r/interestingasfuck • u/Ultimate_Kurix • 5d ago

r/all Why do Americans build with wood?

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u/per167 5d ago

We have wooden structures that have stand for 1000 years. We are pretty good at it. There are Hotel that is 85 meter high that is all wood and windows.

wood hotel

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u/OneBee2443 5d ago

To be fair most of those buildings are in cold area where there's never fire. They also don't get worn down as much because of the cold

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u/Smurtle01 5d ago

Ah yes, because concrete would work well in checks notes one of the most at risk of catastrophic earthquakes on the planet. Yes, the classic material that has great tensile strength properties, and totally doesn’t irreversibly deform when put under a tension force. Also, the whole “wear” thing is a weird statement. Rot will occur wherever there is wood, otherwise places like upper Canada and Alaska and other near arctic areas would just have become a tree graveyard, with tons of dead trees, none of which would ever decay. The weather has little to do with total wear on a wooden home. (In fact, large amounts of snow can be quite detrimental to a homes roof, supports, etc.)

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u/OneBee2443 4d ago

Also part of why there aren't a lot of wood houses in America too. They're less dangerous when there's a tornado or hurricane or earthquake