Homestead mailing list

[Don Bowen KI6DIU <don.bowen AT earthlink.net>]

At 11/2/2007, you wrote:
> Sustainability would say build to last as long as regenerating the
> materials it is from.

I have given thought to this but have not come to any conclusion.  If you 
are building a large building then maybe building to last as long as 
possible would be a goal.  Developments dot the land that were built as 
gene mentioned, to last one or two mortgages.  Look at any 50 year old 
development and most are now cheap starter homes or rentals.  As tastes and 
desires changed we want something new and fancy.

Gene has returned the favor and told me of an interesting book on 
A-Frames.  I read it with the idea I would get some information on the 
construction of A-Frames but I got something totally different from the 
book.  Tastes and our self perceived social order change.  What was the 
opening of new recreational opportunities and chances of do-it-yourself 
home building were some of the factors that brought us the A-Frame, a 
relatively cheap weekend cottage.  Over time it became just that, a cheap 
get away and lost out in favor of fancy ski lodges and time 
shares.  Weekend retreats that were larger than some houses and cost 
millions have caused some A-Frames to wind up in land fills.

If one were building a home in the woods, maybe building to last ones 
lifetime would be the proper goal.  Is it something we want to pass along 
or would our kids rather live in a post modern place in the city?  Maybe if 
they do want the land then maybe they want to build something of their 
own?  All these questions go to the heart of what we want to do.  Are we so 
presumptuous that we know what those coming after want?

Maybe an admirable goal is to build as simple as possible using local low 
energy materials and let it return to the elements when we are done.


Don Bowen              Awl Knotted Up                       KI6DIU
http://www.braingarage.com