamsinp7711 I remember it very well , I was 20 years old in 88...

[@Joseph13163]

Its a big issue in ireland actually a politician got elected on a construction related issue.Houses were built with a water absorbent material in both plaster and blocks called Mica which is causing houses to collapse in County donegal.Plus 100 000 defective apartments have been built recently,without wiring and walls so thin nails have through the wall.

[@sallyannwheeler6327]

That’s awful!🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

[@peckelhaze6934]

My brick house in the UK is 74 years old and will stand for centuries. The brick is so hard it is hard to drill into. A lot of the modern homes now are poor quality.

[@jukeseyable]

your not meant to drill into brick, it will / can crack them, your meant to drill into the mortar, its a widespread misconception, that some how has become ancored, (no pun intended) in the public at large

[@AndrewAHayes]

Many of the old houses also had the first 4 courses on the foundation built of engineering bricks, they are as hard as bell metal!

[@peckelhaze6934]

@@jukeseyable Try drilling into mortar when it is covered in plaster and you cannot see it.

[@t.a.k.palfrey3882]

My bestie at school was brought up at his family's 1424 house. On my various visits there during exuents, I repeatedly observed failed attempts to do such simple things as hang a picture on a wall.

[@JohnDoe-xz1mw]

new houses here are mostly the same as they always were with some notable exceptions for windows and insulation, because every house gets an "energy efficency rating" and you get additional funding from the goverment depending on how high that rating is, so insulation in general and for windows and doors spesificly is a big topic. (the higher the energy efficensiy prediction for your planed house the more money you get to help out with the additional cost of making it that way)

[@timothybird4264]

Build cheap, build twice

[@chucky2316]

That is the idea those will be demolished no gardens and more houses go up. It's all about money because they can recycle these houses built in recent years

[@timothybird4264]

@ how well do you think they recycle I don’t know , which is why I ask , or straight to the landfill ?

[@chucky2316]

They will reclaim all the materials again and then sell them again, and some new sucker comes along and gets a mortgage they will never pay off and the house builder company is quids in as are the council because more houses = more council tax

[@JohnDoe-us5rq]

Friend of mine lives in a house build of cinder bricks and they usually don't use their AC except for super hot days, though living in Florida. The insinuation factor is immense.

[@lisab9734]

My house in the uk is now 100 years old. The only downside is it has a single layer of bricks so can be cold and mouldy . Even as a kid , when I was in America I didn’t understand the “flimsy” houses. Did Americans not know the story of the 3 little pigs? 😂

[@chucky2316]

My sister had a new build that suffered with door jam issues, damp, rads comming off the walls. I have a Georgian house in paignton and it's just solid 👌 a drill bit has issues lol 😂

[@aaronburdon221]

The 3 little pigs didn't have to deal with earthquakes and landslides on top of wind. Also, it's way easier to manipulate wood.

[@daedalron]

Trees were used to build fleets of ships in Europe. It takes about 2500 oak trees for one single ship. Bigger ships can go up to 4000 trees per ship. In France, Louis 14 wanted a 120 ships fleet (the british fleet at the time had 150 ships). That's around 300.000 trees... And each tree needs to be around 100 years old for that. So after building the fleet, they enacted a policy to plant new trees (that was in 1669), so that future generations would be able to build more ships. Some of those trees are still there today, since they had planned for a multi-centuries project, and of course we don't need oak trees to build ships nowadays...

[@susanlee5508]

Maybe instant satisfaction . And builders can keep using the land over and over.. Easy money.

[@chucky2316]

You have it down

[@billyhills9933]

In the UK we have wood-framed prefab houses. The frames are made from wood, taken to the site and then assembled there. They provide the central strength of the house and support all of the floors and the roof. The walls are then built up out of brick but those walls only support themselves. My Dad worked on them for years. They would get the first house built, assembled frame to roof, in a day... and then that's where they'd sleep overnight for the rest of the job, which was carried out at a more normal pace.

