How much does a house weigh?

[Power Wagon]

A standard-built, modern 2500 - 3000 square foot house, built on 2 full stories?



Anyone here know? Anyone able to make a guess?



I'm comparing weights to a one of these:



http://www.aidomes.com/index.htm

http://www.aidomes.com/specifications.htm



From thier own specifications, I'm making a guess at 18 to 25 tons.

 

[illflem]

Mark' I think your guess is too low, I'd say more in the range of 30-60 tons depending on the materials.

 

[Dkevdog]

I agree with Bill- it is gonna greatly depend on materials. Are we talking a raised for? Or slab on grade and are you including the weight of the foundation or slab floors?? That alone could be 20 tons. You planning on moving yours with your truck?laf :-laf



Kev:-

 

[hdm48]

If you really need to know, contact a house mover. But, now I would like to why you want to know. I haven't towed a house for quite some time.

 

[Partyat33]

Well, I have 30k in the drywall alone. So Go figure from there.



Probably weighs more than you can take in the bed of your truck.





Dennis

 

[LRamey]

Helped a fella move a single story 1250 sq/ft house with a single garage. It came out to 55 tons. Also had a brick fire place, otherwise pretty much standard. So I'd guess a 2700 sq/ft house would come out to around 119 tons with out the foundation.

But like has already been said, probably weighs more than you can take in the bed of your truck.



Lonnie

 

[Power Wagon]

Confused???

Why would anyone think I want to MOVE one? I never said squat about moving it. The weight is important to me because someone asked me how much weight would be on the footings, and I needed to know if the dome would weigh more than a regular stick-built house.



Even though structurally, it's concrete, it's apparently going to be the same to lighter than than a normal house of similar square footage. It sits on a perimeter footing or a whole flat slab. I would prefer a footing with a built floor that has a 3 feet or more of crawl space instead of a slab.



(yeah, no 4 X 8 foot stone fireplace chimney combos, either )

 

[Power Wagon]

Originally posted by illflem

Mark' I think your guess is too low, I'd say more in the range of 30-60 tons depending on the materials.

Bill, the trianges weigh 235 to 300 lbs each, and there's 160 or less of them. - that's 48,000 or less for the shell.

 

[LarryB]

What's a Henweigh? OK then, what if it's made if leaverite?



Where can I find Unobtainum?



Does Sir Walter Ralliegh come in a can?



Does your refrigerator run?



Does a bear crap in the woods?

 

[QRTRHRS]

House moving is pretty common on the east coast. I remember a two story stone walled house with an "L" being moved a few years ago. They figured the weight to be around 420 tons.



Course' I guess that's small potatoes compared to moving the Cape Hatteras lighthouse a few years ago. Forget what that weighed.

 

[illflem]

Mark, the drawback to domes is that they tend to leak. I'm sure it can be overcome but then you end up living in a plastic shell.

 

[GLASMITHS]

I think my slab weighs approx 116. 25 tons. That is assuming my 2500 lb per cu yard of concrete is correct, times 93 yards



Living in one of those may be fine; but going potty in the same room that I eat in is not for me



Edit: I was using the weight for crushed rock; sorry. the correct tonnage would be 188. 325.



POWERWAGON - You will need new Rancho 9000's to haul that:--)

 

[JR2]

www.domehome.com/

www.domehomes.com/

www.domes.com/



If you want another option for building a home. . check out these guys www.pbspanels.com/home.cfm My Dad used them to build a house a couple of years ago. It is a real slick system and the insulation factor is fantastic.

 

[GGill]

Concrete weight

Typical 3000 to 4000 psi strength concrete used for slabs on grade or foundation walls is 150 lbs per cu. ft.



X 27 cu. ft. = 4,050 lbs per cu. yd.



FYI Greg

 

[Papa Joe]

Depends... ... ... ... ... ... . (engineering term !!)



Concrete and masonry are the heavies which affect it the most. Concrete is a little over 4000 per yard, so a nine yard truck will drop 36,000 pounds of mud. A four-inch slab nine by nine (81sf) is one yard, or 4000 pounds.



Dead load (the materials) of a home is 20 to 40 pounds per square foot, typically. Live load (you and your possessions) is designed for 50 pounds per square foot on floors and 20 psf for the roof (snow is often higher).



Soils can support 1000 to 4000 pounds per square foot with 1500 being typical.



The answer... ..... depends. 100,000 pounds is a good starting point. :-{}

 

[Power Wagon]

Originally posted by JR2

www.domehome.com/

www.domehomes.com/

www.domes.com/



If you want another option for building a home. . check out these guys www.pbspanels.com/home.cfm My Dad used them to build a house a couple of years ago. It is a real slick system and the insulation factor is fantastic.

Those are quite interesting. Even more interesting that they won't tell you what they cost



The dome kits I was looking at have a 9 inch EPS foam option... same stuff these panels use.

 

[Power Wagon]

Originally posted by illflem

Mark, the drawback to domes is that they tend to leak. I'm sure it can be overcome but then you end up living in a plastic shell.

Why would a solid concrete structure be leaky?



Just wondering.



It's panelized concrete, bonded to 9 inch EPS foam, with bonded 1/4 gypsum on the inside. After it's assembled over a frame, you fill all the wire meshed joints with concrete. It is intended to be air, bug, water, mouse tight.

 

[Doc Tinker]

And you guys think I post weird stuff



Don't forget to calculate moisture content in the concrete. Like did it rain before you put the place on the scale?



Doc

 

[LSMITH]

PW, the link to the panel system that JR2 put up is EXACTLY the type of home I was telling you about the other day. I have helped build one and they are amazing. Time to dry-in is quicker than anything I have ever seen, and I have helped stick build many houses and condo's. Remember that time is money as well as materials are money. Time savings in construction can make up for differences in material costs easily. If I were to start a new house the panel type is #1 on my list of points to research.



Also with the dome you have unconventional room shapes so you need special furnishings to not waste vast amounts of space. The other drawback of a dome IMO is the size and placement of the windows, I like BIG windows and placement where I can see out from nearly anywhere in the house. Dome structures are much more limited in window size and placement than more typical types of homes. My opinions, hope it helps.

 

[Power Wagon]

Keep talking, Howard, you'll gaurantee I'll go with a dome



I got the design kit from them the other day, and was playing with it a bit. Yes,it actually has a LOT of space. Wonderful having it to waste!



Frankly, if the basic structure costs more than about 80 to 90K, we're never doing it. If necessary, we can and will take 3 or 4 years to fully finish it, as we have the funds. I have yet to find a single kit home of any kind that had 6 bedrooms. Even less, one that would actually be big enough, or had a low enough "bar" to getting into.



If the initial cost is $40 a square foot, it's not happening. No way we can afford a quarter million bucks for a house, much less a mortgage for that.



I went through all the local real estate listings here a couple days ago, looking for 4BR+ homes. Not a single one was less than $190K, and some of them were over 300. So, no, I can't even afford an older home.



I have spent untold hours looking for books, articles on the internet, and so on, to try to find some way to afford a home we fit into. I'm still searching...