Are Prefabricated Houses Reliable?

There is some controversy regarding the reliability of prefabricated houses, as their reliability is influenced by multiple factors and cannot be simply judged as absolutely reliable or unreliable.

Reliable Aspects

• Fast Construction Speed and Low Cost: Prefabricated houses are manufactured in advance in factories, with each part of the house made separately, and then transported to the site for assembly. The construction speed is extremely fast. For example, it takes only four hours to hoist a complete house, and a whole building can be completed within two days. Moreover, the price is relatively affordable, with the cost per square meter being around 300 yuan, which is much cheaper than traditional construction methods. This is highly attractive to those who seek quick occupancy and cost control.
• Durable Structure: Prefabricated houses adopt reinforced concrete structures, which are relatively durable and come with a warranty period of up to 70 years. They can provide residents with relatively safe and stable accommodation, meeting basic living needs.

Unreliable Aspects

• Poor Earthquake Resistance: Traditional prefabricated panel houses have poor integrity, similar to building a house with building blocks, lacking firm steel connections. Under the horizontal force of an earthquake, the floor slabs and walls are prone to instant separation and sudden collapse, without any crack warnings or deformation buffers. In past earthquakes, prefabricated panel houses have suffered severe collapses and high casualty rates. Although the situation of emerging prefabricated houses is not clearly mentioned, if key technologies such as connections are not handled properly, this problem may still exist.
• Vulnerable Connection Points: Traditional prefabricated panels are simply connected to the walls, and the panels are also simply filled between each other, without ring beams or structural columns, resulting in the entire house lacking a rigid framework. If the foundation settles slightly or the walls crack slightly, the panels will shift and loosen. Over time, the connection points will gradually weather, and the steel bars will rust, reducing the strength and potentially triggering a chain collapse. If there are technical problems or improper operations during the assembly process of emerging prefabricated houses, it will also affect the stability and safety of the house.
• Material Issues: Traditional prefabricated panels may have issues such as material shrinkage and poor quality assurance. Some small workshops, in order to make more money, use thin steel wires instead of steel bars, and the concrete grades do not meet the standards and the thickness is insufficient, resulting in poor-quality prefabricated panels. Although the main body of emerging prefabricated houses is a reinforced concrete structure, the material quality also depends on the manufacturer.
• Other Issues: When building prefabricated houses, the foundation must be properly treated; otherwise, it will lead to irreparable tilting and cracking. Attention should be paid to the construction height; otherwise, the prefabricated part at the bottom may be crushed. Poor joint treatment can lead to water leakage. The overall integrity and personalization of the house may not be as good as those of traditional buildings.