How to Make a Metric House

Intro: How to Make a Metric House

We need to update our home making ability to build in Metric. Frist, please stop calling 2x4s - 'two by fours', why? Becouse they are not two by fours! 90x40 mm studs are truer to actual dimensions!

Here is a new way to construct your home, and be more energy and material efficient. Instead of the outdated 16''-24'' stud spacing of 2x4, you use 500 mm stud spacing and double 90x40 mm stub wall. Why? First, 500 mm spacing falls in between the old spacing, saves wood compared to 16'', and is stronger than 24'' spacing.

Secondly, by using a double wall of 90x40 mm studs, on the outside walls, is better than using one 140x40 mm stud, because the wall is thicker by 40 mm, for more installation, and don't need big trees to make studs, and the way you construct the wall, you weave the installation between the studs, so there is no cold weak link to the outside. As showing in the illustrations.

When ordering for dry wall, order in whole metric lengths, if you are ordering for the whole house you will have a truck load, the manufacture will be glad to offer any length you want....

STEP 1: Inside Wall

Lets look and an interior wall...
Here is a version of how the inside walls will be constructed compared to old spacing, you save on the number of studs....

STEP 2: Outside Metric Wall Constuction

The outside wall is constucted with a double wall, in order to break the thermo barriers that the studs cause. With this construction you are able to weave insulation, in and out of the studs, there is no place where the studs penetrate completely through the wall, increasing U value. The bottom and top plates and end studs can be 140 mm width, to tie the whole unit together, or of two complete walls of 90x40 boards for a thicker wall by 40 mm. This is now, the only thermo weak spots on the wall. Also, you can easily attach your electrical wiring, by weaving and stapling on the inside of wall, without drilling a lot of awkward holes and weaken the studs.

Now, we need to convince the lumber industry to start making Metric dimension building material, like three meter long plywood sheets instead of 96" long. Drywall can easily be cut to three meter lengths. They can keep the width the same 48" or 1.22 m, for now. Or 2.5 m x 1.25 m sheets might make more sense...

Comments

[Clee]

Please don't do this in USA, unless you're pretty darn sure the structure will be owned and maintained by your progeny for generations to come, I guess. Plus it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure that this would be much more, not less, expensive.

Perhaps if/when what Carter tried to do before Reagan sidelined it works out, but we'd probably want a grace period, so we'd probably -really- want identifying placquards or something. It'd be a bit annoying to have 16" center to center stud spacing across the street from 50cm spacing.

[Clee]

Plus if we wanted to standardize with the rest of the world, pretty sure we'd be working with spacings 40/60cm on center and sheets with all dimensions multiples of 40/60cm

[██]

That amount of insulation would never pay for itself. Some areas in the US pushed for 2x6 walls spaced 24" on center, and the consensus was the extra costs did not provide enough energy savings to be worth it. It's far smarter to be careful about air leaks (e.g. using house wrap) and use better insulation with a higher R-value per inch (spray foam vs fiberglass).

[██]

You're not saving on the number of studs. You're building two walls back to back (doubled 2x4s) but the stud spacing is less than twice the old spacing. This would use more studs; in fact, it would use far more.

You're also severely lacking in knowledge of US building codes (we have them, unlike many metric countries). 24" on-center isn't "outdated", it's a code violation. 2x4 studs may not be placed further than 16" apart. To put studs 24" on center, you must use 2x6s.