24 Feb 13 8:00 PM

awesome take youve gone with graeme for the design it'l be great physically & harmonically. i am just about to start a renovation on an old shed, & we are going to try light earth mix for ceiling ......read more

23 Feb 13 11:21 PM

sounds like greenwash to me i think what chh mean is the level of formaldyhyde offgassing has been reduced but its still mdf, & what is the melamine itself composed of? i guess its some sort of petroc......read more

23 Feb 13 11:10 PM

as above the humanure handbook simplifies it also a book called 'the toilet papers' i found a web site via ecobob that was started as a response to chch post earthqwake & their hassles i think its co......read more

23 Feb 13 10:56 PM

ps what part of the country are you looking at building in?...read more

23 Feb 13 10:54 PM

as above join ebanz check out 'solid earth' do the workshop & any other that you can. go to the ebanz labour weekend house tours etc if your design conforms to the earth building standards the counci......read more

23 Feb 13 10:38 PM

if you fill your studs & a bit more with light earth you can have thermall mass & insulation in one & if you use sawdust or wood shavings as part of the mix you will have your waste wood or you could......read more

23 Feb 13 10:23 PM

just to add my 'pennyworth' to the above i was working before xmas with a guy who had just graduated with a 'masters' in engineering specialising in sustainable building whatever that means & he......read more

23 Feb 13 10:07 PM

will the casein affect the vapour permeability? why not use an earth plaster with lime for finish coat?...read more

7 Feb 12 10:45 PM

i am using a lazer level at work at present! my first q was how accurate is it? upon being told "fairly accurate" i quickly realised that as worshipers of the red dot it had never occured to......read more

3 Nov 11 4:14 PM

no unfortunatly i didnt get myself or my finances organised in time. pity it would have been another good one...read more

3 Nov 11 2:19 PM

some of the benifits are low very low embodied energy . cradle to cradle or cradle to grave the product would be hard to beat , it can be recyled forever, or returned to the groung from whence it came......read more

24 Aug 11 5:52 PM

more info please...read more

24 Aug 11 5:49 PM

as a fan of earthen plasters i can recomend adding 1/3 or more clayish earth with the lime (make sure lime is fresh,before slaking) & still about 1:3 with sand...read more

22 Aug 11 7:06 PM

if you must use aluminium definately go for thermally broken!! no comparason as for life of units definately try & get a ten (or more) gaurantee, you may be surprised. i know for some large windows ......read more

22 Aug 11 6:43 PM

just got told by my old boss about a heat pump /tranfer kit that he had success setting up. to get it to work successfully they ended up setting the tranfer cut in thermostst a couple of degrees hotte......read more

16 Aug 11 8:20 AM

you can also get foilbacked wool (for underfloor) much better than fibregass...read more

16 Aug 11 8:18 AM

am pleased that yours works well with wetback! assume it was factory wetback. i have only experienced 2 pyro's 1 was freestanding in an old large house & the owners were ecxtatic the other was in a sm......read more

12 Aug 11 7:05 PM

insulation & thermal mass are important insulation stops the heat escaping & thermal mass holds onto it & radiates it back. the best example i can give is get a chilly bin & put in a litre of frozen m......read more

12 Aug 11 5:44 PM

i guess you didnt read their ad very much becausethey are a whole lot more than just architects! & yes a developer probabally aproached them, but they liked the idea so much that one of the directors ......read more

12 Aug 11 1:23 PM

earthsong has ithink pretty good privacy, considering the economics of space & $ the rammed earth walls give very good sound insulation between dwellings. BBE are advert......read more

10 Aug 11 7:02 PM

check out BBE as they are supposed to be involved with one just nth of Welly, & i heard a roumor that it had resoure consent, also had some details of a couple of groups a couple of years ago floating......read more

10 Aug 11 6:37 PM

if the plans say 1060 from the retaining wall (which does seem a little narrow) then that is what it should be ! bear in mind the cladding will stick out beyond foundation. so something is in the wron......read more

22 Jan 11 9:38 PM

couldnt agree more! & im a builder !!...read more

22 Jan 11 9:36 PM

check out the 'humanure hanbook' it will turn all your ideas upside down & give the facts to prove it! & he totally endorses sawdust!...read more

20 Nov 10 4:47 PM

not sure that Hugo is correct in assuming that Radiata plantations are a carbon sink, despite all the "greenwash" put out by timber industry! my understanding is that pinus & unfortunatly Eu......read more

9 Nov 10 8:12 PM

but does it breathe?...read more

9 Nov 10 4:18 PM

if it works as well as the web page says i would think it would be good damp underfloor is not good (black plastic properly laid can make a huge improvement) so if it seals/slows water & insulates its......read more

9 Nov 10 4:09 PM

its a sad fact that most coventional builders know or care so little about insulation! they put in in because they have to & with little care to effectiveness (you cant see it so it doesnt matter) woo......read more

8 Nov 10 7:03 PM

dont write off "airfoam" too soon as it may be different than the products used overseas as it is plastic full of air & as such doesnt absorb water (dew point may be worth looking at though)......read more

6 Nov 10 7:26 PM

good call Dean !! why not cut off 50m2 & insulate really well & add some (lots even) thermal mass * breathing surfaces?...read more

6 Nov 10 7:20 PM

"google" Rob Roy wwww.cordwoodmasonry.com i think! he has been writing & teaching about this for 30 yrs & generously includes all the mistakes he made, so you dont have to make them. he h......read more

6 Nov 10 7:07 PM

have you looked at "timbercrete" blocks?...read more

6 Nov 10 7:01 PM

if you are going to use a wet back, as other posts suggest this can suck a lot out of the fire, suggest you research a cil or sleeve around the chimney! truely wast heat it has been done & works well.......read more

6 Nov 10 6:54 PM

you dont say what they are going over? bricks would be fine, but if using recyled , you need to make sure they are all the same thickness, had you thought of adobe bricks (cement free of course) layed......read more

5 Nov 10 10:27 PM

Snap out of it dude! its head in the sand thinking like yours thats going to make the inevitable CRASH that much harder...read more

26 Oct 10 9:53 PM

if you find any let me know! as i am looking too! thanks...read more

26 Oct 10 9:38 PM

peter Olorenshaw in Nelson is very on to it! also i think "ecotect" architects would be worth checking & if you want to go really eco bbe architects @ hastings ...read more

20 Oct 10 3:17 PM

pink batts or wool? idont know where all these price comparasons come from! but a couple of years ago on a house extension we used batts from lattitude 41 they arrived 2 days after ordering @ same pr......read more

1 Oct 10 6:02 PM

hi strawbuilder ! do you have any staff vacancies ?...read more

1 Oct 10 5:55 PM

have a good look at "cordwood" particularly "cobwood" lots of labour but very affordable & do able...read more

1 Oct 10 5:52 PM

a good earthen plaster will solve all the internall moisture issues, also havnt heard of it as a problem with lime plaster either...read more

1 Oct 10 5:39 PM

cost involves toomany variables to comment ie are you intending to do any of the work yourself? as far as themally efficient i dont think you can go past strawbale, tho light earth & cordwood are upth......read more

2 Jul 10 7:56 PM

have a good look at the stick on acrilic sheets magnetite or something comes to mind. they claim a single sheet has better thermal& noise perfomance than double glazing & definately a lot cheaper & le......read more

4 Apr 10 3:37 PM

mould as well as being caused by moisture have a lot to do with a building breathing! or else being able to absorb & desorb moisture! you dont get mould in earth homes earth & also lime plasters can ......read more