Why people thought steel houses were a good idea

It was supposed to be the future of housing. What went wrong?
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Why aren’t homes made of steel? In the late 1940s, one company posed that question. Lustron was a prefabricated home that was supposed to be the future of housing. So why did it fail?
For just a few years - 1947 to 1950 - the Columbus, Ohio-based Lustron represented the future of housing. Using a steel frame and porcelain enamel-covered steel panels, Lustron made homes in a factory and shipped them around the country.
Vox’s Phil Edwards visited a Lustron home just outside Dayton, Ohio, to experience the unusual features, like magnetic walls, for himself. This home’s quirks weren’t relegated to the materials. Through a combination of government funding sources, an attempt to reinvent the production cycle for home, and a unique distribution plan, the Lustron home helps explain how housing does - and doesn’t - work in America.
Further reading:
www.amazon.com...
Tom Fetters’s book, The Lustron Home, is packed full of charts, graphs, original letters, and a clear and concise history of the company’s successes and failures.
www.amazon.com...
Suburban Steel, Douglas Knerr’s look at Lustron, covers similar ground, but with more of an eye toward government drama and the complexities of public funding for a private business.
www.ohiohistor...
Located in Columbus, the Ohio History Connection has a reconstructed Lustron as an exhibit. They also have online resources including the linked instruction manual.
whitehallhisto...
The Whitehall Historical society writes here about their reconstruction of a Lustron home.
If you want to stay in a Lustron, you can. These are just a few of the Lustrons available on vacation sites like Airbnb and VRBO (including Barbara Rose’s home in West Alexandria).
www.airbnb.com...
www.airbnb.com...
www.airbnb.com...
www.vrbo.com/1...
www.vrbo.com/4...
www.airbnb.com...
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[@Vox]

Lustron fan sites abound, including the Lustron Locator, which lets you find the possible location of Lustron homes near you: www.lustronlocator.com/ Thanks for watching!

[@justrandomthings709]

First 🥇 lol

[@oreochild5652]

3RD

[@gregthorne4292]

Ok, about to geek out here. A couple more ideas if you're interested: - Donald Wexler made steel homes in Palm Springs - Alcoa "Care Free" homes by Alcoa Aluminum -- mostly a building partnership showing other uses for aluminum in homebuilding

[@thesilentone4024]

Can we go to Hawaii and start casting the Lava into Lava blocks that cool then we can use to build homes.

[@aaronstanley6914]

aha so that's where the starter houses of fallout4 came from

[@PracticalEngineeringChannel]

Oh man. Those cuts from Phil standing in different spots in the house to the same perspective in the ad images are so good! It helps show how difficult these homes were to modify.

[@vzxvzvcxasd7109]

This video really screams of American. It's really interesting that like trains, American pioneered prefab houses but they abandoned it because it doesn't fit the typical American dream of suburbs. But the rest of the world, we are racing towards prefab. Because material avalibility, labour and logistics are usually the most expensive things of a house. But in America, because the government was essentially giving out free houses, the focus of prefab houses turned towards the "experience" rather than the framework, which lead everything to fall apart. The same way the cars took over public transport.

[@shaider1982]

Your videos are really.informative👍

[@ariuss3009]

Now we're waiting for a video from you going into the engineering side of things. Would be really interesting!

[@astro_afro]

Woah Practical Engineering! Good to see you here Also, I agree completely.

[@kaitlyn__L]

@@vzxvzvcxasd7109 that’s a great observation. Also ironic because a lot of modern American timber frame houses have identical layouts too, at least before any owner modifications. Throughout the video I was thinking “that’d be plenty of room for an apartment”, but of course, a lot of Americans have very different expectations for houses versus apartments.

[@princessbrennyn7611]

I always wondered why in Fallout 4, the houses where made like this, they literally looked just like this. The researchers really did their work.

[@mtsarkful]

"why do I get so much metal for scrapping an old house?" Now I know

[@loserbibi988]

I came here to say the same thing. I'm glad I'm not the only one who thought of this.

[@HelheimMudkip]

Clicked the video because of fallout 4

[@jmc1076]

@@HelheimMudkip yes

[@GummyFantasy]

thank god somebody made this comment

[@ronsasso7832]

I live in a Lustron Newport---the last model Lustron manufactured. It's only a 2 bed/1 bath and 713 square feet, but it is truly amazing! There really isn't any wasted space. It didn't come with the built-in furniture features of the earlier models. I had a carpenter installing flooring in my house and he was stunned to see that there was less than 3/8" movement on the 70-year-old home from one end to the other (which is unheard of in wood homes). The Newport model also came with a different heating system (a gas furnace). Unfortunately, only 24 Lustron Newports were every manufactured. I have no idea how many remain. I know it is less than 20. The house is very low maintenance and nearly indestructible. It has easily handled tennis ball sized hail! Thanks for the video!

[@heartsDmise]

Theres a youtube channel called "The 2nd Empire Strikes Back" and its with a couple who are restoring their Victorian home. The owner's father got inspired and bought a Lustron home and is repairing it. The updates are few since they only just started, but worth following!

[@ronsasso7832]

@@heartsDmise Thanks for letting me know! Cool

[@xtnuser5338]

It's not unusual to have less than 3/8" out of level on wooden homes. They certainly aren't all like that, but there are plenty that are. My first home, built in 1928, had less than 1/4" between many measured spots. It's much more dependent on the soils and foundations than it is on the material choices.

[@ronsasso7832]

The 3/8" was going from one corner of the house to the other corner. The carpenter said he rarely sees that...particularly on a 70+ year old home.

[@xtnuser5338]

@@ronsasso7832 Like I said, my

[@alexsmith-rs6zq]

You can clearly see the influence these houses had on the homes featured in the fallout game series. Particularly Fallout 4.

