<html><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; ">John,<div><br></div><div>Can you describe what you mean by the skirt or architrave? That is a new term to me. </div><div><br></div><div>Laura<br><div><div apple-content-edited="true"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 18px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: auto; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 18px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; "><div class="MsoNormal"><font class="Apple-style-span" color="#4C721D" face="'Times New Roman'" size="4"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px; "><b><i><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; "><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"><br><br></span></i></b></span></font></div><div class="MsoNormal"><font class="Apple-style-span" color="#4C721D" face="'Times New Roman'" size="4"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px; "><b><i><br></i></b></span></font></div><div class="MsoNormal"><font class="Apple-style-span" color="#50742B"><font class="Apple-style-span" face="ArnoPro-SmbdCaption"><font class="Apple-style-span" size="4"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; ">Laura Bartels</span></font></font></font></div><span><font class="Apple-style-span" color="#50742B"><font class="Apple-style-span" face="ArnoPro-SmbdItalic"><i><font class="Apple-style-span" face="ArnoPro-SmbdCaption"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal; "><font class="Apple-style-span" size="4"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; ">P.O. Box 912, Carbondale, CO 81623<br>Ph 970-379-6779, Fax 970-963-0905</span></font></span></font><font class="Apple-style-span" size="4"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; "><br></span></font><font class="Apple-style-span" face="ArnoPro-SmbdCaption"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal; "><font class="Apple-style-span" size="4"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; "><a href="mailto:laura@greenweaverinc.com">laura@greenweaverinc.com</a><br>www.greenweaverinc.com</span></font></span></font></i></font></font></span></span><span></span><div><br></div><div><span></span><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"><span><img height="99" width="201" src="cid:BEE497CD-A097-4C96-B8DC-20DC694F15B3@gateway.2wire.net"></span> </div></span></span></div><br><div><div>On Feb 10, 2009, at 6:51 PM, John Glassford wrote:</div><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"><blockquote type="cite">G ' day<br><br>Just an idea. What we are doing is this; with houses anyhow. We are using a hybrid method combining the bales and the window and door frames to support the roof. The frames usually 250mm x 50mm go the full height of the wall and after compression; done by all thread in pairs every 1.8 metres; these frames are then locked into the top plate. <br> <br>Thus we have a perfect expansion joint wherever windows and doors are located. We then render to the frames and cover the edge with skirts or architraves. The wall is now protected for water penetration even if the render has a crack where it joins the timber. We find that using this method we have not experienced any cracking on the vertical.<br> <br>With walls with no windows and doors over 3 metres long you would expect cracks in cement renders and our experience is such. We do not get any cracking in earthen renders with plenty of straw or chaff. However these earthen renders are not easy to apply with a pump. So for commercial buildings and the like we use lime and sand which we pump on. We then apply a fibre mesh to the second coat and to date zero cracking even in walls 24 metres long and 5.4 m high.<br> <br>I will post some photos to the web site below one day soon.<br><br>Kind regards<br>The Straw Wolf<br>Huff 'n' Puff Constructions<br><a href="http://www.glassford.com.au">http://www.glassford.com.au</a><br>61 2 6927 6027<br> In Australia (02) 6927 6027<br><br>The Orphan Rescue Kit Africa<br><a href="http://theork.com">http://theork.com</a><br><br>Mountains of the Moon 2010<br><a href="http://www.mountainsofthemoon.org">http://www.mountainsofthemoon.org</a><br> _______________________________________________<br>GSBN mailing list<br><a href="mailto:GSBN@greenbuilder.com">GSBN@greenbuilder.com</a><br>http://greenbuilder.com/mailman/listinfo/GSBN<br></blockquote></div><br></div></div></body></html>