[@ferchrissakes]

7:27 “when I see brick I wanna paint it” which is how you destroy a brick house. Brick needs to breathe or it won’t last. You can plaster it, or choose a brick you like better to begin with, but _do not_ paint brick.

[@vaudevillian7]

I’ve lived in 4 houses that are more than 100 years old, specifically: - 124 years old - 165 years old - 225+ years old (built late 18th century) - 311 years old (built 1713) I’m far from wealthy, those were fairly regularly houses apart from one and it’s not the oldest - the oldest was the smallest. The current house I live in is about 70 years old and that’s considered to be fairly new. The 124 year old house was just one on a very long street of houses the same age.

[@joecorrigan7848]

my last house was 450 years old- walls 2 feet to 6 and a half feet thick; will see us all off!.

[@PLuMUK54]

In the UK, forests were cut down from the 16th to the 19th century for ship building and then for the making of charcoal. Timber for housing became less available, and brick started to be fashionable, partly because of William III, who came from the Netherlands. In one year, my home will be 100 years old, and I am the third generation to live here.

[@metropol5040]

I'm in the UK and from my family/friends the 4 times moving sounds about right. Typically it'll be moving out of your parent to a smaller place independently (renting), then you get in a relationship and move to a slightly bigger place (renting) then once you have kids you move to a suitably sized house (bought) and then when the kids leave home you move one more time to a slightly smaller place when you don't need the space any more and retire. Obviously this is only from a small pool of people I have known but 4 sounds about right, maybe 3 times if you don't downsize after kids leave home.

[@scrappystocks]

I lived in a new build in the LA area of California. It looked decent construction but it was just a flimsy timber build without any quality. My house in North Wales in the UK has thick granite stone walls and slate roof with none of those typically American shingles that can't stand any adverse weather. It is about 400 years old. It's not as big as the Californian home but it is substantial and is increasing in value. Inside it is modern and up to date with kitchen and bathroom styling. If there were to be a fire in either property the Californian house would be ash whereas the Welsh one might have severe damage inside the main structure would likely still be in place. It's hard to burn stone or brick.

[@stephengreen3801]

Hi guys, Im in northern England.My house is 130 years old and it's still going strong. In the UK we use UPVC double glazing for our windows to make our houses heat efficient and most older houses have had their windows replaced with these units over the years but brick is definitely the most common building material in the UK.

[@LisaMacLean-p4f]

GLORY!!!'m favoured, $140K every 3weeks! And am retired i can now give back to the locals in my community and also support God's work and the church. God bless America 🇺🇸 ❤️

[@Henry-v3t]

Hello, how do you achieve such biweekly returns? As a single parent i haven't been able to get my own house due to financial struggles, but my faith in God remains strong.

[@WilliamMorris-di1nq]

Excuse me for real?,how is that possible I have struggling financially, how was that possible?

[@LisaMacLean-p4f]

Thanks to my co-worker whom God used to give a great opportunity of crossing paths with 'Mrs ELIZABETH ANN LARSON'.

[@LindsayPalmgren-eo2yb]

YES!!! That's exactly her name (Elizabeth Ann Larson) so many people have recommended highly about her and am just starting with her 😊 from Brisbane Australia🇦🇺

[@ThomasB.Andrew]

I have heard a lot of wonderful things about Elizabeth Ann on the news but didn't believe it until now. I'm definitely trying her out

[@BazzSelby]

It's always puzzled me, as to why many American homes are made of wood, especially with all the tornados you have, over there. As in the 3 Little Pigs, nursery thyme, it was the straw house, and the house made of wood that were blown down, not the brick!

[@harbl99]

"It's actually a lot more complex." It's really not. Short answer. Abundant timber. America had it, most of Europe did not. By the 1500s Britain was out of old growth forest. Big timber for shipbuilding had to be imported from the Baltic (and later the Americas). Brick, which you could make quickly by cooking mud, was the new wonder material.