[@kayburcky7146]

It's like the exact same thing 😅

[@nicktheocharis126]

i was going to say that

[@Pannekoek.]

Yes I got immediate fallout 4 vibes. This is the era that fallout split off from our reality and created their own future based on the tech that was available in the 50's. Very awesome that they took this idea and used it in the game!

[@gato38]

Totally Fallout 4 !!

[@FurryestX]

Preston Garvey: "Hey, i heard some settlements need help from the minutemen, on boston arena surroundings, look if you can go and do something" 🤣

[@godofplumbing]

I have a couple of customers with steel homes. Their biggest complaint is that, they have no cell reception. The house actually acts as a massive Faraday cage.

[@edhikurniawan]

Good for health lol.

[@themyththelegendphilswift3201]

That basically stops them from ever coming back

[@stuarthirsch]

Not a big problem with an inside wifi router and good internet connection via cable or fiber to the house. Go to settings on your phone and select internet phone. However an outside TV and radio antennas would be required for OTA reception.

[@kx7500]

@@edhikurniawan evidence for that?

[@disappointedmess209]

@@edhikurniawan "Citation Needed"

[@purpleldv966]

I feel that this could have been a better video... Maybe if they would have focused on the actual house more, from living perspectives, maintenance, a few more technical details, drawbacks and advantages... The subject seems very interesting and thats why it could have made for a better video!

[@EurrikkeEdward]

Oh thanks for saving me the time

[@foxinapothecary]

Vox has been spewing these kind of videos lately all fluff but no substance

[@sabiha.sayeed]

Yes, I clicked on this video, expecting the content you mentioned, but was sorely disappointed.

[@willdrewing4049]

Definitely lazy journalism. Hobart made a neighborhood of steel mansions less than an hour away from the homes in this story.

[@Yutani_Crayven]

Or analysis of the economics of it, from a production as well as buyer viewpoint. That wasn't explored either. No word on why the company went bankrupt, what caused demand to be so low, how high demand would have had to be, what exactly caused prices to be the way they are, why nothing was done to change it, where prices would have had to be. There is no good information in this video other than "these houses existed and now they don't".

[@OgawaBurukkuART]

I was a little disappointed thee wasn’t more info on perks or downsides for the resident/consumer. Were they warmer in the summer and cooler in the winter than a normal home, etc.

[@elizabethhunley4020]

I was in one in Iowa when there was a wind chill of -40 f and it was perfectly warm imo

[@Autunite]

@@elizabethhunley4020 It could be perfectly warm, but more heating could be required compared to wood. Interesting question from Ogawa.

[@eQualizeri]

Same, I was also quite disappointed that there was nothing on how it functions as an house. How does the insulation work etc. How does it compare to more typical houses? It's like this video was cut short.

[@cgduude]

I remember my dad telling me that in a "traditional" home, even having steel studs practically negates any insulation in the walls, since it's so conductive. I imagine having an entire home made of steel means you don't even try to insulate, and just spend alllll your money on the heating/cooling bill.

[@Nan-59]

Friends of ours recently moved out of their Lustron home. They're much happier in their larger traditional home.

[@mintheman7]

Steel is still very popular for framing, siding, roofing since it is durable, uniform and recyclable. They are actually making a come back due to rising timber and concrete prices. Lustron's mistake was trying to make everything in the house in steel including fixtures.

[@peteranon8455]

I was just thinking that I wouldn't mind having a nice, solid I-Beam running along every corner of my house.

[@lancehobbs8012]

When you say steel siding, is that vertical cladding to external walls? I would be very suprised , aluminium probably

[@mintheman7]

@@lancehobbs8012 No I mean painted or galvanized steel. Just do a search of steel siding on YT and you will see many examples.

[@nonyabizness.original]

i think that their 'mistake' was to build a house that would last ages without requiring or lending itself to constant maintainence, repair, and renovation. thus, a home that would not feed capitalism. a house the opposite of 'planned obsolescence'. for example, they didn't say in the video, but i imagine that the porcelain-coated steel roof still doesn't need replacing after 70+ years. no wood to rot, no concrete footings to fail, even in houses shown that have not been well cared for.

[@lizzycolbert8884]

@@nonyabizness.original My husband and I have Lustron house and its in excellent condition no issues with it at all.

[@LaurenEPersons]

I lived in a Lustron home in Parma, Ohio for about twenty years. My son was confused when he went into other homes and tried putting magnets on the walls! It had its problems. The casters on the sliding doors wore out so opening cupboards and closets became a chore. It was certainly a curiosity.

[@MrTaxiRob]

I was about to comment on steel framed homes in the Cleveland area, but you got here first. There are whole neighborhoods of them out in Lorain County as well.

[@MyNameIsUnavailable]

Columbus born guy here, now Louisville Kentucky. How did house price compare during sale?

[@fallenshallrise]

If they did a story on a 2022 start-up making modern, pre-fab, micro homes for $100k each ($8,500 in 1950 money) and the company sold 2,500 of them in 2 years it would be called a massive success.

[@yankumarrah]

I never knew this was a thing; steel homes… I am more curious about the acoustics and thermals.

[@swoleavocado]

I was hoping they touch on this but they didn't.

[@Kamel419]

Same, or literally anything about what it's like to live in one

[@AnnNunnally]

I am trying to imagine these houses in Texas. Is porcelain really going to compensate for how hot the metal would get?

[@photoklarno]

@@AnnNunnally porcelain would be an anti-corrosive coating that doesn’t need to be re-applied over the years. A light colored paint would do the same job in reflecting incoming solar radiation. The walls still would need to be filled with fiberglass insulation.

[@rockets4kids]

I imagine that living in these would be not much different than living in a very large car.

