building
although not completely dry yet, this picture gives a good idea of the amount to shrinkage I can expect from my soil. The Eades and Grim test will determine how much lime needs to be added in order to neutralise this.
September 6th... August was a month of slow but steady progress. Much of the time I have available to work on this project has been dedicated to the technical plans and elevations for the building.
I do not have a CAD program. Instead I'm using Adobe Illustrator which is a wonderfully powerful tool but not specifically designed for this kind of work.
Another reason that progress has been slow is because this is a massive learning experience for me. Each element of the building affects all the others around it. So, as I design one part, I frequently have to go back and change others that I have already worked on. But the knowledge being accumulated by the process is enormous and invaluable!
The on-going results of my design process are posted on the photos page.
Another area of progress last month was in soil sampling from my site. As I write, about 1.5 kgs of my soil are down in Fort Worth, Texas (hopefully) being tested to see how much lime I will need to add to the clay in order to optain optimum stabilisation.
This is called the 'Eades and Grim pH test' and is conducted in accordance with the official materials testing standard ASTM 6276 which determines the correct ratio of lime required to neutralise the natural expansiveness of clay. Typically this will be somewhere in the region of 5 - 6 percent lime to clay.
Once I have the results I will then be ready to start making sample rammed earth walls for durability and compression testing. I also hope to add pumice as part of the aggregate mix in order to increase the insulation value of the foundation walls. How to determine the amount of pumice needed to obtain the require R20 is another challenge!
I am indebted to Eric Berger of the Chemical Lime Company (suppliers of my Quicklime) who has taken an interest in my project and offered to do the Eades and Grim test for me, as I could find no laboratory in Victoria, B.C. capable of doing it.
On a more mundane level, my slaking continues and I now have four 55 gallon drums of lime putty slowly maturing. Two more drums to go and I should have all the putty I need for all the walls, with some to spare...
I do not have a CAD program. Instead I'm using Adobe Illustrator which is a wonderfully powerful tool but not specifically designed for this kind of work.
Another reason that progress has been slow is because this is a massive learning experience for me. Each element of the building affects all the others around it. So, as I design one part, I frequently have to go back and change others that I have already worked on. But the knowledge being accumulated by the process is enormous and invaluable!
The on-going results of my design process are posted on the photos page.
Another area of progress last month was in soil sampling from my site. As I write, about 1.5 kgs of my soil are down in Fort Worth, Texas (hopefully) being tested to see how much lime I will need to add to the clay in order to optain optimum stabilisation.
This is called the 'Eades and Grim pH test' and is conducted in accordance with the official materials testing standard ASTM 6276 which determines the correct ratio of lime required to neutralise the natural expansiveness of clay. Typically this will be somewhere in the region of 5 - 6 percent lime to clay.
Once I have the results I will then be ready to start making sample rammed earth walls for durability and compression testing. I also hope to add pumice as part of the aggregate mix in order to increase the insulation value of the foundation walls. How to determine the amount of pumice needed to obtain the require R20 is another challenge!
I am indebted to Eric Berger of the Chemical Lime Company (suppliers of my Quicklime) who has taken an interest in my project and offered to do the Eades and Grim test for me, as I could find no laboratory in Victoria, B.C. capable of doing it.
On a more mundane level, my slaking continues and I now have four 55 gallon drums of lime putty slowly maturing. Two more drums to go and I should have all the putty I need for all the walls, with some to spare...