Building with earth - Gernot MINKE (1)

A B C
14.2
Roof rafters should not rest directly on the
earth wall, but instead on timber wall plates
or beams as seen in 14.2 A. If the rafters
rest on a timber post-and-beam structure
and the wall is not load-bearing, the shrinkage
of the timber structure has to be taken
into account.
In 14.2 B, an elastic sealant has been introduced
between the beam and wall in order
to provide sufficient tolerance for this shrinkage;
while in 14.2 C, the structural system is
separated from the wall, thereby allowing a
greater vertical movement of the timber
structure.
Particular wall designs
Loam walls with high thermal insulation
The U-value of a 30-cm-thick rammed earth
wall (without lightweight aggregates) is
about 1.3 W/m 2 K. In order to achieve a
U-value of 0.3 W/m 2 K with this wall, it
would need to be 1.65 m thick. This shows
that in cold climates where high thermal
insulation is required, it is not possible to
build only with normal loam.
The examples provided in 14.3 not only
show sufficient thermal insulation with a
U-value of 0.3 W/m 2 K, but are also designed
to have sufficient thermal mass for balanc-
Timber boards
Windshelter
Thermal insulation (= 0.04)
Earth blocks between
timber skeleton
Thermal insulation (= 0.04)
Mineral lightweight loam between
timber skeleton (= 0.21)
Thermal insulation (= 0.04)
Load-bearing earth blocks
(= 0.7) (= 0.9)
14.3
14.2 Vertical sections
of roof structure and
load-bearing and
non-load bearing
walls
14.3 Horizontal sections
of various loam
walls with U-values
of 0.3 W/m 2 K
14.4 Wall of discarded
car tyres filled with
soil, USA
14.5 Dome of earthfilled
hoses, Kassel,
Germany
14.6 Prototype building,
Kassel, Germany
Lime plaster
Cork (= 0.5) Thermal insul. (= 0.04)
Mineral lightweight loam (= 0.21)
Lime plaster
Mineral lightweight loam (= 0.18)
Timber skeleton
Lightweight loam plaster
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Designs of building elements