[@Hopeless_and_Forlorn]

In the late 1940s my family lived on Stanford Avenue in North Dallas. We kids were excited to see a strange new house being assembled on the next street over, Amherst. I can remember the hoopla about it being fireproof and maintenance free. Almost all of the post-WWII houses in that neighborhood have been replaced by larger and quite expensive houses, but I recently drove through the old neighborhood, and there was the Lustron yellow house, looking exactly as it had in 1949. Edit: Just checked Dallas property tax site, that tiny house is now valued at $592,000. It is sitting on some very desirable ground.

[@bluecube7247]

What a treasure!!!!

[@fireaza]

This looks like the house from _Fallout 4!_ Since "steel house" is *exactly* the sorta whacky retro-futuristic thing the _Fallout_ series goes for, I can see why they used this style of building as inspiration!

[@firbhamming2575]

This actually helps explain some of the wreckage it makes one realize it's more accurate than at first play

[@crunchymix]

That large amount of steel you can harvest from those houses.

[@lizzycolbert8884]

Try actually have a Lustron home like I do and then playing Fallout4 seeing your own house in a game was awesome lol

[@littlehaven7275]

How did I not even question that the houses in Sanctuary were all made of steel...

[@mainstay.]

@@lizzycolbert8884 Wow!

[@anthonykidd7978]

I have worked on one of these homes before as an electrician. Makes you wish every house came with a manual like the Lustron homes.

[@reynardfoxx6753]

I'd hate to experience a short in the walls on one of those Steel Lustrom houses. ⚡

[@speedy01247]

@@reynardfoxx6753 if anything wouldn't the steel be a better conductor then you are? (not a electrician so this is a legit question)

[@Carlene.loves.colours]

@@reynardfoxx6753 The house would act as a faraday cage, but coming home might have a shocking effect :D

[@reclusiarchgrimaldus1269]

John 3:16 NIV For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 🙏!

[@derealized797]

There's at least 3 of these houses near me, that i can think of, probably more. Always thought they were cool like the house kits that Sears sold. But i actually never even considered what the electrical wiring is like in them. The reason for my interest in this stuff is that, growing up, my parents had these alternative housing books from the 70s. So anything non traditional always caught my attention, especially the more affordable and creative it is. Barns converted into houses, seen some factories converted into real nice homes. It made me see things just a little differently, like question what a home is, and how much is possible for less. You should define what makes your "house" a "home". It's a freedom not everyone considers.

[@Dogsnark]

The story of the Lustron home is one that has always intrigued me. Unfortunately, this video didn’t even do much to answer it’s own question in the title, nor get into much else that could’ve made it a very interesting exploration of this unique housing approach.

[@RafaelBernatto]

Exactly! What a waste.

[@thecloneguyz]

Can you imagine when lightning strike would fry you inside your own house

[@traceymarshall5886]

I thought the same. I was interested to find out as ive never heard of these given that i live in Ireland. Im none the wiser why they were not so popular...seemed like weight and the bath was non standard size and difficult to make changes later on???

[@heartsDmise]

Theres a youtube channel called "The 2nd Empire Strikes Back" and its with a couple who are restoring their Victorian home. The owner's father got inspired and bought a Lustron home and is repairing it. The updates are few since they only just started, but Ill bet following the channel can satiate that knowledge!

[@haphazardprism]

I mean you could do you own research if your really that intrigued with them. A free video on youtube seems like a nice shortcut but it's not going to have every answer lol

[@mrwarr]

I’m playing Fallout 4 right now (again). I gotta take back some criticisms I made previously. I mean, the lighting is still horrible, but they nailed the vibe of these metal houses perfectly. Thanks for the history lesson!

[@kentonbenoit9629]

No one cares bud

[@hi_im_roman]

@@kentonbenoit9629 i care

[@Deriko31]

@@kentonbenoit9629 i duckin care

[@notenoughcalories]

@@kentonbenoit9629 no one cares about your disregard for his compliments, bud

[@Zenit_Bourg]

I thought those houses are just retro futuristic version of 50s houses. Never expect it to be actual things

[@pavarottiaardvark3431]

@vox if you're ever in the UK it might be worth doing a companion piece on Britain's post-WW2 pre-fabricated houses. More than a million 'Prefabs' were built to replace housing stock lost in bombings, and while they were only intended to that 10 years, many of them are still standing.

[@r1n8k]

You can visit one kept in period conditions in the St Fagens Museum in Wales.

[@satyr1349]

Absolutely my grandparents moved into one after suffering a corrugated steel "shack" is the best way I can describe. I can barely imagine what it was like, especially with a new born to take care of.

[@PS-ug7nm]

If any other KZbinr has done on that type of housing, please do share the link in the reply thread...

[@safistype5952]

I'm surprised that you never mention how the house handled weather, temperatures and how people felt inside them. No lightnings or electrocuting issues? And was it resource effective? I don't know how much steel there was at time. Its a rather intriguing design! I would definitely put everything on magnets :D

[@daslynnter9841]

Considering this was after world war II when we made tanks and planes every day, I would say this is probably the height of steel production in American history. If you want to see cost of living through weather look at industrial America cuz most garages shops warehouses all have metal construction.

[@Pinnix]

I don't recall our home being uncomfortable winter or summer. It is in western NC so heavy snow wasn't a regular thing but not uncommon either. Mom always worried about lightning and warned us to stay away from faucets during storms, but she said same thing about our wood and brick house too. In any case nothing bad ever happened while we lived there.

[@RichardTongeman]

On a grander scale I imagine it’d be impractical to use steel

[@schplengie1]

​@@Pinnix Yeah staying away from water sources is pretty standard during storms no matter what home as plumbing can conduct the electricity of a lightning strike.

