Japanese Housing Patterns｜Japanese Housing Types, What is LDK? What is the seismic resistance of Japanese houses?

I believe that Japan is the first choice for many people abroad! Although it is only 2,164 kilometers away from Taiwan, the lifestyle is very different, but there of course also includes the housing agenda that everyone is paying attention to! Today we will introduce the form of Japanese houses, the structure of Japanese houses, and the earthquake resistance of Japanese houses. By the way, I would like to share an episode of renting a house in Japan myself. If you want to buy a house in Japan or rent a house, let’s go to Naibun together and have a deeper understanding of the ecology of Japanese houses!

💡 Edited by: What exactly is LDK, 1LDK, 2LDK that everyone is talking about? What do you think about the structure of Japanese houses? Let’s learn about the meaning of LDK and the eyebrows and corners of Japanese houses together!

What is the form of Japanese houses?

Japanese housing forms can be broadly divided into three types: small condominiums (apartments), general condominiums (condominiums), and single-family houses (single-family houses). Among them, Japanese architectural structures are broadly divided into two types: wooden construction (wooden construction) and reinforced concrete construction (reinforced concrete).

Japanese housing form: small apartment (apartment)

Many small apartments are built using wood and light reinforcement. Due to the materials, the floor plan is relatively low, usually the height does not exceed the third floor, and basically there is no elevator! Small condominiums are wooden buildings, so their soundproofing is inferior to that of general condominiums. In terms of circulation, wooden houses are difficult to dissipate heat in summer and store heat in winter.

I lived in a small wooden apartment for 5 years, and not only was I woken up by the alarm clock next door on time every day, but I think the air conditioning and heating took care of me all day in summer and winter! 💡 Edited by: I lived in a small wooden apartment for 5 years.

Japanese housing type: General condominium (condominium)

Typical condominiums are built with strong reinforcement or concrete, which is sturdier than wooden buildings, and the floor plan is higher than that of smaller condominiums. In addition, soundproofing and heat storage are better than small apartments. A typical apartment is different from a small apartment and has an elevator! In addition, small apartments usually do not have door locks, and there are many places where everyone can enter and exit. Compared to that, the security management of general apartments is also relatively strict!

Japanese housing form: single-family house (single-family house)

Single-family houses, often seen on Japanese housing sites, have single-family buildings and land, and some single-family houses can have their own gardens and gardens, which can be said to be the main form of housing for Japanese people today.

💡 Edited by: My holiday leisure pastime is hanging around one building near my house, and I can only say that the details and style of each house are very different! I also observed that Japanese houses are designed to raise the fence of the parking shelf to save space! Next time you get a chance, be careful!

Let me add more to you! Japanese residential buildings, whether small condominiums or general condominiums, do not have managers! There are no security measures except that a sensor key may be required in a typical apartment, which is very different compared to Taiwan!

Japanese housing patterns? Meaning of LDK?

You often see English and numbers written on Japanese rental housing websites and home purchase websites. For example: 1R, 1K, 1DK, 2LDK, etc. Will readers think about the meaning of LDK? What the hell are these English and numbers?

Actually, these English alphabets represent different house structures!Let’s first unravel the meaning of LDK for readers!

• R: Bedroom
• K: Kitchen
• D: Dining Room Restaurant
• L: Living Room
• S: A service room is a room without windows. In Japanese, it is called nado, which means warehouse space.

The number displayed at the front represents the number of rooms in the house. Here is an example:

• 1R = 1 room, no partition between kitchen and room.
• 1K = 1 room, there is a plot between the kitchen and the room.
• 1DK = 1 room, dining room and kitchen.
• In addition to 1LDK = 1DK, a living room has been added.
• 2LDK/3LDK = 2 rooms and 2 halls, 3 rooms and 2 halls.

Also, since tatami is often used to calculate the size of a room in Japan, the quantifier is chao/tatami, which is different from tsubo used in Taiwan. Normally, the size of one tatami is 90 × 180 cm, and two tatami tatami is about 1 tsubo. This unique measurement method gives you more reliable data on the area of your home, taking into account the actual use space of the room!

