Building with Earth: Design and Technology of a Sustainable Architecture

Cultural, Educational and Sacral Buildings

• Preface


• 1 Introduction
  
  
  • History
  
  
  • Earth as a building material: the essentials
  
  
  • Improving indoor climate
  
  
  • Prejudices against earth as a building material
  
  
  
  


• 2 The properties of earth as a building material
  
  
  • Composition
  
  
  • Tests used to analyse the composition of loam
  
  
  • Effects of water
  
  
  • Effects of vapour
  
  
  • Influence of heat
  
  
  • Strength
  
  
  • pH-value
  
  
  • Radioactivity
    
    
    • radiation Shelter against high-frequency electromagnetic
    
    
    
    
  
  
  
  


• 3 Preparing of loam
  
  
  • Soaking, crushing and mixing
  
  
  • Sieving
  
  
  • Mechanical slurrying
  
  
  • Water Curing
  
  
  • Thinning
    
    
    • by special treatment or additives 4 Improving the earth’s characteristics
    
    
    
    
  
  
  • Reduction of shrinkage cracks
  
  
  • Stabilisation against water erosion
  
  
  • Enhancement of binding force
  
  
  • Increasing compressive strength
  
  
  • Strength against abrasion
  
  
  • Increasing thermal insulation
  
  
  
  


• 5 Rammed earthworks
  
  
  • Formwork
  
  
  • Tools
  
  
  • Method of construction
  
  
  • Shaping of openings
  
  
  • New wall construction techniques
  
  
  • Rammed earth domes
  
  
  • Drying
  
  
  • Labour input
  
  
  • Thermal insulation
  
  
  • Surface treatment
    
    
    • 6 Working with earthen blocks
      
      
      • History
      
      
      • Production of earth blocks
      
      
      • Material composition
      
      
      • Laying earth blocks
      
      
      • Surface treatment
      
      
      • Fixing fasteners to walls
      
      
      • Lightweight loam blocks
      
      
      • Special acoustic green bricks
      
      
      
      
    
    
    • 7 Large blocks and prefabricated panels
      
      
      • Large blocks
      
      
      • Prefabricated wall panels
      
      
      • Floor slabs
      
      
      • Floor tiles
      
      
      • Extruded loam slabs
      
      
      
      
    
    
    • 8 Direct forming with wet loam
      
      
      • Traditional wet loam techniques
      
      
      • The “Dünne loam loaf” technique
      
      
      • The stranglehmtechnique
      
      
      
      
    
    
    • 9 Wet loam infill in skeleton structures
      
      
      • Thrown loam
      
      
      • Sprayed loam
      
      
      • Rolls and bottles of straw loam
      
      
      • Lightweight loam infill
      
      
      • Infill with stranglehmand earth-filled hoses
      
      
      
      
    
    
    • 10 Tamped, poured or pumped lightweight loam
      
      
      • Formwork
      
      
      • Tamped lightweight straw loam walls
      
      
      • Tamped lightweight wood loam walls
        
        
        • mineral loam walls Tamped, poured or pumped lightweight
        
        
        
        
      
      
      • Pumped lightweight mineral loam floors
      
      
      • Loam-filled hollow blocks
      
      
      • Loam-filled hoses
      
      
      
      
    
    
    • 11 Loam plasters
      
      
      • Preparation of ground
      
      
      • Composition of loam plaster
      
      
      • Guidelines for plastering earth walls
      
      
      • Sprayed plaster
      
      
      • Lightweight mineral loam plaster
      
      
      • Thrown plaster
      
      
      • Plastered straw bale houses
      
      
      • Wet formed plaster
      
      
      • Protection of corners
      
      
      
      
    
    
    
    
  
  
  
  


• 12 Weather protection of loam surfaces 5 Appendices
  
  
  • Consolidating the surface
  
  
  • Paints
  
  
  • Making surfaces water-repellent
  
  
  • Lime plasters
  
  
  • Shingles, planks and other covers
  
  
  • Structural methods
  
  
  
  


• 13 Repair of loam components
  
  
  • The occurrence of damage in loam components
  
  
  • Repair of cracks and joints with loam fillers
  
  
  • Repair of cracks and joints with other fillers
  
  
  • Repairing larger areas of damage
  
  
  • Retrofitting thermal insulation with lightweight loam
  
  
  
  


• 14 Designs of particular building elements
  
  
  • Joints
  
  
  • Particular wall designs
  
  
  • Intermediate floors
  
  
  • Rammed earth floorings
  
  
  • Inclined roofs filled with lightweight loam
  
  
  • Earth-covered roofs
  
  
  • Earth block vaults and domes
  
  
  • Earthen storage wall in winter gardens
  
  
  • Loam in bathrooms
  
  
  • Built-in furniture and sanitary objects from loam
  
  
  • Wall heating systems
  
  
  • Passive solar wall heating system
  
  
  
  


• 15 Earthquake-resistant building
  
  
  • Structural measures
  
  
  • Openings for doors and windows
  
  
  • Bamboo-reinforced rammed earth walls
  
  
  • Domes
  
  
  • Vaults
  
  
  • Textile walls with loam infill
  
  
  • Two semi-deatched houses, Kassel, Germany Residences
  
  
  • Residence cum office, Kassel, Germany
  
  
  • Farmhouse, Wazipur, India
  
  
  • Honey House at Moab, Utah, USA
    
    
    • Switzerland Three-family house, Stein on the Rhine,
    
    
    
    
  
  
  • Residence, La Paz, Bolivia
  
  
  • Residence, Turku, Finland
    
    
    • New Mexico, USA Residence and studio at Gallina Canyon,
    
    
    • New Mexico, USA Residence at Des Montes, near Taos,
    
    
    • Casita Nuaanarpoq at Taos, New Mexico, USA
      
      
      • New South Wales, Australia Residence and office at Bowen Mountain,
      
      
      • Victoria, Australia Vineyard Residence at Mornington Peninsula,
      
      
      
      
    
    
    • Residence, Helensville, New Zealand
    
    
    • Residence, São Francisco Xavier, Brazil
      
      
      • Burkina Faso Panafrican Institute for Development, Ouagadougou,
      
      
      
      
    
    
    • Office building, New Delhi, India
    
    
    • School at Solvig, Järna, Sweden
    
    
    • Kindergarten, Sorsum, Germany
    
    
    • Cultural Centre, La Paz, Bolivia
    
    
    • Mosque, Wabern, Germany
    
    
    • Druk White Lotus School, Ladakh, India
    
    
    • Mii amo Spa at Sedona, Arizona, USA
      
      
      • South Australia Tourist resort at Baird Bay, Eyre Peninsula,
      
      
      • New South Wales, Australia Charles Sturt University at Thurgoona,
      
      
      
      
    
    
    • Youth Centre at Spandau, Berlin, Germany
    
    
    • Chapel of Reconciliation, Berlin, Germany
      
      
      • New Mexico, USA Center of Gravity Foundation Hall at Jemez Springs,
      
      
      
      
    
    
    • Future prospects
    
    
    • Measures
    
    
    • Bibliographical references
    
    
    • Acknowledgements
    
    
    • Illustration credits