[@dixie6294]

I have owned my lustron for almost thirty years when I bought it as a single women. It is cool in the summer,and warm in the winter,it gas tons of storage space and with all the build ins. It is so easy to keep clean because there is little dust because there is no duct work. Never needs a new roof,or to be painted inside or out and I polish it and wax it like a car every year. It is quiet inside and there isn't much noise when it rains. Because I bought this low maintaince house I have been able to do so many other things with my money,and have had a great life,there is never a reason to want to upgrade or get more room because of the storage,and with any other house you have so much more upkeep! Taxes are low because of the square footage,but because they were designed by engineers everything is square,and so much storage,and when new the people who were lucky enough to buy one had to have a little actual cash because you had to buy the land separate from the house...and in my case my tiny house is surrounded by fancier houses which is nice because my taxes are so much lower than my neighbors. I cannot think of one thing I would change in this design and the world would of been a different place if the loans were not called in,because women would not ever want to leave. Cheers!

[@amlxr99912]

Steel houses in the U.S. may be forgotten and failed, However it’s still amazingly interesting how much different infrastructure veers from all around the globe and how houses and buildings all have a unique feeling too them depending on the place.

[@mambamolt7353]

fax. them steal houses foshio ain’t gonna save folks from getting in danger by the german monster moustache man, the usa should’ve built neutral underground bonkers just like how switzerland did.

[@wholesomememer412]

@@mambamolt7353 i kinda agree but can you fix your grammer please.......

[@naffal1538]

@@wholesomememer412 grammer

[@robertkirchner7981]

@@naffal1538 Bonkers grammer!

[@tibodeclercq2131]

Women put in bags/towels may beforgotten here, However it's amazingly interesting how much different women empowerment looks from all around the globe and how women's rights all have a unique view too depending on the place.

[@Reality_TV]

The fact that you are sitting in a Lustron home in 2022 means they didn't "fail". They just didn't achieve the goals they thought they would. I bet with the right modifications, something like this would fly today, especially given the movement toward tiny, do it yourself homes that some have embraced. The fact that they were able to take the home apart and put it back together using the manual says a lot.

[@Clownk1ller]

I agree

[@judyr.7249]

Actually, something similar(not all steel, but steel framed kit homes are booming in Australia-and now America). Think traditional dry wall, insulation, plumbing, siding, but steel bones. The idea of a one stop shop home is nonexistent today, but might come back due to the housing crisis all across America(can’t speak to the nature of the world market).

[@ethanhanover3263]

I think by fail, he means that it didnt carry on to the mainstream home construction market

[@noahthebongoer]

Personally id say bankruptcy always is a decent reason to Call something a failure

[@aaaaaaaaaaaaa373]

Morton-building homes are wildly popular these days, once you get out of areas with HOAs.

[@curtismarean6963]

Oddly enough, I would not mind living in one of these. There's something about that retro look that I love. Mid-century houses have a distinct feel about them.

[@nelle6363]

As someone who's been through the nightmare of toxic mold illness and trying to find a home that doesn't rot from the slightest water damage like most paper homes today, these steel houses look heavenly.

[@augustooliveira518]

Is it concrete and brick houses easy to find in the US?

[@jonathanthomas2449]

@@augustooliveira518 no

[@gusty7153]

@@augustooliveira518 the most reasonably affordable homes have walls made of paper and sheet-rock which is basically chalk but weaker and dissolves quickly.

[@dragonsharker4793]

@@jonathanthomas2449 they’re not really hard to find but they’re a lot more expensive

[@dee5298]

@@gusty7153 Truth. What is worse is a house trailer and many can't afford anything else. Those same people can not afford the proprietary hardware that everything in them are designed to use. That is a major problem because the proprietary hardware is cheaply made and breaks quickly. So, everything breaks and is unfixable without redoing entire systems, a fix that has its own unique problems. Ask me how I know.

[@racegrooves]

If you pause at 6:11 the newspaper has quotes stating that people thought that the early homes looked like porcelain tubs or hot dog stands 😆

[@bunkerblue6158]

Whack to see you here. I remember watching you when I was younger.

[@RaceGroovesGaming]

@@bunkerblue6158 Cool, good times! I’m spending more time playing video games nowadays 💙🏁 I hope that you are well!

[@Pinnix]

Lived in one of these for several years in the 70s. Unique experience. Honestly it was well designed and felt quite airy and light for such a heavy industrial material. Loved the large windows and big mirrors on the built-in cabinet/dresser in the bedrooms. The interior pocket doors were pretty noisy but had a bit of a Star Trek vibe so my brother and I had fun with them.

[@vawest2052]

My brother bought a steel shed for farm equipment and made it a tiny house, they still make steel structures, they're just not sold as homes. You can live in them, cell phones still work, you can insulated them like a regular house and everything, the outside is exposed steel so he coated it with rust proofing, you can get stainless steel but it's more expensive. It's easy to cut steel for electrical outlets, he painted it like a normal house, it sounds so good on rainy days, terrible when it hails. I'm in West Virginia and people turning steel sheds into homes isn't unusual, we don't have a lot rules about about houseing. I know a guy who bought a steel grain silo and made it his "vacation" home.

[@gimpygardner3377]

Many barn companies, like Morton, offer home plans. Also, check out a series called Barndominiums.

[@curtischildress9580]

@@gimpygardner3377 Very true. Making over old barns into houses has been popular now since I first saw them being done back in the early 1980s. They end up looking beautiful.

[@BelindaLouis_]

How much did he spent all together with the project ? I’m looking into doing that . Buying a home in 2022 is not ideal for me . It’s so expensive . I’m from Florida and I’m researching what’s the strongest material for natural disasters .I’m trying to find a way to have a house and have my freedom from mortgage.

[@curtischildress9580]

@@BelindaLouis_ A new shed of fair size might cost $10K at least. Making the inside livable with electric/water/heat & air/insulation & flooring & walls & ceiling & all extras could be $20K...labor is high, so are materials. Foundation is another expense to prepare plus building permits & everything takes time...2 months if the road is perfect & everyone works fast. Expect unexpected costs too...they happen, plus you need furniture...much can be thrifted.

