Choosing a Home as an Architectural Engineer

When I saw that footage

When I saw that footage,
I momentarily forgot that I was an architectural engineer.

Highways tipped over on their sides,
residential areas were engulfed in flames,
and both wooden houses and steel-frame buildings were collapsing with unbelievable ease.

That was the 1995 Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake.

And then in 2011,
I witnessed the sight of a massive tsunami swallowing up a town.

The Great East Japan Earthquake.

As someone involved in architecture,
I cannot forget that scene, even if I try.

To be honest, this is what I thought.

"Are Japanese buildings really okay as they are?"

I write this knowing I may face criticism.

They looked so, so powerless.

Even though this is a disaster-prone region—

The homes of "Japan."

What is a structure that protects a family?

At the time, I was living in a used wooden house.
It was a period when I was thinking about building a new home eventually.

However, after those two great earthquakes,
one option disappeared from my mind.

When thinking solely about "protecting my family,"
I could no longer choose a structure based on intuition.

The conditions I imposed on myself when building my own home were clear.

That my family can live in the safest possible environment

That there is preparation for earthquakes, tsunamis, typhoons, fires, etc.

Ensuring a reasonable environment for children's education

Being economically sustainable

Serving as a proposal for structural selection

Choosing based on conditions, not emotions.

As a result, I arrived at the reinforced concrete (RC) structure.

It was also an 'experiment'

The problem was the price.

RC housing has a strong image of being 'luxury housing,' and I could hardly find any examples of it being realized at the same price range as wood construction.

Even so, I could not give up.

If a structure with higher safety could be realized with the same budget,

there is no reason not to try it as a construction engineer.

Ingenuity in selecting land with good ground conditions
Ingenuity in architectural design
Ingenuity in structural design
Ingenuity to improve constructability

That is how I built my home.

It was half an 'experimental house'.

What I learned after living there

I felt the difference as soon as I started living there.

・I can barely hear the sounds of daily life from the second floor
・High sound insulation
・Hardly feel any shaking during typhoons
・Air conditioning is effective quickly
・No sensation of the building 'flexing' in strong winds

And above all,

the anxiety about 'what if' has definitely become smaller than before.

When my neighbors said, 'Let us evacuate to your place if something happens,' I realized that this house could be more than just a residence; it could also be a 'shelter'.

My Father's Words

In fact, when I was building a house for my parents next door, I had initially finished the design as a wooden structure.

However, my father, having seen the state of my own home, said this to me:

"You really should redesign it in RC (reinforced concrete)."

My father, who had not specialized in structural engineering, made that judgment based on the comfort and sense of security he observed.

Those words were a significant answer for me.

The Feeling of Being Kept Alive

Since then, I have undergone heart surgery and also experienced kidney cancer and lung cancer.

I went through major illnesses, but luckily, all of them were discovered at a very early stage. And now, there are times when I find it mysterious that I am being kept alive like this.

That is precisely why I think:

Perhaps the knowledge and experience I have gained should not be kept only to myself.

Choosing a Home Should Not Be Based on "Emotion" Alone

I do not intend to deny wooden structures. Nor do I intend to deny steel-frame structures.

What is important, I believe, is "choosing with conviction."

Housing advertisements are filled with words that move the heart. A family's smile. Catchphrases that appeal to maternal instincts.

I do not intend to deny those things themselves.

However, I want you to choose only after properly understanding the structure and performance behind them.

"Isn't it usually wooden?"

Stopping your thinking with that one phrase is a bit of a waste.

If you research thoroughly, understand, and choose a wooden structure with conviction, then that is the right answer.

It is the same whether it is steel-frame or RC.

If it is the result of thinking through what is best for your own family, without being swayed by information,
then that is the correct answer for that person.

The reason I decided on this home

There is only one reason I chose this home,
and that is it.

“I want to protect my family.”

I wanted to give shape to that thought,
not through emotion, but through structure.

That is all.

I wrote this with the intention of casting a stone here.

It was not intended to win a contest.
However, thanks to you, I believe there is meaning in having written the core of my perspective as an engineer.

From next time on, I will again
provide information from as neutral a standpoint as possible.

This time,
I have written about the reason why I, as an individual,
chose this home.

AI has given me advice like 'For a contest, maybe a bit more like this...', but I will consider this the final draft.
Please understand that I will omit the AI evaluation this time.

Although this explanation comes at the end,
I decided to write this to enter the submission contest on 《LIFULL×note》, which I have been interested in for some time.
I did so in the hope that it would reach as many people as possible.

It is not necessarily because of that, but my tone may have been a little stronger than usual (laughs).

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Thank you for reading this far.
I would be very happy if many people can empathize with this.
If you would like, it would encourage me if you could follow or press the ♡ button.
Please join me again next time.

◆ Click here for articles of interest

※ If you are interested in the Introduction to Housing Construction, go to here to
※ If you are interested in the judgment criteria for choosing a home, go to here to
※ For information regarding land selection, go to here to
※ For information regarding new construction, go to here to
※ For information regarding maintenance, go to here to
※ Regarding the consideration of pre-owned homes, go to here to
※ Regarding the importance of contracts, go to here to
Links to the detailed pages are provided from each page (introduction page)
※ For home building essays, there is a table of contents page here ※ For my hobbies,
SF short-shorts and essays are
distributed here

※ I also distribute the following as a hobby
▶ For those recommending RC housing
this YouTube channel
▶ For those aiming to become a Building Construction Management Engineer
this YouTube this note
▶ For those aiming to become a Civil Engineering Construction Management Engineer
this YouTube this note
▶ For information disseminated as a construction professional
this note
▶ For my books
this publisher
▶ E-books
・13 Behind-the-Scenes Facts Builders Won't Tell You
・21 Episodes Leading to RC Housing
・RC Housing at the Same Price as Wood
・13 Essential Considerations for Choosing a Home