[@claregale9011]

Hi Guys , most of the homes in my area are 1940s - 50s . Some early 1900s the old 2 up 2 down houses , i think it makes sense not to pull them down and build new here as we have limited space , we want to keep our green spaces as much as possible . Hope Sophia is well and Happy 😊

[@the5thson]

in medieval times Europe built hoses out of wood before we realised brick is better.

[@chucky2316]

Actually no alot of medieval houses were built of stone

[@andreww2098]

@@chucky2316 depends where you are in the country because of local stone availability and how wealthy you were as wood framed wattle and daub was cheaper

[@dcarbs2979]

@@chucky2316 Both, but stone is easier to survive.

[@nigelbundy4008]

In the UK bricks and mortar (houses) is seen as a great investment. IF you get on the housing ladder you ill always make a good profit. The house gain in value, and land costs are a major part of this fact. Your family can live in house for several generations.

[@chucky2316]

Modern homes in europe are flimsy. Older houses are tougher. But american houses are built well i watched a video on charles bronsons grave vermont is beutifull and has nice houses

[@FTFLCY]

I've moved 9 times, mainly in London. The last was to Bath, where we've retired and have a 4 storey townhouse built from stone in 1875 (considered almost new build here). Despite being built on a crazy hill, it's very solid. They had a party next door on Saturday, very audible in the street. Once inside our house it was impossible to hear. I think our adjoining walls are stone also. I would never even consider a new build in the UK, as they're soulless and thrown up.

[@ashredfern8507]

We used to have vast forests in britain, but alot was ripped down to make room for farming. We used to have wild grizzly bears and wolves but after we deforest they all died out so you only see them in zoos now. Still got wild deers and badgers but most the apex predators that eat the deers are gone and now the deer population is getting out of control lol in some areas. Bricks hold the heat longer, whereas timber it passes through more easily thermal efficiencies.. brick house will always be better but we don't get earthquakes in the UK well not serious ones anyway, timber frame houses are more likely to survive an earthquake which I think is a part to play also in some areas of America.

[@CollieDog24]

Ny house was built in the victorian era 1899,and is still a study house.i have been there from 1979 and have not moved at all.We have had the brickwork re pointed and repairs to the roof,but its been a cheap house to maintain.The garden is just the right size for me ,growing dahlias and assorted plants.We made use of the space above the bedroom by adding an extra flloor to create storage,handy for my fishing gear.

[@fabienneclavier5984]

I remember watching Extreme Makeover home edition when it was on, and brand new huge houses were built in just one week. How crazy is that? One frigging week, top to bottom! And I saw countless new homes being built in just a few weeks where we Iived. I now live in France, we recently had an extension made (a bedroom, nothing humongous) and it took close to 3 months, from digging for the foundation to electrical work, because everything was solidly built (and the workers did not take their time, believe me. I work from home so I was there whenever they were). Makes a huge difference!

[@marydavis5234]

That was a fake show, it only shown one week of building, it actually took up to One year or longer to build the whole house, it actually can take up to 4 weeks to get all the wiring inspected

[@fabienneclavier5984]

I doubt it took a whole year, because the families, especially the kids, would have changed a lot between the first and the last episode, and they always looked exactly the same. So over a week, maybe, several months, no.

[@lindakirk698]

New homes now use different materials for internal walls. It does mean that they are thiner. So often insulation has to be put in for sound proofing. But foundations are still solid concrete & external walls are brick/stone/blocks - with cavities & cavity insulation put in to retain heat.

[@medic1627]

I read somewhere that the first thing most Americans do when they move into a house (not a new one), is replace the roof? Most of the woods in the UK are protected, so you can't touch them.

[@sallyannwheeler6327]

I’ve heard something like that. Don’t they have to replace them quite often?

