Is there A Steel-Framed Home In Your Future?
Have you ever considered buying a home framed with steel? At some point in your life, you may have already lived in a steel home. If you have ever lived in a mid-rise or high-rise rental apartment or condominium, the structure was probably framed with steel. So why not buy in a single family house made of steel?
Despite steel’s long history of effectiveness in building construction, it has not been used extensively in single-family homes. But that may be changing now as builders are beginning to see the significant advantages of steel-framed residential construction. The plusses include:
- Steel has the highest strength-to-weight ratio of any building material.
- The inherent strength of steel means that fewer studs need to be used.
- Galvanized steel is noncombustible, which may result in lower insurance premiums for home buyers.
- Galvanized steel is not susceptible to rot. It does not shrink, warp, crack or swell, and it resists corrosion.
- Termites and other insects and pests cannot eat steel.
- Combined with the use of framing screws that resist uplifting loads more effectively than nails, steel framing produces a structure that performs favorably compared to other building materials during hurricanes and earthquakes.
- Steel framing can accommodate all types of commonly-used siding and finish materials.
- Steel has many environmental advantages. It can be recycled repeatedly without losing its strength or other properties.
- Steel has an overall recycling rate of 64 percent, making it the most recycled material in the world. Some of the steel in a new home may have previously been used for an automobile or a commercial building.
- Galvanized steel studs are manufactured in the quality-controlled setting of a factory. The prepunching of studs provides a product cut-out for electrical and plumbing lines. The prepunching also prevents waste on the construction site.
- Steel provides a more reliable supply of framing materials for builders. The construction industry has felt the effects of shortages and sharp price increases in the lumber industry. These factors ultimately add to the final house price paid by the consumer.
- Steel-framing can accommodate future remodeling, because non-load bearing walls can be easily removed, altered and relocated.
Steel framing for single family homes is already popular in some parts of the country. In areas of Florida, where concrete block is the predominant exterior wall material, steel has about half of the interior stud market. Steel homes are also common on the West Coast (because of concerns about earthquakes) and in Hawaii. Another common use is in markets where basements are built and finished by the builder.
For any framing system to succeed in the housing market, there must be a readily available supply of product and an adequate supply of labor to install it. In recent years, the steel industry has been working to develop a reliable distribution system while training framers how to use it. Steel framing can be installed much the same way as wood, and learning to frame with steel is not any more difficult than learning to frame with wood.
So the next time you are in the market to buy a new home, think about one framed with steel. By selecting this strong, environmentally-friendly product, you may be part of the wave of the future in new home technology. To obtain additional information about steel-framed residential construction, call the Steel Hotline at 800-79-STEEL.
