General
Questions

All you need to know about our Mud House Construction Practices.

Building a strong rammed earth wall requires good knowledge and understanding of soil types. A number of factors influence the strength and durability of rammed earth structures, which need rigorous quality checks; ... Limited to low-rise buildings; Rammed earth structures are very vulnerable to earthquakes.

Rammed earth is an in situ construction method. ... The cost of a professional rammed earth building is comparable to other more conventional good quality masonry construction, but it can be more than twice as expensive as a rendered 200mm wide AAC block wall.

Used in passive solar design, Urbunhut's insulated and Urbunhut's solid rammed earth walls can be used for both interior and exterior walls to help maintain a constant internal temperature without the need for additional heating or cooling.

New water repellent additives that waterproof the walls right through may make rammed earth suitable for very exposed conditions, including retaining walls, but may inhibit the breathability of the material. Rammed earth lends itself to use with timber and natural materials.

One of the most important aspects of a rammed earth wall is the thermal mass; a rammed earth wall 2 feet thick can store heat energy between 24 to 48 hours, which can help stabilize the indoor air temperature during winter.

Rammed earth walls are excellent for load bearing, which reduces the need for structural supports. ... Rammed earth walls are natural and unique. Every wall has it's own characteristics, variations, texture and colour. If you care for the environment, rammed earth is your material of choice.

Rammed earth walls are excellent for load bearing, which reduces the need for structural supports. ... Rammed earth walls are natural and unique. Every wall has it's own characteristics, variations, texture and colour. If you care for the environment, rammed earth is your material of choice.

Rammed earth is very strong in compression and can be used for multi-storey loadbearing construction. Research in New Zealand indicates that monolithic earth walls perform better under earthquake conditions than walls made of separate bricks or blocks.

Stabilised rammed earth is made by compacting a mixture of gravel, sand, silt, clay (and often cement) between formwork in a series of layers approximately 100mm thick.

Benefits of Rammed Earth

All you need to know about Urbunhut built Mud house construction walls.

Fire Protection

Earth doesn’t burn. If your home is threatened by fire, you won’t have to worry about the rammed earth walls catching fire or collapsing. It’s an ideal building material in leafy suburbs and rural areas. CSIRO tests on a 250mm rammed earth block wall achieved a 4-hour fire resistance rating. A 150mm wall achieved a rating of 3 hrs. 41 minutes. The walls we build are even stronger, being 300mm thick and of monolithic rather than block construction, so there are no vulnerable mortar joints.

Low Maintenance

The walls need very little maintenance once finished. During the building process we include a water repellent additive especially formulated for rammed earth, and at the end of the process we apply a water repellent to the external faces of the walls. Both these repellents serve as additional protection to the already very water-resistant nature of the highly compressed earth. Anti-graffiti products are available and suitable for rammed earth.

Durability

An earth wall built to CSIRO standards should have “an unlimited life as it would be immune to the destructive action of fire, termites and the weather.” All our walls meet the CSIRO standards. We’ve been building rammed earth walls since 2010, and have developed excellent earth mixes and techniques. Tested in accredited scientific laboratories for erosion and strength, our mixes have had outstanding results. Our extensive experience in soil selection and high level of quality control provide exceptionally strong and durable walls.

Accoustic Properties

Stabilized earth walls are an effective device for the reduction of airborne sound transmission and impact sound vibration. Mass walls provide an efficient barrier to sound transmission.

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