[@BelindaLouis_]

@@curtischildress9580 thank you for your respond .

[@peabody1976]

My best friend bought one of these as his first house, and it was basically unchanged in many ways from its building, even as other houses in his neighbourhood had been expanded/torn down-rebuilt. It was a nifty house.

[@gordonstanley3912]

Our family lived in a "steel house" in a Chicago suburb that had originally been built for the 1933 World's Fair in Chicago. Unlike the Lustron houses, this one did not have steel interior walls, just sheetrock. There was a srainless steel fireplace surround and several steel enameled lighting fixtures. My father always said it was built like a fortress.

[@Seatux]

This is making me wonder a few things: 1. Would getting cell reception be terrible inside? Its steel all way round 2. Conversely would one need a Wi-Fi in each room because the steel walls would limit range?

[@4G12]

Call reception would most likely be a nightmare. However, a well placed single WIFI router could work very well since it's a set of giant waveguides that tend to contain the signals within the house.

[@Bas_Lightyear]

@@4G12 until you close a door.. No browsing unless that bedroom door stays wide open 😂

[@Bas_Lightyear]

@Aidan Collins ummm

[@thelordofgiggles]

So my family has a modern steel frame house And the cell reception and wifi signal seems to be reduced slightly but not really noticeable Particularly, getting wifi a great distance outside of the house is the biggest struggle

[@rock9737]

@Aidan Collins Cell reception would most likely be a nightmare. However, a well placed single WIFI router could work very well since it's a set of giant waveguides that tend to contain the signals within the house.

[@oceanstaiga5928]

Honestly to me the whole wood house thing is still weird, as someone who grew up around 99% stone houses whenever I see this (mostly American) wood houses it’s an oddity.

[@pinkfreud62]

Because it's just makes sense when our country was millions of acres of wood to use it as a resource. Millions of homes are made with wood with no problems. Just use care and common sense.

[@redragon9588]

wood houses are quite popular in Europe as well, especially in my country

[@tauceti8060]

@@pinkfreud62 Yes but when it comes to natural disasters like tornadoes and Hurricanes they,re to fragile.Steel or concrete is better when dealing with these disasters.

[@acreativename7999]

I've lived in Wood frame buildings older than the colonial USA and have never been to America, with proper maintenance and care, these ancient homes can still be nice places to live.

[@Noctuoidea228]

@@pinkfreud62 That may be true for large parts of the US, but also something like half the country is grasslands and there several very large arid regions. The types of houses built in those areas prior to British settlement were mostly made of clay and stone. Only after British/American settlement was a timber frame so valued that wood was shipped in from other parts of the country.

[@KingStix]

primary draw back is steel conductivity leading to lower energy efficiency =higher electricity cost for heating/cooling

[@GammaZed.]

My father lives in one of these houses and it really is a trip to the past. They sure have stood the test of time.

[@curtischildress9580]

Very cool!

[@pennydonnelly8542]

Back in 2000 my husband and bought a Lustron. I hadn’t heard of them before but educated myself on what it meant to own a funky steel house. It was small but the abundance of closet space made up for it. The magnet scene made me laugh. My son was little when we lived there. He liked taking the magnets from the fridge ad putting them all over the house.

[@kianjsr]

What made you leave/sell the home in the end? Is it still there today?

[@nickbutton9704]

I’ve seen tons of these across my home state of Indiana and always noticed they were different and quirky but never understood why. This video gives me a whole new appreciation for homes that I never knew were so special!

[@bweber02]

Now I know where Fallout 4 got its inspiration from! Lustron is like the epitome of midcentury sensibilities: streamlined, manufactured, and pastel.

[@lizzycolbert8884]

My husband and I have a Lustron home , It keeps cool in the summer and retains heat very well in the winter. All we do is put up the heat for about an hour and turn it off then it keeps warm for 3-4 hours maybe longer. I also love the fact we have a lot of space for storage.

[@ricfax]

I've seen a few homes with porcelain coated steel exterior siding and marveled at how well they looked and recall many service stations with the same but only a few homes, all post WWII. This video helped shed some light. Next time I get a chance, I'm going to visit one or two I remember to see if they are steel inside, too.

[@Krisjoverovovejovovichtski]

Like living in a giant potty

[@kerrykuss642]

I was born in 1950 and eventually became an architectural designer. I've never heard of this house. My whole family, extended family, has been in the building industry for generations. None of us has heard of this house. I find it fascinating! I would love to see one. Thanks for showing this video!

[@andrewmcneal1444]

I know where you can buy one for less than 70k

[@YoppieBeyond]

@@andrewmcneal1444 where

[@heartsDmise]

Theres a youtube channel called "The 2nd Empire Strikes Back" and its with a couple who are restoring their Victorian home. The owner's father got inspired and bought a Lustron home and is repairing it. The updates are few since they only just started, but Ill bet following the channel can satiate that knowledge!

[@Berubium]

Thanks to Fallout 4 for introducing me to these fascinating homes. I’m doubly isolated from them as I’m west of the Rockies & north of the border, but I definitely want to check one out in person someday. The postwar housing & development boom is fascinating to me.

[@SergeantExtreme]

That Lustron only sold 2600 homes is a testament to how big a failure the project really was. By comparison, Sears sold over 70,000 kit homes by the time they shut down the kit home project.

[@rezkyputra5239]

The Fallout 4 vibe is strong with these houses

[@FurryestX]

Preston : Did you said helping settlements?