[@MrApocalyptica83]

in the us if you punch a wall the wall break if you do it in europe your hand will break for sure , i live in the dead center of france in a tiny village of 3300 peoples and i have been to the city hall where they were unable to tell me the age of my house and for information my tiny village was founded in 1320 around a castle sooo i think my house is very old

[@annaworth286]

My house in the North of England was built in 1780, it has stone walls which are 2 feet thick, and stone slates on the roof. We had the roof redone in 1980, we just had the slates turned over, it will probably need to be looked at again in another 100 years! Local stone is quarried for house building, and where clay is prevalent, it is used to make bricks. Most of our ancient trees were slow growing hardwood, primarily English Oak, it was used to build timber framed houses. Ocean going ships, like The Mayflower, fighting vessels used against the French and Spanish fleets, and exploration ships to conquer the world, stripped the land of the forests.

[@gillfox9899]

I'm from the UK. My mother had a thing about only living in a new house so the first four houses I lived were all new. It was only after I married that I lived in a 'secondhand' house and my latest home is the first 'old' house being built in 1881. The main similarity is that all 8 houses I have lived in have been well built and should still be standing in a 100 years.

[@homobohemicus]

Granted I am living in an apartment building, however it was built in the mid 70s. The building his the basic standard of that time - made from prefabricated concrete blocks and used as Lego. 7 floors with 4 apartments on each level. The building is well insulated with modern materials (15yrs ago) from the outside in order to conserve energy or avoid energy loss (especially what Americans call European windows, which essentially are standard windows (and balcony glass doors) with a plastic composite frame, double or triple glass layers + a mechanism to open sideways as a window or slide open vertically at the top... My point is that I live in Central Europe and the temperature averages around -2 to +4 degrees Celsius by day and between -3 at night. Today is December 16th and I have my heating turned off (we have heated water radiators in each room). Thanks to the well insulated outside, I have a constant of 19.8 degrees inside even at night. Hearing will be turned on when a cold spell hits but I am thinking about the amount of energy saved, money saved and good for my wallet as well as the environment.

[@conollytom7049]

18:45 it’s pricier but if you do consider building yourself, have a look at hempcrete construction - the long term benefits and savings seem impressive. if we lived in north america, prefab or hempcrete would be our preference (but we’re pretty lucky in our wee 1750s stone cottage).

[@Brynn_Cadoc]

Over here in Germany, new houses and neighbourhoods are usually made out of concrete with only the rafters being made from timber. Another big part here would be the difference in roofing! We usually use clay shingles for that, which on the lower ends last between 60 to 80 years and will be checked up on ever 20-30ish years to check for damages and so on. meanwhile the usual Tarmac Roofing will last roughly 20-30 before it has to be replaced completely.

[@ceeb2275]

My house was built in 1889. Old miners pit terraced house. It’ll be there in another 140 years. 😊

[@hanniosman1839]

I was a valuation and development surveyor for a few years. My specialisation was depreciated replacement coating. I would give a lifetime of an item such as playgrounds, walls, general building maintenance etc. you then calculate what the value is and how long it's lifetime is expected to be set against inflation and the current reconstruction cost. Extremely complicated math. I then worked as a town planner/urban designer after doing a masters and have dealt with stone buildings over a thousand years old. I grew up in a solid granite house that was built in around 1400ad.

[@hanniosman1839]

I can help you guys with technical drawings for a UK building regs house if you'd like? I know my stuff. Most houses since 1930 have been built with a brick cavity wall. Theres what's called wall ties that join the inside and outside. The gap has an insulation board against the inside surface that prevents cold bridging and condensation.

[@knightwish1623]

From Germany. I've lived in my flat(apartment) for 40 years. My sister in law now 50 has lived in her house since she was born. He father built the house back then. I've seen the house go through a few changes since then and my wife also lived there until we got married and moved into our flat.

[@robcrossgrove7927]

Our houses are often wood framed, but they're also built with breeze blocks, and then have brick on the outside. And the walls and loft are insulated.

[@chelliebellie4443]

Its common (well i know a bunch of oeople i know in the UK) to buy a house that needs repairing, live there and do it and sell it for a profit.