Frequently Asked Questions concerning living with the Temple
How have you found living with earth floors?
The earth floors are great - really user
friendly (although they don't care too much about sharp objects being dropped
on them). They can pothole - just like a road - and eventually require patching
- which is easy as long as you keep some of the mix aside for fixing.
One great advantage - at least for us - is being able to drop glasses on them
without smashing - well - not all the time - but they are certainly much more
forgiving than most floors I've lived with.
How does it fare in Queensland's wet and humid summers also in the colder winters.
The temple is doing well in the
humid climate - I suppose you saw the disaster story about the
pillars on the website.
I have recently spoken to John from rammed earth construction
who told me they are now incorporating a component in the earth
mix which results in a water-resistant wall. This means no water-
repellant coating is required and should mean that the structure is
totally impervious to water from day 1.
The humidity is less troublesome than in a gyprock-lined structure
as the earth can absorb substantial moisture without showing any
ill-effects although after a couple of months of continuous wet the walls do start to feel soft - but this may be just my imagination..
Is dust is created by rammed earth walls, on the inside?
The sealer we used has bonded the surface so well that there is no
dusting at all - certainly nothing like cement. Running my hand over the
surface with a lot of pressure produces no particles or dust.
What is the weathering effect is on the outside of the walls?
Similarly the exterior is showing no signs of weathering, there are some
minor surface cracks apparent in long hot dry spells due to loss of
humidity but they've been apparent from day 1 more or less and are not
causing any problems or concerns. Plus I'm probably the only person
who can see them!
Are there any problems with the outside walls, i.e. pieces chipping
away?
No , since the repair work has been done following the early
disaster, the walls are sound and continue that way. I was speaking to
John Oliver - the principal of Rammed Earth Constructions the other day
and he told me they now incorporate another component in the earth
mixture which ensures the cured walls are waterproof in their own right
and that would prevent any water-caused deterioration whatsoever.
Is it holding together with the dry from having all that rain during the core construction ?
the building is holding together very well
and is getting stronger and stronger.
What power/fuel sources did you choose?
We elected to go for mains power and gas heating due to
Maleny's many days of overcast weather. Also we have demands
(from the clinic and workshops) which would overtax any solar
solution to power or water heating.
Would we do it again?
Yes "but only" if we had more capital available or
were magically transformed into our younger selves again. What I'm
trying to say I think is the physical labour part is not so appealing these
days but the results are definitely worth the work. I would not wish to live
in anything other than an earthen home in this environment.
Earthen Floors: Whats the results? Do you have any sites we should look at?
We love the results, the floors are foot-friendly and very forgiving on dropped glassware (even long-stemmed crystal goblets have survived a drop to the floor something I haven't seen on any other surface).
They have been in use for over 8 years and show no deterioration due to traffic - no dusting, abrading or decomposing of the surface.
We don't reseal - we used an earth bonding emulsion to seal the surface which is a PVA "glue"-like compound similar to aquadhere or bondcrete. This doesn't need refreshing as it soaks in and creates a 2-3mm surface skin. Seals which sit on top of the earth may well require refreshing but IMHO would achieve an inferior result.
The one problem we have noticed is that, if a sharp object is dropped it can create a tiny dent or hole which, if it is in a traffic area (and where else would an object be dropped?) it works exactly the same as a pothole in the road: every time someone treads on it the edges crumble - ever-so-slightly - over time the hole grows. Howewver it can take 6 months before it becomes a hassle (we have some cracks which have been there for several years which show no signs of deterioration.
However repairing takes about 5 minutes and adds some more character and history to the floor.
The floors weren't rammed but compacted with a plate compactor - ramming would not achieve a flat surface and would also result in a much harder surface which would attenuate the foot friendliness.
As with all earth building, the moisture content and the earth composition are the most important factors and the more expertise you can bring to bear on these factors the less heartache you will have down the track. We used a pure decomposed sandstone for the floor which, in hindsight, could have used more clay so I think the potholing is probably more severe than need be if you get the mix right.
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