[@DanSolowastaken]

That is more of a failure of the company than a inherent flaw in steel houses. Yes it's 1000 sq ft and yes that was pretty standard at the time. Tiny houses today could be stainless steel modules cut on presses and tension control bolted into place. They would be affordable and a hit, especially with how expensive lumber is this year. Living in a massive faraday cage might have it's drawbacks, but it wouldn't be that big a deal in a tiny house.

[@andynichols3464]

Affordable is not the word that comes to mind when talking about stainless. Of course my initial thought is an apples to apples comparison using SS as a cladding on traditional metal stud framing with densglas and membrane. However, I am curious as to what kind of strength you can get forming the sheets into a wall panel. Eliminating typical framing and only needing to seam the edges might actually prove to be a more cost effective method. You could form sip like panels that could be erected similar to a tilt wall building but a 3x9 panel that can be installed by two workers not needing a crane. This is a very interesting topic.

[@willg-r3269]

It's not as if enameled steel isn't still around... it's a very common material for applications like bathtubs and sinks, and the reasons why it works so well in those cases (durable, easy to clean, protects the metal from water/rust, relatively cheap to manufacture) are the same reasons why it was tapped for Lustron houses, many of which are still intact and still sporting their original enamel steel wall/roof tiles with extremely little maintenance.

[@DanSolowastaken]

@@andynichols3464 That was sort of what I had in mind. Stainless steel modules and tilt up would be reasonably affordable. Especially if it was designed for modularity and deconstruction. The life of the building would be centuries. In places like Haiti that have to worry about hurricanes and earthquakes steel houses start to make a lot of sense.

[@jimbaranski4687]

@@andynichols3464 rr

[@jean-martinvonsiebenthal2836]

Living in a Faraday cage could be a selling point for those people that are reportedly sensitive to EM waves...

[@sharonqaranivalu5152]

I'm freaking out because I lived in a steel house as a teenager, it was kinda cool. Brings back memories.

[@2SNesbit]

My parents rented one (for about six months when I was in the third grade). Before seeing this video, I didn't know what a Lustron Home was. However as soon as I saw the steel panels on the exterior, I remembered living in one. Other than thinking that the square panels were "different", I don't recall that a time my younger self noticed that it was anything out of the ordinary as far as a house.

[@guringai]

Details on comfort levels would be interesting. Details on insulation. Did they go mouldy the inside of external walls? ...with condensation being an obvious issue. What about sound? Echoes more or less than normal? Rattling or squeaky walls when windy? So many unanswered questions

[@davepennington3573]

Exactly! What kind of insulation is it? Rockwool would be OK, less moisture build up, but still. Probably rusted out in some areas and the fix would be difficult & expensive. How do you repair that finish?

[@DeanStephen]

We had a couple of old maid sisters with whom the family was friends who each lived in a kit home: one a Sears, one a Lustron. The former was larger and very traditional. The later, it felt like a very dated Jetson’s house. I easily could have lived in either. Loved both. Sadly the Lustron was torn down a few years ago so the land could be farmed.

[@nonesuch1309]

I grew up in a Lustron house in the 1980s in Fargo, North Dakota. So that's my baseline for what "normal" feels like :) BTW, the house is still there and it has served as a home for lots of people since the 1940s.

[@danieltolan8443]

How was the insulation and heating? I feel like this couldn’t withstand a North Dakota winter

[@nonesuch1309]

@daniel tolan If you wear the right clothes, nothing is too cold. We moved out when I was pretty young, so don't remember everything clearly, but I'm pretty sure we wore toques/stocking caps in bed. I do know that a drunk driver once crashed his car into the house when we were all asleep inside. As far as I know, the dent in the steel exterior panel is still there.

[@SoapBoxMediaTV]

There was a lot of interest in steel being used for anything from kitchen cabinets to (very thick and heavy) lawn furniture post WW II. I've wondered if there must have been a glut of scrap metal available from recycling military equipment that probably lowering the price of steel at the time.

[@methos1999]

Certainly a possibility

[@dylanpeterson6192]

My favorite porch chairs are old steel ones. apparently, there is a market for them (or junkies are desparate again) because they've been getting stolen around here fairly regularly.

[@martinoamello3017]

The steel industry needed to find new markets after the war.. Where do you think all those Robby Robots came from?

[@rjbz554]

BINGO, follow the money controllers....

[@royhuang9715]

More like excessive production of steel from war time. Got to use it for something other than ships tanks so use it on houses.

[@lessbs]

My aunt and uncle bought a Lustron home when they got married in the late 40's. My aunt still owns it. They need to take that Westchester floor plan and start using it for starter and retirement homes as it always seems bigger on the inside than what it looks from the outside. The overall footprint does not require that much space.

[@patois12]

There's a Lustron house in my town and I always thought it was odd sitting awkwardly in the middle of an early 20th century neighborhood, and I certainly didn't think I'd ever know anything about it until I saw this random video on my KZbin feed. Once a few years back it was for sale so I looked in the windows and thought it looked like a charming place to live, almost like a cottage. It was the blue exterior two bedroom one shown in the video. I also know I would have appreciated an in depth discussion of the interior vs the exterior and perhaps a couple interviews with those whom had already lived in one and ways they've lived in it and decorated it. Also a discussion about what maintenance of the house involves

[@KevinFromTheOffice]

Literally every house in Fallout games

[@styluspixelsproduction513]

Very true

[@jimmysgameclips]

I genuinely thought it was something an art department at Bethesda came up with

[@daffyduck9562]

I immediately thought that, all the houses in sanctuary hill have the same colors too

[@FurryestX]

Preston : "Some Settlements need minutemen help, go and see what you can do"

[@taffingtonboathouse5754]

Very True duck

[@donaldroehrig7817]

I drive by one almost daily. I always thought it looked different, but never knew until I watched this video. Still in great shape and they just recently put a new roof on it and it looks identical to the old. Makes me wonder who put the roof on and how they found the original style materials to do so.

