A little history of construction materials ;-)
In medieval times, wood was considered a fire risk and thus banished within the city limits as soon as possible. Besides, stone construction was more expensive and thus desired as it showed wealth. By the 15th century more and more cities were built of stones and the houses had tile roofs rather than wood shingles. Later on, brick started to replace the field stone, but well into the 20th century any larger stones found during cellar excavation and foundation construction were used, along with bricks. Ceilings were often stone or brick vault ceilings, although wood ceilings (either exposed beam or plaster and lath) were present throughout the ages until the advent of cast concrete ceilings in the early 20th century and even beyond. Rooms considered to be wet like kitchens, bathrooms, basements… were hardly ever built with wood ceilings and (especially) floors.

Wood construction was severely limited, only a few years ago a new construction code was passed in Vienna allowing wood houses with more than two floors I think. Austria (unlike Germany) also outlawed wooden stairs in apartment buildings centuries ago.

In the late 19th and early 20th century many new construction materials were found and used, cast concrete ceilings, steel I beams and, for interior walls, solid gypsum board, 2, 3 or 4″ thick. Faster to put up than brickwork, particularly when the manufacturing process developed far enough to make the panels perfectly smooth, eliminating the need to plaster the walls.

Drywall did not really make an appearance until the mid 1960s and was first used for ceilings rather than walls. Framed interior walls covered with drywall (called drywall as it is put up without the use of wet mortar, apparently the mudding after the fact doesn’t count) really took off in the late 1970s and early 80s and is very common today, but many people (particularly those used to living in older homes) still regard it as inferior to solid construction, particularly in terms of mechanical strengthj (the infamous door knob). The name might not help either – since it’s gypsum reinforced with strong paper the first manufacturers in Germany and Austria called it “Gypsum cardboard” – that’s likely where the term cardboard houses came from.

The newest construction I’ve seen solid gypsum panels used in were a few 1980s apartment blocks. They are still available today, but seldom used, mostly for their fire resistant qualities.

During the 1950s and 60s two new construction materials were developed searching for better thermal insulation: hollow core bricks and aerated concrete blocks. Hollow core bricks are large bricks that actually consist of a tube system of very thin clay walls. Once mortared up they enclose dead air space. Advantages: reduced weight, larger size (resulting in faster work), better thermal insulation, reduced price. Downsides: reduced sound insulation and mechanical strength. Cutting horizontal channels into such a wall for pipes or wiring is close to illegal. Depending on their thickness they can be used for non load bearing walls (4″) or load bearing walls (6″ and up to 12″).

Aearated concrete blocks reduce weight even further, increasing the strength problems. They’re like a sponge and crumble easily. They’re also prone to cracking after a few years. Again, used for non load bearing walls and (in some states) for load bearing walls.

Manuela

Found you via Making It Lovely on twitter. I’m also an American in Germany and can sympathize with your prior kitchen woes. You guys did a fantastic job of transforming it into something functional.

i look forward to seeing you on twitter

Twitter ID: steet