So Let's Pretend You Are Going To Build a House to Last 1000 years....

[JimBowie1958]

How would you do it with available materials while controlling costs?

Conditions are
1) cant be over $150/square foot.
2) Cant be made of toxic materials
3) Has to pass building code in most places int he USA
4) has to be pleasant to see (dont want our eternal home to be burned down by angry naighbors weilding pitch forks)

Timber framed houses look like the best and easiest answer, but how many builders make that kind of house anymore and what would you do to get standard blue prints modified to use Timber frames?

Are there cheaper ways to avoid rusting metal joins and plates without going back to 14th century technology?

I am open to any suggestions as my wife and I are looking for ideas to make our house last as long as a house can reasonably be made to last and passed down in the family.

 

[Moonglow]

Make a concrete house..

 

[there4eyeM]

Stainless steel and glass.

 

[there4eyeM]

While loving wood houses, one must admit a thousand years is difficult, though possible. It might involve some currently environmentally inconvenient chemical treatments.

 

[Alystyr]

Make a concrete house..

You're pretty close with that.
The Romans used concrete in construction, and a lot is still intact (or nearly so) over 2,000 years later.

 

[Moonglow]

Make a concrete house..

You're pretty close with that.
The Romans used concrete in construction, and a lot is still intact (or nearly so) over 2,000 years later.

And they didn't use steel rebar for tining...

 

[JimBowie1958]

OK, those are OK, though the neighbors couldnt burn them down if they wanted to, lol.

What about some of these older techniques that have warm natural looks to them?

Natural Building, a 900 Year Story

Any ideas for wood build homes, as opposed to glass, stainless teal and concrete?

Concrete spalds after about 60 years and isa very cold heat sink to live in year after year, so it wouldnt look or feel very good at 100 years old. Steel, even stainless steel, rusts over time, it just rusts more slowly.

A combination of rock/masonry foundation and shell with a dense hardwood frame joined by mortisse and tenon joinery (as opposed to rusting metal plates stamped with hundreds of teeth) seems to be a very durable combination.

Any other ideas along those lines?

 

[JimBowie1958]

Make a concrete house..

You're pretty close with that.
The Romans used concrete in construction, and a lot is still intact (or nearly so) over 2,000 years later.

And they didn't use steel rebar for tining...

They used iron pegs set in lead, but that has resale implications today.

 

[there4eyeM]

Stone is obvious for durability. However, 1000 years allows a lot of window for earthquakes, and stone isn't good at that.

 

[Alystyr]

A combination of rock/masonry foundation and shell with a dense hardwood frame joined by mortisse and tenon joinery (as opposed to rusting metal plates stamped with hundreds of teeth) seems to be a very durable combination.

Agreed. Look at all of the structures constructed in a similar fashion that are several hundred years old in London alone.

 

[there4eyeM]

When did London last experience seismic activity?

 

[Moonglow]

A combination of rock/masonry foundation and shell with a dense hardwood frame joined by mortisse and tenon joinery (as opposed to rusting metal plates stamped with hundreds of teeth) seems to be a very durable combination.

Agreed. Look at all of the structures constructed in a similar fashion that are several hundred years old in London alone.

A home only last as long as there is someone to maintain it..

 

[there4eyeM]

Unless intentionally destroyed, stainless steel and glass are virtually 'immortal'.

 

[DarkFury]

Stone.

 

[Bruce_T_Laney]

How would you do it with available materials while controlling costs?

Conditions are
1) cant be over $150/square foot.
2) Cant be made of toxic materials
3) Has to pass building code in most places int he USA
4) has to be pleasant to see (dont want our eternal home to be burned down by angry naighbors weilding pitch forks)

Timber framed houses look like the best and easiest answer, but how many builders make that kind of house anymore and what would you do to get standard blue prints modified to use Timber frames?

Are there cheaper ways to avoid rusting metal joins and plates without going back to 14th century technology?

I am open to any suggestions as my wife and I are looking for ideas to make our house last as long as a house can reasonably be made to last and passed down in the family.

Adobe?

 

[Auld Phart]

Some have been standing for centuries.

Custom fit it to your needs

 

[there4eyeM]

How many have for ten centuries?

 

[JimBowie1958]

Unless intentionally destroyed, stainless steel and glass are virtually 'immortal'.

Even stainless steel will rust and in the course of centuries who knows what would be the eternal alloy? Until the modern age, no one has been able to build a home entirely of stainless steel.

 

[Iceweasel]

1,000 years? Move into a cave.

 

[Fueri]

you may want to consult with a few architects and/or structural engineers. If nothing else you can meet with them, tell them what you're looking to do, and pick their brains a little. They may also know about cutting edge materials.

For instance we put an elevated deck up last fall and were looking to span a large distance as it sits over another patio area, so we didn't want a bunch of posts. Our structural engineer recommended Parallam Plus PSL, which is an engineered beam material designed specifically for long spans. It's also rated for long term direct soil contact, etc. We wouldn't have known about it without consulting him, and paying him, of course, but my point is that guys that are working in these areas will have a better view on what's available.

It's also possible that during construction some additional things could be done to protect the materials, additional waterproofing, over-speccing loads etc., although I don't know and am just kind of throwing things out there, as if it were me, I'd be looking first at the materials then at the actual construction techniques to make sure they were all maximized. Be aware that you'll have to keep on your builder's ass to make sure he's doing what he's supposed to be doing if you're speccing above code.

If I was looking to build something to last a loooong time, aside from the actual structural considerations (stone, wood, concrete etc.) I'd be looking to make my services accessible, replaceable. For instance data cabling. That should be installed so that it can be pulled and replaced easily. Fire alarms etc should be hardwired in with the same consideration of ease of upgradeability. Basically, I'd want those types of things, that have a tendency to change over time, easy to change.

FWIW I also think it's pretty cool that you're looking to do this for your family. That's something that's worth doing....

ETA: And I'd also be looking at the foundation. Everything sits on it, so if it's substandard or settles that can impact everything.