[@good_deed]

There’s a bunch of Lustron homes around where I live. I love telling people about them as we drive by.

[@KimSimful]

We have a bunch here too and in the next town over. We spent a day driving around to see them all. Blue is popular around here. And yellow.

[@kevinalexander7710]

I actually lived in one of these for about 3 years. I didn’t know what a Lustron home was at the time. Winters were cold.

[@incognitonegress]

It's 1 up on Meyer Blvd on the S side of the street about 2 blocks E from 63rd st/71. *if ur n kc*

[@Putzing]

Small, weird old houses warm my heart like nothing else

[@s87343jim]

Interestingly in early 2000s Taiwan tried to bring back steel houses as part of the affordable home. It was well designed with good insulation, sound dampening and what-not and the trail was rather successful. However, it didn't go for full scale production due to bad public reception (because corrugated iron buildings was synonyms for slum or illegal building), and not cost effective in terms of land use

[@hermeslein6614]

Shut Up America is over Russia already defeated you as the most owerful country by taking Ukraine

[@prashanthraghavendran2628]

@@hermeslein6614 Bruh

[@mareksicinski3726]

@Jimmy Lowhoes not independent no, rather unrelayed to anythgint tho

[@theasianboy315]

not to mention that almost all buildings in slums over East and Southeast Asia (excepts India) were mostly made from metals. As an Indonesian, a steel-made structure eithers a semi-permanent slum hut, or a factory.

[@Daniel_Paterson]

It's so weird how spot on the recreation of these houses is in Fallout 4.

[@Suchayoutuber]

Living part of my life around Columbus Ohio I never knew about this, very interesting piece of history I'm glad they're able to preserve some of it

[@wildercat2593]

This channel takes the simplest of topics and makes a 10 minute masterpiece with it 🤣

[@matthewholzinger1042]

Around me people have torn these down for McMansions. I looked at one years ago. Very well thought out. Still makes a nice hour for those that don't want a huge home. I'd buy one today. The odd thing was the combination washer, dryer, dish washer.

[@MyNameIsUnavailable]

Born in Columbus in '75, its 2024, I'm 49, and I NEVER EVEN HEARD OR KNEW. Thank you, Vox. 😊 More than you know

[@wizzzer1337]

I can't imagine living in a steel house in either winter or summer if the air conditioning or heating fails... 🥶🥵

[@eliljeho]

Proper insulation… but converting shipping containers have similar…issues.

[@oldred9122]

They actually had really good insulation with the magic of asbestos!

[@draggy6544]

@@oldred9122 ah yes asbestos the miracle substance

[@rotciv4ever116]

@@draggy6544 glad there arent any downsides connected to this revolutionizing fabric

[@jk-gb4et]

@@rotciv4ever116 heheehehe

[@Jules-wn7hl]

Love seeing Phil out in the world in his recent videos. Makes me feel like a proud father

[@curtischildress9580]

You his father?

[@RaphaeLoh01]

I lived in one of these houses before, it was a prefab house for miners. We called it the Aluminium hut, it was great! So cozy, so easy to clean

[@khalilahd.]

I love this channel because I always learn something completely new and abstract…like a steel house. Thanks for the Snapple facts I’m definitely sharing 💜

[@luisdelatorre2547]

Some houses are abstract, and others are concrete.

[@carl2732]

@@luisdelatorre2547 Nice one

[@fransisco5748]

You took off your shoes before entering, I can see you're a man of culture.

[@conniebroshears8691]

I own a Lustron home in Newburgh IN and I love it! Posted 06/16/24. 👍🏻💕🇺🇸

[@Cookies1o1]

The sound production on Vox videos is so good

[@michaelholmes924]

Theramin for the win.

[@CandiRhae00]

The Ohio History Center has one of these homes on display. There's also one in my little village that used to be an Airbnb location. I absolutely LOVE these homes.

[@missccarr89]

Why not airbnbable anymore?

[@denisecooper307]

There is a steel house on my street in Parma, Ohio. I don’t think anyone is living there. The lawn is very neglected.

[@mariabeatrize]

The Lustron home was ahead of its time, honestly would prefer it as long as it has good insulation

[@stevenlitvintchouk3131]

In my younger days, I put up a modular home. It was made of wood like any other home, but assembled in a factory and transported in two parts on big trucks, then mounted on the foundation at the site. It was extremely well made and rigid, so much so that it didn't even need supporting columns. The big problem with modular method homes is that our antiquated zoning and mortgage laws make it hard to do. I went thru real nightmares, not with the construction, but with the laws and the financing.

[@brodriguez11000]

Seems some things never change.

[@kaymish6178]

These things must have been an inspiration for the sanctuary houses in Fallout 4.

[@FurryestX]

Preston: did ya said? Helping settlements?

[@benjochs]

I’ve always been fascinated with these homes since discovering them in my Midcentury Modern craze. My old neighborhood actually had several Lustron homes and there was one converted to an Air BNB. I like the construction & exterior elements but the inside I would prefer to be more traditionally finished. Metallic walls and ceilings would feel trailer-y, I’d think.

[@voiden7340]

Fallout 4 Vibes

[@JonasRaphaelKallasch]

Not only vibes. Those are exactly the houses in the main characters neighborhood.

[@skibididopyesdop]

@@JonasRaphaelKallasch Yes, only larger

[@sinokoperkowa]

Wow, near my house in Poland in Zabrze there is an experimental steel house from 1927. It has a second floor and houses multiple families. But only the walls were steel. There were only 5 built an this one still stands.

[@chrisbarber2436]

I now realize, after watching this, that my new house was a Lustron house. Still has the roof and frame, with some parts of the interior having the panels, but over the years much of the rest has been renovated to be more "standard".

