自20世纪初以来，房屋建筑发生了巨大变化。房屋曾经是从相对较少的不同组件（木，砖，石膏，瓷砖，管道）组装而成的，而不是太多。实际上，在20世纪上半叶的大部分时间里，许多房屋都没有室内管道或接线。它们的效率不是很高，但是耐用且维护较低。我们经历了一条主要的学习曲线，因为绝缘和空气密封的改善速度比防潮控制更快，在墙壁腔内捕获水分，导致霉菌，腐烂以及导致建筑失败和乘员健康问题的其他许多问题。

如今的房屋非常复杂，以至于我们必须仔细地设计它们，并积极地管理该过程，以确保每个元素的设计和安装正确。房屋还需要定期维护和维修，以便在整个生命中保持健康有效，这与其他复杂产品（例如喷气机，汽车甚至设备）不同。

We build like we shop, but worse

Unfortunately, homes are rarely given the attention they deserve in either the design or construction process. We build and remodel them like we’re shopping for dinner without knowing what we are planning to cook. Walking down the aisles of the supermarket (or, in this case, maybe The Home Depot, Lowe’s, or the local lumberyard), we throw the different things we want in our basket. We pick a style, regardless of whether or not it is appropriate for our climate, then we add in some features like a garden tub or a skylight. Finally, we wrap it up with the finishes—tile, carpet, cabinets, floors, and maybe some fancy hardware.

A defective process

无论他们是建筑商，改建者还是房主，每个人都以某种形式或另一种形式进行此过程。该项目是由专业人士设计的，或者只是喜欢画或划痕的人，或者是在一块废墙上或我最喜欢的，我喜欢称为“手臂摇动”的人。他们在房子周围走来走去，并挥舞着，解释了（显然，他们认为）他们想要的东西。这种特殊的习惯不仅限于房主。我曾经是偶尔（但罕见的）设计专业人士经历过的，他们懒惰或无力将想法放在纸上。设计完成后，将其交给承包商，后者雇用了分包商，后者又雇用员工来完成实际工作。与供应商联系以获取数百种产品的建议和定价。在这么长的涉及人群中，许多链接可能几乎没有或没有培训或没有培训或经验。

With much of home building and renovation reduced to a commodity sold for the lowest price, there is little incentive or time available for quality control during the process. Careful details that add to the efficiency and durability of the structure, even if they were considered at the design stage, are rarely inspected and, more often than not, are installed incorrectly.

完成了或放弃了,那么忽略

一旦房屋完成，通常会忽略他们需要和应得的定期维护。有多少房主知道如何更改HVAC过滤器，甚至知道它是什么或在哪里找到它？喷气机和汽车具有维护和维修手册，并由专业人员定期提供服务，以便他们拥有悠久而高效的寿命。绿色建筑计划需要或为承包商提供激励措施，以提供房主手册，尽管有一个良好的开端，但仍被业主忽略，他们通常避免定期进行维护和维修，直到成为关键问题。我们可以将其中的一些归咎于我们的“一次性”社会。这些天我们拥有的产品几乎没有值得维修。外出并购买新的价格更便宜，即使您可以找到可以为您修理的人。

Homes are sophisticated machines

We need to start treating our buildings like the sophisticated machines that they are. Trained, experienced professionals from all disciplines must be involved throughout the process. Assumptions must be questioned and issues resolved through the design phase instead of leaving critical details for the last (and often least-skilled) person to figure out. If we built and maintained our jets, cars, or appliances like we build houses, they would not work efficiently; heck, they probably wouldn’t work at all.