There’s nothing better than spending time in nature and enjoying its beauty. Most people go camping or hiking through the wilderness, but some go a step further and build their own steel frame homes. They use them as the perfect getaway spot for the weekends and vacations.
Owning a home in the mountains or the forest means being alone with nature. It’s best to have water supply and electricity, but other than this, you get to spend time without vehicle noises, pollution, people, concrete, and everything that cities have. You get to experience how life outside civilization is.
If you feel like this is a great idea, you may want to move forward with it and build one for yourself. Many people now create steel framing houses and live in them, but they are perfect for being a modern-day first cabin where you’ll spend time during the weekend.
There are some pros and cons to creating an object this way. We’ll explain more about both in this article, and we will show you why it may be a great idea to do it. Follow up and see for yourself.
What goes by the term Steel Frame Building?
What first comes to mind when you think of steel frame construction? Is it a warehouse? Maybe it’s a garage or a skyscraper-filled with offices. All these buildings were made of steel frames, and they have proven to be excellent structures.
Although back in the day, steel construction was mainly used for buildings in which people did not live, today, with the rise of technology, steel-framed buildings are also used for homes. Any object with steel frames instead of concrete and wood foundations is considered a steel frame building.
Once the frame is made out of pre-cut steel bars, the contractor or the person constructing the object will add insulation, doors, windows, and other materials to cover up the frame and make it look like a normal living object. That’s shortly a steel frame house.
What are its main advantages?
The main advantage of a portal frame house is that it is way more affordable than any other type of construction. They are easy to assemble and have outstanding durability. They are not made from materials that can be destroyed by nearly anything, making them perfect for a cabin in the woods.
Additionally, there’s no need for any heavy machinery when constructing this type of building. Suppose you’re trying to erect one in the middle of the forest. You’ll need to destroy part of the forest just to get the bulldozers and concrete mixers there and create a traditional shell.
When it comes to a steel-framed home, you only need the truck with the frame beams that will make the delivery, and this can be done on the same road you’ll later use to approach the cabin. You don’t even need a team of people working on various aspects of the house. Steel frames are known to be easy to assemble, and even one person with enough knowledge, skills, experience, and patience can do it on their own.
What are the cons of steel-framed homes?
There are some downsides to using steel frames for your cabin like any other product. One of the main concerns why most people avoid using this method for creating their homes is that they provide poor insulation.
Steel accumulates most of the heat and will not keep it inside like wood, for example. However, if you’re spending only a few days inside, you don’t have to worry about this. You may need to spend a few more logs on heating the place, but that’s still not the worst-case scenario.
Some will also argue that steel beams are robust and inflexible. It’s hard to manage them on-site and make changes as you wish. They need to be pre-cut and prepared for you. Also, the insulation, windows, and doors need to be perfectly tailored for the frame.
Why would you want one built this way?
When you take the pros and cons, you realize that this is definitely a great idea, especially for a house in the forest. The frame is built from steel, but it will look the way you want it to look from the outside. Only the construction may have that cold steel look, but it will look just like any ordinary house after adding insulation and the finish.
You can choose a rustic style, modern type, or anything else. It all depends on your wishes and how it will look from the outside, but the foundation of the object will be strong, durable metal that is nearly indestructible, and you can be sure that weather conditions will never harm it. It is easy to construct and will last for a long time.