[@pauljackman7137]

In my 1960's youth, my father was the representative for US Steel houses built on St. Croix in the USVI. The houses were assembled from prefabricated panels in any wall and window configuration you wanted, but the walls were plastered outside and were wall board inside. Some were quite large. They're still there, as far as I know.

[@MrTaxiRob]

Prefab wall sections are popular now with multi unit buildings, but when they don't fit together properly the framers still need to come and fix them anyway. I guess it still saves them on labor when most of the walls are built in a factory by people making just above minimum wage somewhere in the middle of the country.

[@josephmcdonnell3107]

I grew up near one of these houses in Janesville, WI, and was always low-key obsessed with it. Glad to finally be able to put a name to the design and the company.

[@alecb8509]

There are still about a half dozen in rockford too.

[@doctordynomyt2417]

Evidently, mchenry il has the first and last produced as well. Across the street from my first home was one of these, in Woodstock il. Using the lustron locator map I saw 2 in mchenry and the notes say first and last produced.

[@JustForgottenGames]

Sad i can't use Galvanized Square Steel to help John inside his 0.01 inch house. Maybe Lustron didn't use Wood Veneers

[@ISilencerI]

I had no idea the Fallout 4 houses were an actual thing once. All the way down to this shelf 4:15 its exactly the same wow

[@KJSvitko]

Every community needs a local historical society. Historic preservation efforts are needed to protect unique structures and their history.

[@caty0000]

There are 2 of these in my town. One of them has recently added some stone around the foundation. It looks out of place on the enamel facade. 🙄

[@OffGridInvestor]

Well we've got them in Australia. BRAND NEW. Essentially steel framed steel clad sheds turned into houses. But drywall ceiling and walls

[@seanthe100]

I couldn't imagine living in a steel house in Florida summers

[@RajendraCholaPro]

@@justayoutuber1906 It wouldn't. It is coated in glass.

[@Fekillix]

We still use steel studs for exterior walls, especially now that wood is so expensive. Metal roofing is also pretty normal, just used a bit less due to cost vs. shingles. Steel siding is mostly used on industrial buildings due to look.

[@siriusstar99]

Wow, Lightning storms would be so flipping scary surrounded by steel , YIKES !

[@eattherich9215]

The house would be grounded.

[@DylanM15]

There are three of these in my town and I’ve been in one of them. Definitely a cool little piece of history I don’t feel like many people know about. The most interesting part was in moving things around in one of them they really are sturdy and well built. The downsize is to that there is not really much give or flexibility to it. Halls and doorways are narrow enough a lot of furniture can’t make it through. It was honestly comical trying to fit stuff into the house. So size really is the primary issue.

[@phiksit]

What happens if you dent a panel or wall? Call a local auto repair shop to fix it?

[@brodriguez11000]

Maybe people were smaller back then.

[@immeremma]

Nice to see Phil back 😊 Ceiling mounted radiant heat sounds terrible 😂

[@tnijoo5109]

Yeah. I wondered why it wouldn’t have been in the floor.

[@divinebitter1638]

It is. My brother's house (regular wood construction) has it and it definately gets toasty up top before the floor is warm. Ceiling fans help, but why fight natural heat flow?

[@shannonsteiner9059]

We live in one! It's not terrible and is great in many ways, including cutting down on dust since no air is blown through vents. The only downside is it's not the most efficient, but that can be improved with good repair and maintenance. Our bills are very normal, if not low.

[@fooltube9999]

I'm more interested in knowing what the advantages/disadvantages and quirks of living in a steel house would be like. How well do heating and cooling work? How well does it stand up in earthquake/fire? Seems like it could be a night mare to rebuild if parts got "bent".

[@squirming_squirrels]

We have one a few blocks from ours, and I’ve seen them periodically through the Midwest. Had no idea they were steel through and through. Super cool!

[@chanikya.a6679]

In India no one builds wooden house, the steel and cement house very common, and reason is we build house only once and it should be strong enough to last future generations.

[@grumpybulldog19]

Same in Brazil, no maintenance houses.

[@albertperez2292]

I’d never heard of Lustron before. Thank you for the information it was very interesting.

[@GerbenDavid]

I first got into Lustron houses after I saw some of them in the game "Fallout 4" where everything has the style of the early 50s.

[@RiverwestRich]

I work for the Barton County Historical Society in Great Bend, Kansas and we have one of these homes on our grounds for people to visit. There are another 19 of these houses near our location as well.

[@Lauterec]

I went to Roosevelt High School and there was a Lustron across the street I would gawk at every day. It was in unbelievably prestine condition for obviously being a mid-century house. I always dreamed of owning it one day!

[@Sand_Bard]

I was very excited to learn about these, neat to see that the homes / aesthetic from Fallout 4 were actually based on ones manufactured in real life. Thanks for this one :)

[@jessetorres8738]

And now Tiny Houses with a total area of less then 1,000 square feet are the growing trend seen as the future of housing.

[@constancel4211]

1,000 sqft (92 sq meters) is a very common size in Europe for housing a family of four (americans are weird)

[@issecret1]

That is literally 2 times larger than the average apartment in my country. I'd say 99.9% percent of people live in smaller spaces than a westerner's "minimalist" home

[@gizzy2324]

I grew up near one of these homes and was always fascinated by the blue shiny tile like exterior. I finally know the reason.

[@acidemperor]

Interestingly a similar house construction techniques is the predominate type used today in Northern australia, but using zinc galvanised and rolled steel. It provides the cyclone/hurricane rating required. The internals though are thankfully now plasterboard with wood laminate kitchens/bathroom cupboards which does allow for internal modifications. Yes the steel means you dont have to worry about your neighbours stealing your wifi much.

[@Big007Boss]

Absolutely love this series of videos about houses, and Phil is going strong for a Gary Oldman doppelganger.

[@FlyingAce1016]

I love how vox can get me to watch topics I'd never knew would be interesting