SFF Houses

[Phuncz]

@Phuncz out of curiosity, what construction methods have you looked at? Is wood frame housing even a thing there?

Everything's a thing here in construction ! Wood frame housing is certainly a thing here, especially now that "eco" is a hype word. But it depends on what you think of. I'm under the impression some states in the US people build houses that aren't really sturdy enough to withstand catastrophic events happening (tornadoes, car crash, fire, etc.) while the typical Belgian and Dutchman builds houses that last a lifetime with bricks, concrete and solid foundation. So the type of wood frame houses I see here are still laid up with all those things, but with the wooden frame meant as a structure to build around, not so much as the main support structure. In the end you can't really tell if it has a wood frame, steel frame or concrete frame.

This is an example of a random Belgian wood frame house (semi-detached) I found:

Another one:

Belgium is geared towards owning a house that's been paid off when you retire, so it should last long enough that you can actually survive on your pension.

 

[jeshikat]

but in spots where the wall is empty, it's a good space saver to put other stuff into the wall (eg. only drywall one side and use the space between the studs to build a shallower bookshelf), though your contractor might not appreciate it as much.

For sure, I love built-in bookcases. I'll be doing much of the work so that won't be a problem but sound dampening/thermal efficiency will take priority over size (heresy!) because I need a good lab space for testing.

So the type of wood frame houses I see here are still laid up with all those things, but with the wooden frame meant as a structure to build around, not so much as the main support structure.

Ah, that makes sense. Here you'll often see houses with brick exteriors, but they're just for looks and the wood frame is the main structure.

 

[iFreilicht]

Obviously if you have wire runs and piping, you need some spaces inside the walls, but in spots where the wall is empty, it's a good space saver to put other stuff into the wall (eg. only drywall one side and use the space between the studs to build a shallower bookshelf), though your contractor might not appreciate it as much.

In tiny houses it can often be sufficient to run piping exclusively through the floor.

 

[GuilleAcoustic]

Out of curiosity, what monitors do you use? I tried looking into energy efficient monitors like a year ago and didn't find much useful information.

I use an Asus PB258Q. This is a 25" 1440p screen and it eats 28W, which is among the lowest I found. AOC and Dell equivalent screen are 35W and 37W respectively.

Here is a review: https://www.pcper.com/reviews/Displays/ASUS-PB258Q-Frameless-25-inch-WQHD-IPS-Monitor-Review

 

[BirdofPrey]

In tiny houses it can often be sufficient to run piping exclusively through the floor.

You're forgetting about the wet-walls. If you want plumbing fixtures anywhere but the periphery of the house (ie. against the outside wall), you need a wall inside with pipes up from the underfloor plumbing, and if ALL of your fixtures are to the outside, you might not even need anything under the house at all.

 

[zovc]

I use an Asus PB258Q.

Man, that thing checks all of my boxes for an upgrade besides being below 120Hz refresh rate. I imagine increasing the refresh rate and adding support for adaptive sync increases power consumption a lot, though...

 

[BirdofPrey]

I don't see why it would. ASICs don't necessarily use that much power.

 

[jØrd]

 

[VegetableStu]

Sorry, had to share this after it got suggested on IFreilicht's video, LOL

 

[IntoxicatedPuma]

I'm under the impression some states in the US people build houses that aren't really sturdy enough to withstand catastrophic events happening (tornadoes, car crash, fire, etc.)

Generally the houses are well built. The house I grew up in was built in 1904 and still had most of the original interior decoration and it was in great shape. Most houses are built about 30m from the street so car crashes are pretty unlikely (although yes, they do happen) so I don't think that's considered often. About the fire......I see Europe also has problems with fires lately

I often hear this "why do Americans make houses out of wood when they have tornados" so I just have a few comments on this:
- I lived 26 years in Tornado Alley and never saw a tornado personally, nor did I have a tornado ever touch our house. Most hit in the middle of nowhere and aren't likely to damage much.

- Your house is only as strong as it's weakest point. You could build a house with reinforced concrete and an F2 tornado could still destroy it, unless you also plan to put extra thick bullet proof glass and steel blast doors on it. Then better hope the pressure of the tornado doesn't cause it to implode or explode.

I think it'd be easier to just build out of wood and have a concrete safe room somewhere in the middle of the house, than to go the more expensive route of having a whole concrete house.

 

[jeshikat]

Yup, unless the house is basically a bunker a big enough tornado will still destroy or heavily damage it.

I do wish we had more efficient building methods here though, both in terms of insulation and build time.

 

[GuilleAcoustic]

As much as I love French old stone houses, I'd trully want a passive wood house.

 

[EdZ]

I'm a sucker for earth-bermed (or fully subterranean) designs, but they're not very space efficient.

 

[jeshikat]

If it's built into the side of a hill or truly subterranean then it'd be very space efficient.

 

[jØrd]

slightly off topic but thats a thing out in Coober Pedy. The vast majority of homes there are either dug into the side of a hill or rockface or just totally underground.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coober_Pedy

 

[Phuncz]

If it's built into the side of a hill or truly subterranean then it'd be very space efficient.

But is it really though ? It still occupies a volume which can't be occupied by anyone else unless building even lower. It's the desk-PC discussion all over again !

 

[GuilleAcoustic]

I guess it is not worse than people with 50 square meters bathrooms like I saw

 

[iFreilicht]

But is it really though ? It still occupies a volume which can't be occupied by anyone else unless building even lower. It's the desk-PC discussion all over again !

Footprint is the deciding measure here, I tell ya.

 

[ChainedHope]

I really love those homes built into hills and underground. Its a place Id like to call my own Hobbit Home one day lol. But here in the midwest US its a bit of a hard sell seeing how most of the area is flat plains with the occasional hill. Nothing good enough to actually build into tho.

 

[jØrd]

from what I understand the main reason people in Coober Pedy build underground isnt so much because the landscape demands it but because the weather does, you cook living out there.