There are equipment used to accelarete the whole process. I've seen videos of pavement breaker with adptation to compress the earth into its final form. If you consider preparing the site executing and dealing with the material waste...rammed earth is better
House in thumbnail was built using rammed earth construction method. This house by Arquipélago Arquitetos is located in the hinterland of Cunha (Brazil), in the interior of São Paulo. Sorry I haven't included anything about this house inside the video. 😅
Excellent video. Thank you. I appreciated seeing the elegant modern architecture with large windows. Another video with more such buildings would be very nice, although I know it may be hard to find too many of these.
It is relatively easy method of construction of houses, Please check your nearest contractors or builders who got skilled labors in raw sand binding process.
“Built to blend in with its surrounding”…? Reading too much into that. The actual building material is DIRT, of course it will “blend in” but it wasn’t intentional
Rammed earth may look attractive and interesting. However architects should be able to hve thorough knowledge of long term pros and cons of these structures and be able to educate people. People, with out sufficient and reliable information from builders or architects may not risk taking non-popular idea of rammed earth modern houses. If any one of you know good architects in south India who has experience in building rammed earth structures, please share details here
Hi Shashank, glad to hear that you are moving towards a sustainable construction model. Both cob and rammed earth construction are eco friendly. Choosing between cob construction and rammed earth construction depends on factors like climate, budget, and desired aesthetics. Cob construction is ideal for those seeking a hands-on, community-oriented project with a unique, artistic finish, offering good insulation but requiring significant labor and protection from moisture. In contrast, rammed earth construction provides superior durability, thermal mass, and fire resistance, with a natural appearance and less labor intensity, though it demands higher initial costs, technical expertise, and formwork. In wet climates, rammed earth is preferable, while cob is suitable for temperate climates with daily temperature fluctuations.😄
I enjoyed the video a lot, definitely one of the better videos that I have seen on rammed earth. I want to build a wall, house and warehouse from rammed earth in Bulgaria and I am hoping to find an architect that is experienced with the method. Does anyone know of an architect that is experienced with rammed earth in Europe ?
It's way lower if you can use onsite soil, and you don't have to use Portland cement. You can also use chalk, or lime. The most expensive part of rammed earth is the cost of labor. So, it's dirt cheap if you build it yourself.
Because the R-value of a rammed earth wall is only 0.4 per inch. You simply cannot meet the code requirements with a pure rammed earth wall unless the wall is 3 feet or more thick. But with a 4-inch inner layer of rigid insulation (XPS, for example), all you'll need is 18 inches total for the wall.
To make a strong and reliable rammed earth roof, you would need to start with a solid foundation and then carefully compact layers of earth mixed with stabilizers. It's important to follow the right techniques and consult with experts in the field for best results.
It can be difficult to attach something to a rammed earth wall Sometimes it behaves like a chocolate crackle in its texture and won't hold wall plugs properly But overall it is a cheap mode of construction
Wikipedia to the rescue; ~ Evidence of ancient use of rammed earth has been found in Neolithic archaeological sites such as those of the Fertile Crescent, dating to the 9th-7th millennium BC,[10] and of the Yangshao and Longshan cultures in China, dating to 5000 BCE. By 2000 BCE, rammed-earth architectural techniques (夯土 Hāng tǔ) were commonly used for walls and foundations in China.[11] "Damn, son! Where did I find this?"
Even though it's some what labour intensive, the raw material cost is very less. So overall construction cost is far lesser than that of an ordinary concrete building.
I like this as a piece of a more natural home for the purpose of thermal mass and possibly load bearing if I can find a structural engineer to confirm its capability in my project. Of course I also like it for its artistic contribution.
