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Originally Posted by Keith P.
Sorry, I don't buy it. Wood buildings in our wet climate are prone to rot and mould, and the glue-lam products used in the taller ones go up like matchsticks when fire is introduced. I certainly would not want to live in or purchase a unit in a 6-storey wood stick structure.
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I can buy the rot and mould argument... though, my 1890-something wood frame house seems to be structurally sound. Increasing it to six storeys won't likely impact the rot and mould components, but building envelopes are certainly tighter now than they were in 1890s, so I'd expect this COULD be the case.
However, I do remember seeing some studies on the fire safety of six storey wood frame buildings, produced in BC, that were part of the process when the changes to the National Building Code of Canada were introduced in the 2015 version to allow six storey buildings to be constructed of wood. If I recall, stick frame structures were safer than typical six-storey structures WHEN ACCOMPANIED BY APPROPRIATE SPRINKLER COVERAGE. I also think I've read that heavy timber (not stick) can be safer than steel when exposed to fire as the steel can weaken, but once a the heavy timber is charred to a particular depth, it stops burning.