💡 Extended reading > > > How big is a square meter? How many square meters is 1 tsubo equal to? Tsubo conversion formula? Housing area units by country?

Are Japanese houses earthquake-resistant?

Japan is considered to be one of the countries with the largest amount of earthquakes in the world, and when people walk the streets of Japan, they often see large seismic isolation and earthquake-resistant signs hanging on newly built buildings. Masu. So do Japanese houses withstand earthquakes? The architectural models of Japanese houses for earthquakes are divided into three types: earthquake-resistant, earthquake-controlled, and seismic-isolated RC buildings:

Japanese Housing Construction Model: Earthquake Resistance

An earthquake-resistant building is a building model that can sufficiently withstand earthquakes by strengthening the columns and beams of the building itself. During an earthquake, the house does not absorb shaking, and the seismic intensity reacts directly to the house. This structure is relatively inexpensive, relatively easy to maintain, and it is not afraid of wind blowing and resistant to strong winds. It really is literal patience!

However, to put it in vernacular, this structure can withstand and resist earthquakes. The more earthquakes there are, the more damage the house will be and the weaker the earthquake resistance will be, so if it is an earthquake-resistant building with an older family, you must be especially careful! Also, earthquake-resistant architecture is currently the most common and oldest architectural structure in Japanese housing!

Japanese Housing Construction Model: Earthquake System

In earthquake control architecture, many seismic control devices called dampers are installed in buildings. This vibration control device not only absorbs and mitigates vibrations, but also reduces the width of the shaking and relatively reduces the damage to the main body of the building. In general, the higher the building is, the greater the feeling of shaking, but if you install a seismic control device, the higher the building is, the greater the seismic intensity! In addition, there are a wide variety of models of earthquake control devices (dampers), so they can be skillfully used in earthquake-resistant buildings, and repair and maintenance are relatively easy!

💡 Edit: Tokyo Skytree in Japan Tokyo Skytree and the familiar Taipei 101 use earthquake control structures!

Japanese residential architecture model: seismic isolation RC building

Seismic isolation buildings are currently the most susceptible to earthquakes and can be said to have many benefits. In the seismic isolation RC, a laminated rubber seismic isolation device is installed under the ground of a building to isolate the propagation of seismic shaking to the building and prevent the building from being affected by seismic shaking. Such buildings are very effective against lateral earthquakes and can reduce the feeling of shaking by about 70-80%! It is said that no matter how big the earthquake is, the furniture in the house will not collapse much! However, seismic isolation houses are built using hard ground and are not connected to the ground, so there are relatively large shaking even on typhoon days.

In addition, the durability of laminated rubber reaches 60 to 80 years, but it has not been confirmed at this time because it has a shorter history of seismic isolation than both seismic resistance and seismic control. However, laminated rubber requires regular inspection and replacement, and the impact of hard and soft ground is also large, so the cost is relatively high and the selling price is also high.

Shibuya’s newest commercial department store “Shibuya Scramble Square Shibuya-scramble” and Marunouchi Station completed in 2012 use seismic isolation technology! 💡 Editor: Shibuya’s newest commercial department store “Shibuya-scramble” and Marunouchi Station, completed in 2012, use seismic isolation technology.

In comparison, every building has its pros and cons, with none particularly good or bad.

💡 Extended reading

• What is the difference between RC, SRC and SC? Is the structure of our building earthquake-resistant? Comprehensive comparison of building structures!
• New provisions of seismic design codes? What is the difference between seismic control, seismic resistance, and seismic isolation? Damper function? What is a pound of cement?

A common noun in Japanese homes!

Readers may not be familiar with Japanese house nouns even after recognizing house shapes, house structures, and earthquake-resistant buildings that are common in Japan. Don’t worry! I will organize all these common nouns for you today, so that you can go on a trip to Japan and stay in a hotel, buy a house in Japan, or go to Japan to study, work, work part-time. By renting a house, you can become more familiar with all Japanese house terms, and when you see a house in Japan in the future, you won’t be able to feel the fog in these nouns!

Common nouns in Japanese houses: Interior drawings

These are words that are often found in interior diagrams, but if you remember these words and rent a house in Japan, you will be fine!