Since people stopped living nomadically and built caves some 10,000 years ago, we have been searching for the most durable materials to construct shelters. Over the years, builders have used some unique building materials for homes, from paper, tires, and Lego blocks to corn cobs.
However, if you want to build a house that will last, conventional materials are the way to go. Before contacting construction companies, interior designers, and flooring contractors in your area, consider using these five most durable materials for your forever home.
Wood
Wood is a versatile construction material used as a primary material, decorative element, or support structure. It’s a sturdy material that becomes stronger once it has been seasoned because the process removes moisture. However, it will eventually decay, get compromised by wood-destroying insects like termites, or serve as a fire hazard.
But even with these vulnerabilities, wooden structures can survive for several years, with the oldest wood building in existence still standing to this day, which has been around since the 8th century.
Brick
Bricks are one of the oldest man-made building materials which date back to the early Sumerians. This construction material is easy to put together, flexible, and has a high resistance to weather and fire. Besides those benefits, homes made from bricks require less heating compared to other materials. This saves you money over time. However, solely using bricks for your house can end up being expensive if you’re building the house from the ground up.
A downside of using bricks is that builders need to plaster them together to make a structure, making them prone to accumulating moisture in the long run.
Stone
Stone is durable and can support a considerable amount of weight. This construction material can help your house retain a stable temperature while protecting it from fire, withstanding the harshest elements, and resisting deformation. Although it’s an impressive building material, it’s challenging to quarry and heavy to move, making it a tough material to work with. So if you want to build your house out of stone, prepare yourself to spend copious amounts of money.
That’s because, for stones to be a ‘usable’ building material, builders need to excavate, move, and accurately cut them off, which is a challenging and lengthy process.
Concrete
Concrete is an aggregate consisting of several materials, including stones and sands mixed using a binder. It’s a flexible construction material that can be formed upfront or poured into molds, hardened, then transported. Even though concrete has been around for several centuries, it wasn’t until the 1860s that a person realized you could reinforce the material, increasing its tensile strength, marking the beginning of its wide acceptance as a building material.
There are different types of reinforced concrete, including rebar, precast, and pre-stressed. These either use metal rods, mesh, or concrete medium, making reinforced concrete a flexible and reliable building choice.
Steel
Although builders mostly use steel to support most buildings’ foundation, many modern homes use it to make their entire structure. It’s a sturdy material that’s completely recyclable, allowing you to build a durable and environmentally friendly home. Prefabricated steel will enable builders to rivet or weld it together, making construction a short process. However, steel building materials and fabrication can be costly.
When constructing your dream or forever home, you’ll want it to be around for as long as possible. The building material listed can help you achieve this seamlessly, giving you a house that can last for a lifetime.
