Energy and Construction - Clima2007

Barry Said:

are there any books on concrete dome house construction?

We Answered:

You might look into Shotcrete/Gunite and their manufacturers.

Jack Said:

what colour can i paint all my house.am fed up with white. my house is of concrete construction .?

We Answered:

i suggest you try earth colors which includes yellow, brown, and red ochres, raw sienna (yellowish-brown), raw umber (dark yellowish-brown), and terre-verte (greyish-green). Roasting will change the colour, for instance raw sienna becomes reddish-brown as burnt sienna, and raw umber a dark brown as burnt umber.
Look for some earth tones that would suit your taste.

Goodluck!

Julio Said:

Why is wood used for house construction in USA? Why concrete/Bricks are not entirely used?

We Answered:

Primarily a matter of cost. Lots of renewable trees makes for lower costs of materials and construction.
However, cost is not always the driver. In Florida, were I live, the vast majority of homes are made out of cement blocks and brick these days. This is, of course, because they withstand Hurricane force winds much better than wood.
See link for more details

Pearl Said:

Why is the concrete house is being used in Malaysia?Isn't it better to use traditional housing method?

We Answered:

I can see some advantages and disadvantages to building a concrete house.

Advantages:

The thermal mass of concrete is energy efficient and would reduce heating an cooling costs.
The house would be much more resistant to rot and decay.
The house would be much more resistant to hurricane/tsunami damage.

Disadvantages:

The price of construction would be much more than the traditional method.
The cement would have to be brought in, instead of building from local materials.
The engineering required to put the house on stilts (to prevent flooding during a hurricane/tsunami) would further increase the price and difficulty of construction.

These are just my opinions, hope they help.

Derrick Said:

Concrete/stucco house construction in USA?

We Answered:

you will have trouble with finding the european style stucco method here as many american building codes have changed to prevent it. This is mainly due to the large amount of mold issues associated with traditional stucco methods,therefore the use of the foam backing rreduces the likleyhood of any mold issues.

Frederick Said:

Which is a better n safe n cheap house construction?

We Answered:

Depends on the builder and what you can afford.