Almost every connector used in the building industry are
made out of metal. We have hangers that are used to connect joist, roof
rafters, stair stringers and beams to other beams and structural
components. The picture below provides us with a good example of a metal
bracket that's used to connect a post and beam together.
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Think of all the metal nails and screws that are used
in the construction industry. I use to drive a 50 pound box of 16d nails
every other day, building stairs. It's hard to imagine, but there were
plenty of framing carpenter's who were driving at least one of these
boxes of nails each day.
I would imagine that you could fill the entire house that I live in
today, with all the nails that I had driven as a carpenter. You could
probably fill the shed in my backyard with the rest of the metal
building materials that I used, while working.
Are Steel Framed Buildings Stronger Than Wood Framed Buildings?
It's hard for me to answer that question, because I've heard about the
good and bad, from both sides of the industry. I've heard claims that
metal homes are earthquake proof and don't have to deal with termites or
wood rot.
However, wood buildings are supposed to be more flexible and more
forgiving, during an earthquake.
If I just applied a little common sense to this question, the answer
would be simple. It must be cheaper to use wood, otherwise new home
builders would be using metal. Wood suffers from termites, mold, mildew
and rot, but metal rusts.
I don't think you're going to see a lot of metal framed homes in the
future, simply because it's not a renewable resource. Until they come up
with a metal tree, we're going to have to stick with the trees, we
currently have that produce lumber.
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