[Greenbuilding] Light Clay Walls

[Michael O'Brien]

Hi, Chris--

I haven't tried the slip form, but the lath is double duty--it acts as a form to keep the light clay mix in place while it dries and then as a supporting substrate for the clay plaster. It might work to apply the plaster directly to the dry light clay but am not sure, haven't actually tried that.

Our code also has a 1 perm vapor retarder, but this is a non-permitted building--in Portland, anything 200 SF or less does not need a permit. Great for small experiments!

Our code guys are usually accepting of high mass walls without VRs, as they have learned more building science and understand how they work.

I'll post a couple more photos of such a house tomorrow.

Best,

Mike

On Oct 19, 2010, at 6:50 PM, Chris Koehn wrote:

> Yes Mike, thanks for the pictures.
> I was interested to see lathe being used instead of the slip form technique I see EcoNest using. Care to comment on the comparison?
> I'm also keen to learn of folk's experiences with code officials, primarily related to breathing walls. Here in BC the code calls for a vapour barrier, which is antithetical to this technique as I understand it. 
> 
> Cheers,
> 
> Chris
> TimberGuides
> Van Isle
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Mike O'Brien Photography
1905 N Alberta Street
Portland, Oregon 97217