Why Steel Is a Better Building Material Than Wood

Human nature is curious, which is why today we have many different materials with which a building can be built. But it is not always curiosity; sometimes, it’s just the sheer number of advantages one specific material can give over the other.

These are some reasons why steel is a better building material than wood.

Lives For A Long Time

Wood will last you for 15 years, 20 years tops if you are extremely careful and provide regular maintenance. The life span of a wooden building is similarly tiny, and you will be on the hunt again after some years to renovate it. A steel building does not have that problem. It is a hybrid of primarily metallic materials; it is highly durable and will last for a whole generation compared to 20 years of wooden building.

Requires Less Maintenance

Well, steel does not need much protection against many things. It is already strong and resilient enough to handle anything thrown its way. This reduces the need for high or even regular maintenance because it is not much you can do when enough is already done.

Durability

Like we said before, steel is a composite or a mixture of primarily metallic. The hybrid material is built to acquire and adopt the best traits of the individual components. The most significant trait that it acquires is extreme durability and resilience. This makes a steel building live for a long time without any extensive maintenance.

Does Not Rot

Everyone knows it; sooner or later, the wood will rot. It’s nature working at its best. But you don’t have to be afraid of the same thing with steel, which makes it preferable as a building material over wood.

Fire Resistance

Fire can happen for many reasons, a wiring fault, lightning strike, a mishap in the kitchen, malicious intentions, or plain stupidity. The point is that fire’s danger is always persistent, and with wood, the danger is increased to max. But steel is fire-resistant, so there is no fear of your property burning in front of your eyes if it’s made of steel instead of wood.

Affordability

Wood is expensive when you factor in all of the costs relating to a wood building. It requires extensive labor work to build a wooden building. To make a building out of it, you have to use a lot more material because of off-cuts and extra scraps. Also, a heavy amount of maintenance is required to keep it in acceptable condition. But same is not the case with steel. The building material is strong enough on its own that it does not require additional support or heavy basement work, so less work and material is required. There is also the fact that it does not need much maintenance, which reduces the overall costs of the infrastructure.

Sustainability

Let’s list it out. Steel building decreases energy consumption as it retains heating and cooling. You can easily add solar panels or windmills for energy. Another fact is that steel is pretty much recyclable. Do you want to demolish a steel building? No problem. Just repurpose it. Wood is pretty much useless because it can’t be repurposed. Another factor is lighting. Wood is a heavy material, so adding heavy lights is not suggested. But steel as a building material is very light. You can easily add solar panels, lights, or windmills for energy.

Ecofriendly

Have you ever wondered where wood comes from? You don’t need to. The point is, there is a significant carbon footprint of a wooden building. But steel reduces not only that, but it is also sustainable. It can be repurposed, is energy efficient, and does not get damaged easily.

And Many More

Why steel is a better building material than wood doesn’t end there. Durability, less construction time, safety, reliance, ease of construction, higher resale value, customization, etc. to summarize, steel is superior to wood.