How long may an American-built house last?

[ETex2]

Diligent maintenance is all that is required to make a well built house last. There are many historic homes in the northeast over 200 years old.

[DMenscha]

Older homes were built out of rough-sawn wood that, for example, was actually 2X4 instead of 1.5X3.5 as today's wood is.

As explained by someone else, the density of the wood is far superior to today's product, however there is no such thing as "natural preservatives" in species that don't have them now. Redwood and cedar are resistant to termites and other critters as much today as they were 100 years ago.

[Mistermobile]

Originally Posted by lvoc

I don't think frame houses ever really wear out. I know of a couple well past 200 years old.

Functional obsolescence is much more a problem. Ceilings are too low.. Heating/cooling systems become obsolete. Basic layout falls out of style.

Some of this is fixable. But it is hard to live with 7 foot or less ceilings and too expensive to fix. We have one 120 year old house in the family that has probably been updated five or six times and is a pretty nice house even today. A few years ago they restored the original hard wood floors which had been buried for 75 years. Worked out well.

You know the saw, it's George's axe but the handle was replaced three times and the head twice. Most older homes have had new windows, doors, insulation, HVAC systems, etc.

I can more or less judge a neighborhood's age by the style of homes and whether the 25 year warranted shingled roofs are being replaced. Some homes were built before modern heating and cooling so they are two stories with floor to ceiling windows that open at the top to exhaust hot air. Tall and narrow, the furnace in the basement heated the house by convection as the heat rose through floor grates opened to the lower stories and basement. Now that's a fixer or upper. In Vienna Va, these homes are bought, torn down, with modern homes built on the now vacant lots. I love the romance of an old home, but after struggling through decades of "Honey Do" lists of repair work, I will say, "No More."

[luv4horses]

My house is also 80-ish years old. An interior wall was partly removed to install a closet and the framing lumber was exposed. It looked as fresh as the day it was put in. Yellow heart pine, true 2x4s. The reason I mentioned 'natural preservatives' was to reference the tannins in the heart wood. Old cedar siding is longer-lasting for the same reasons. The biggest comfort problem is the lack of insulation, but that can be either remedied or you can just accept higher than necessary heating bills.

[katnip kid]

There are houses in my area that were built in the late 17th century, and have been maintaines and are still occupied. So, I guess as long as the house is given the attention it needs and is built right to begin with, they will last awhile.

I don't know about mcmansions, however.

[GearHeadDave]

Originally Posted by emoeskaite

I consider buying a house which is 92 years old. However everything is well taken care of, it doesn't look that it is that old. My question is: if properly maintained, how long can a house be good to live in? American houses are made of wood framing, this is a less solid material than brick or blocks of which European houses are built... Should I expect having problems soon with studs and joists bending or anything else that ails old houses...?

As long as there is no water damage or moisture problems, frame houses will last for hundreds of years. Structural wood actually gets more rigid over time in many cases.

It is the exterior elements that must be properly maintained; siding and roofs and gutters will eventually "wear out" dur to UV and weathering. And if these are not maintained and water intrudes to the structure, then you can have deterioration.

Termite and wood boring insects are another concern. As long as you don't have that sort of damage, and no water intrusion the wood frame should be fine. But siding, roofs, gutters, flooring and plumbing will all eventually need to be replaced.

I would be far more concerned about the underpinnings. A modern poured concrete foundation is generally more durable than the block foundations which were used through much of the 20th century, and the stone foundations which you see in turn of the century construction. Stone tends to crumble (especially limestone) and the mortar between blocks will eventually deteriorate and cause leakage and cracking of the walls. Also, some older homes do not have footers (a concrete underground support that extended under all of the foundation) since this was not always required back then.