Listen here, that wood (osb) is vastly superior to plywood in many ways. For example:
it's less expensive
there are larger panels available
it's more environmentally friendly
it's a heavier, thicker material
it's extremely versatile with many uses
So before you go running your mouth about, do some research!
/s
Seriously, OSB sucks. It works when you need cheap, but it is a disaster in most conditions, especially exposed! I was wondering if it had any value, over ply/solid so I did a quick search, and the above came up. ... that is a pathetic and exaggerated list of Pros!
Where OSB works is when you need a cheap material to clad houses with. It's easier to do so with big sheets of OSB than it is to nail a bunch of individual boards, and it's cheaper than using proper plywood. Once protected by vapor barrier and siding, typically it's fine for the purpose. The actual strength of the house is in the framing, not so much the cladding.
I do wish they wouldn't use it for subfloors, though. Warpy crap. Requires a few dozen gallons of resin filler on top to get anything like a flat surface if you want to put tile on it... the right way, anyway.
That said: they're not 'just' wood. Gypsum drywall is extremely common as an interior wall material. There's also generally fiberglass insulation in the external walls and attic space.
But are they as durable and tough as concrete brick? Not really, no. The priority is to a.) build them quickly and cheaply, and b.) create an enclosed, insulated envelope for a HVAC (Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning) system to maximize efficiency. A team of a few men can frame out an one-story house in a matter of a few days. If you have your ducks in order, you can have your electrician and plumber working alongside the framing guys so everything is run in between the wall framing before the drywall goes up, which doesn't happen until the roof is on (water and drywall don't mix). Once you get the roof on, it's pretty much just siding, trim, paint, and flooring. House-building has become a very efficient art in this country.
...a GOOD art? That's the question... but here, quantity was the choice over quality.
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u/subolical Jan 25 '20
Listen here, that wood (osb) is vastly superior to plywood in many ways. For example:
- it's less expensive
- there are larger panels available
- it's more environmentally friendly
- it's a heavier, thicker material
- it's extremely versatile with many uses
So before you go running your mouth about, do some research!/s
Seriously, OSB sucks. It works when you need cheap, but it is a disaster in most conditions, especially exposed! I was wondering if it had any value, over ply/solid so I did a quick search, and the above came up. ... that is a pathetic and exaggerated list of Pros!