Written for and tested in Australian conditions. The Chinese are the world's greatest builders in earth, using it for everything from humble hen houses to the Great Wall. There are an estimated 90 million earth homes in China. Here are the various methods of earth building and Chinese techniques which will be of great interest to anyone planning on building in earth. MUD BRICKS can be laid in various ways to create very strong walls. One worker can make 500 bricks in a day using this simple Chinese system. RAMMED EARTH is favoured for barns and farm buildings. Three forms and their uses are explained. POLE MOULD WALLS are unknown in the West. A family can build a 12.5m long x 2.6 m high in a day. RAMMED BRICKS are ideal for areas of low rainfall as they need no water. CAVE HOMES and PIT DWELLINGS are also discussed, as are methods used to construct house frames and roof coverings.
"The ground we walk on and grow crops in also just happens to be the most widely used building material on the planet. Civilizations throughout time have used it to create stable warm low-impact structures. The world's first skyscrapers were built of mud brick. Paul Revere Chairman Mao and Ronald Reagan all lived in earth houses at various points in their lives and several of the buildings housing Donald Judd's priceless collection at the Chinati Foundation in Marfa Texas are made of mud brick." "While the vast legacy of traditional and vernacular earthen construction has been widely discussed, little attention has been paid to the contemporary tradition of earth architecture. Author Ronald Rael founder of Eartharchitecture.org provides a history of building with earth in the modern era focusing particularly on projects constructed in the last few decades that use rammed earth mud brick compressed earth cob and several other interesting techniques. Earth Architecture presents a selection of more than 40 projects that exemplify new creative uses of the oldest building material on the planet."--BOOK JACKET.
This edited volume follows the panel “Earth in Islamic Architecture” organised for the World Congress for Middle Eastern Studies (WOCMES) in Ankara, on the 19th of August 2014. Earthen architecture is well-known among archaeologists and anthropologists whose work extends from Central Asia to Spain, including Africa. However, little collective attention has been paid to earthen architecture within Muslim cultures. This book endeavours to share knowledge and methods of different disciplines such as history, anthropology, archaeology and architecture. Its objective is to establish a link between historical and archaeological studies given that Muslim cultures cannot be dissociated from social history. Contributors: Marinella Arena; Mounia Chekhab-Abudaya; Christian Darles; François-Xavier Fauvelle; Elizabeth Golden; Moritz Kinzel; Rolando Melo da Rosa; Atri Hatef Naiemi; Bertrand Poissonnier; Stéphane Pradines; Paola Raffa and Paul D. Wordsworth.
One distinct feature of human society since the dawn of civilization is the systematic use of inorganic building materials, such as natural stone, unburnt and burnt soil, adobe and brick, inorganic binders like lime and cement, and reinforced concrete. Our heritage has cultural, architectural and technological value and preserving such structures is a key issue today. Planners and conservation scientists need detailed site surveys and analyses to create a database that will serve to guide subsequent actions. One factor in this knowledge base is an understanding of how historic materials were prepared and the crucial properties that influence their long-term behaviour. Any assessment of the way such materials perform must crucially be based on an understanding of the methods used for their analysis. The editors here add to the knowledge base treating the materials used in historic structures, their properties, technology of use and conservation, and their performance in a changing environment. The book draws together 18 chapters dealing with the inorganic materials used in historic structures, such as adobe, brick, stone, mortars, concrete and plasters. The approach is complex, covering material characterisation as well as several case studies of historic structures from Europe, including Germany, Ireland, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Scotland, Slovenia and Spain, and the My Sõn Temples in Vietnam. An equally important component of the book covers the analysis of materials, together with a treatment of sustainable development, such as the protection of monuments from earthquakes and climate change. The authors are all leading international experts, drawn from a variety of backgrounds: architecture, civil engineering, conservation science, geology and material science, with close links to professional organisations such as ICOMOS or universities and research centres throughout Europe. Audience: This book will be of interest to geologists, engineers, restorers, consulting engineers, designers and other professionals dealing with cultural heritage and sustainable development. Also graduate students in applied geo-science (mineralogy, geochemistry, petrology), architecture and civil engineering will find interesting information in this book.
Invented about 13,000 years ago, mud architecture has since been one of the most common, economical, useful, and widespread forms of building. It has been--and is still being--used for grand palaces and temples as well as simple shops and homes. Research conducted over the last several decades has enabled archaeologists and architects to understand how now-ruined, ancient mud structures were originally built. Gus and Ora Van Beek describe mud-construction techniques from Southwest Asia, the Near East, North Africa, Europe, and the United States, paying specific attention to problems involving foundations, wall and roof construction, cooling and heating, water erosion, and earthquake damage. Glorious Mud! is not only the definitive reference work on one of the world's most important forms of architecture but also a powerful study of the human past.
This book on Roman construction explains why and how Roman builders employed a set of unusual vaulting techniques and explores why each is confined to a particular area of the Empire. It is written to be accessible to advanced students as well as experts in the field.
Etruscan architecture underwent various changes between the later Iron Age and the Archaic period. This book reconsiders these changes by focusing on the building materials and techniques used in the construction of domestic structures.
This New York Times bestselling book is filled with hundreds of fun, deceptively simple, budget-friendly ideas for sprucing up your home. With two home renovations under their (tool) belts and millions of hits per month on their blog YoungHouseLove.com, Sherry and John Petersik are home-improvement enthusiasts primed to pass on a slew of projects, tricks, and techniques to do-it-yourselfers of all levels. Packed with 243 tips and ideas—both classic and unexpected—and more than 400 photographs and illustrations, this is a book that readers will return to again and again for the creative projects and easy-to-follow instructions in the relatable voice the Petersiks are known for. Learn to trick out a thrift-store mirror, spice up plain old roller shades, "hack" your Ikea table to create three distinct looks, and so much more.
I couldn't teach another lesson. Nor could I tolerate another day with a boss, a punch card, and the indigestion I suffered from bolting my muesli. This was why I'd spent the past five months camping in a remote Turkish field. Then the first winter storm crashed through the valley, turning my tent into a canvas pole dancer. It dawned on me I might need a house. There were only two problems: I had just $6000 left in my account, and 6 weeks before winter. "Despite having very little money, almost no building experience, and endless naysayers who told her she would fail, Atulya K. Bingham completed her lovely earthbag home. Her personal, inspirational story shows how anyone can build their own sustainable home with earthbags." Dr. Owen Geiger, Director of the Geiger Research Institute of Sustainable Building, author of the Natural Building Blog and Earthbag Building website. "A joy from beginning to end - a brave, funny, moving account of building a new life and a new home out of mud in Turkey's mountain wilderness." Sara Crowe, author of Bone Jack (Nominated for the Carnegie Medal in 2015).
