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Why is it that the houses built 100 years ago without building codes (or power tools) are better than the ones built today?

LOL

Perception!

In most any locality if you rebuild a home the new construction must meet the current codes adopted by the jurisdiction. The International Code Council, ICC, is a model code that is recognized throughout most of the US. Now each jurisdiction/State can and does write addendums/supplements to the national codes to meet local conditions. Here in Virginia we have what is called the "Virginia Statewide Building Code" which is a supplement to the ICC recognized codes, i.e. BOCA, National Electric Code, etc., and it includes modification the state has adopted.

It is my understanding, I retired from the building industry years ago, that the new International Building Code does require the provisions to charge an electric automobile in the new code. I suspect it is in the National Electric Code.

The above ICC standard along with local addendum/supplements are the reason some areas, i.e. California, can require different earthquake standards than say Virginia, or Florida can require hurricane standards for new homes.

Some asked where I got the money numbers. I got the money numbers from the same place I got the destroyed house numbers. From the guy on the radio.

I look forward to the chance to get out of Oregon.

Perception is reality.

You should check out their voting laws.

My elderly parents and in-laws live here. My family came to Southern Oregon in the 1850’s and it would be tough to live somewhere else. Public land hunting for elk, deer, bear in 15 minutes and salmon steelhead fishing in 10. Idaho or Arizona are tempting but will have to tough it out for a few more years till retirement unless politics change.

Sorry if I missed it, but I did a search of Oregon codes and couldn't find anything about charging stations in homes. Can someone smarter than me point to it?

From what I was reading on the electric car thread that's going on right now, it would seem that the "provisions to charge an electric automobile " are safely installing a 220 outlet? I'm not an electric car owner, so I really don't know. But, if that is the case, it should add less than $500 to the cost of any new building or rebuilding of any place that has or is going to have a garage.

We just had our shop building/garage electrified, the whole thing, 6 regular outlets on the 3 walls, 6 more overhead for installing lights, and a 220 spot in case I decide to get a compressor or learn to weld. ALL of that cost less than what The Donald gave us in stimulus money.

If a new garage is being built, adding a 220 receptacle for an e-car shouldn't be a major inconvenience.

Building to all the new established codes will cost more than doing it 1950's style though, that's for sure.

pack up the truck and go...

Yes I think you are correct it would most likely add very little. What I saw with a little research was you had to provide a 2-pole space in the panelboard for one additional 240v breaker and an empty conduit or wiring to a location in the garage. I don't think you even need to install the breaker now.

Now it could add a little more money if in doing the electrical load calculations the additional 30 or 40 amp outlet causes an increase in electrical service, say from 200 amp to 300 or 400 amp, then the cost could amount to some real money but again I think it would not exceed an addition $500.00.

Well, that gave me a much needed chuckle. If you understand how houses are built today you would understand the reason for your statement being considered humorous... Older houses had lousy or no insulation compared to today, no shear walls to help stability in case of extreme conditions, little contact between the house and the foundation (if there was a foundation to start with), and the list could go on and on.....

I hate to break it to lots of guys, but the entire west coast adopted the same stringent earthquake building standards as California several years ago due to the fault lines up and down the west coast, the Cascadia subduction zone, and other natural hazards that have been recently analyzed.... the electric car charger was added to the IBC a couple cycles ago but is only recently being enforced. However, it is a minor inconvenience and shouldn't add more than a couple hundred dollars on a new house build...

Yes, there are lots of places that have less stringent building codes and enforcement, and housing costs often reflect this. But most housing codes are designed for the climate they are applied to and states are allowed to make amendments to them before they are adopted by the state legislatures... As far as I know Alaska has roughly the same building codes as the rest of the west coast but enforcement is spotty due to the distances and difficulty of getting to some building sites. And IBC is now called the IBC because it was adopted almost wholly by Canada. The National Electrical Code has been adopted by several foreign countries and I believe is in the process of changing the title to the International Electrical Code...

Bob

ICC is so screwed up trying to combine regulations from every country to hold up to the one world order that even Commyfornia will not even accept it.
Commyfornia kept to ICBO Code and turned it into the California Building Code.
People can read the California Building Code it has a very good format.
No one can make heads or tails out of the ICC Code books. There are to many codes that Contradict each other and brings to much of interpretation into the equation.
You build something one way and if the Inspector dues not like you they find another section that tells you you can nt build it the way you did.
ICC is a BUNCH of Bull [bleep].
I have been an Inspector for over 30 years in Commyfornia and the best thing Commyfornia ever did was not adopt the ICC Code.

I live in one of those houses built 100 years (OK, technically 98 years old) and as I did much of the renovation on it over the last 20 years all I can say is "thank god they don't build them like they used to"

Non-dimensioned lumber, site built components of different dimensions, plaster and lathe that has wall thickness varying 2" across a span and an electrical system that thinks three bedrooms upstairs just need one circuit as all any one needs in a bedroom is a nightstand light and an electric clock and nothing is square and never was.

The only good things I look on with pride is the massive beams in the basement and the original stained glass windows. My wife wanted an old house because "they have so much character" - So when I open up a wall to find out what went wrong I usually stand back and see 4 wires where there should be two and say "hey Hon, come look at this character and bring my voltmeter"

A piece of OSB covered by tyvek, then vinyl siding on a 1.5”x3.5” stud is better than a 2”x4” stud covered with 3/4” sheathing and 1/2” wood siding.

OK.

If that is all you know about building codes, I think I see where the problem is....

Hahahhahahhahhahahhahahahahahahhaha!

Your post is listed at only 5 minutes after Pugs' post. So, I'm guessing you might have been typing yours and didn't have a chance to read his before you hit the "post reply" button,

That being said, depending on the construction methods, yes, those things can be better, much better for strength of construction. Were those full dimension studs you mentioned placed at 16" on center or 24" as some older places were built. Without being wrapped with a vapor barrier like tyvek, is moisture getting behind that 1/2" siding and ruining the 3/4" sheathing?

Lots of things enter into the equation. I grew up in a 50's tract home, perimeter foundation, real hardwood floors, lath and plaster walls and such that were good.

Single pain casement windows, no insulation in the attic crawl space or walls, galvanized pipe running hard water (we got the house 10 years after built and the old man had to pull all that out and put in copper) , and of course, as Pugs mentioned, a way undersized electric panel by the 80's. But, it survived some earthquakes and is still standing as of a few weeks ago and houses in that neighborhood now sell for upwards of 1/2 million dollars.

You must have retired a while ago.

The California building codes are (and for the last few cycles) based on the model IBC codes.

They were the last holdout on the west coast and used the 1997 UBC for an extra code cycle, which has now seriously outdated earthquake provisions.

Currently they use the amended 2018 IBC, like Oregon.