Natural Materials

• Internal and external wall surfaces of clay, lime, or gypsum are easy on the environment and impart comfort and calm

• Rot resistant, flame retardant, insulating 

• Used in light clay mix for insulation or a heavier clay and sand mixes for cob walls

• Pumice-crete, a mixture of pumice and a little portland cement, has been used throughout the Southwest as a sturdy and insulative wall material.  Although it is less insulative than straw bale, its weather resistance makes it a great choice for a stem wall under bales where water is more likely to penetrate.   Its relative light weight makes it easy and quick to mix and pour.  Great boots for a natural house!

• Cob is a form of traditional earth building made from various mixtures of clay, sand, and straw. Used in traditional English and Colonial architecture, cob walls provide thermal mass, keeping interiors warm in winter and cool in summer. Durable, cozy, and full of character, cob creates homes that are timeless and comfortable.

• Walls are built in layers called “perches,” then finished with lime or clay plaster for a smooth, long-lasting surface.

• Earthen floors are a gorgeous complement for earth-plastered walls. They also act as excellent passive temperature sinks. Sun shining under the eaves of a home in the winter can heat a floor during the day. Leaving windows open on cool summer nights will cool down the floor for relief on hot days.​

• Earthen floors can be installed and finished in a few weeks and will last for years. The floors can be mopped and deal well with foot traffic. They create a hard wearing surface, but can be scraped when moving furniture roughly.​

• The earthen floor mix is poured as a 4” slab over a compacted pumice sub-floor, then allowed to dry.​

• Pouring them in summer is best as they can take a long time to cure. Good air circulation helps to speed the drying. After two weeks of drying cracks must be filled with similar colored (or different colored) grout. The floors must be sealed to prevent dusting and excess wear. Four coats of linseed oil are applied (1 per day) followed by a coat of beeswax.

• Rice straw has rot resistant high silica content, high tensile strength & great insulative properties when in bale form. 

• It is also an excellent additive to earth plasters and cob, giving them tensile strength and crack resistance.