The Ideal "Puna" House Design

[Hotzcatz]

Not old growth, per sae. From what I understand it is recycled bridge timbers in this particular house. Rough sawn dimensional 1" x 12"s. Not termite proof at all, knots and splits all over the place. There is either a batten or some metal sheeting nailed over the splits and knots, but the boards aren't clear. Board and batten inside and out. It isn't one of the manager's houses, it is a worker house and an old one at that. Still standing, though, and likely to keep standing for quite some time. If the lumber is kept dry that goes a long way to preserving an old house. Keeping any other construction method dry would help it's longevity, too, for that matter.

A lot of folks have been using 2" thick T & G vertical siding lately, which is similar to this type of construction although almost double thick so even if the newer wood isn't as good, it is still almost twice as thick. If folks could mill up local trees and use them for building their houses, it would be a much more sustainable method of house construction. Cheaper, too, since generally they will mill trees in exchange for part of the lumber.

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"I like yard sales," he said. "All true survivalists like yard sales."
Kurt Wilson