[GSBN] building in Haiti

[Derek Roff]

I think you have laid out the odds against successful use of lime over 
earth (LoE) plaster pretty well.  There are too many unknowns.  I'll 
add a few of more reasons why I would not choose lime over earth in 
this, and most, situations.  Failures, when they happen, are frequently 
fairly dramatic, with large sections of plaster delaminating.  In the 
case of failure, it is not obvious how to make a repair, or if a repair 
is possible, without removing all of the plaster, and replacing the 
lime with another material.  Failures must be addressed with even more 
expertise, analysis, and testing than was available during initial 
construction.  That expertise is unlikely to be available.  Failures 
often come a year or more after application of the plaster, meaning 
that the team of people involved with the building and plastering is 
likely to be dispersed.  At the moment of failure, finding anyone with 
significant LoE expertise for analysis and repair may be difficult or 
impossible.

Lime and earth react differently to moisture changes, so LoE plaster 
can do fine for a while, and then fail when conditions change more 
extremely or more rapidly than usual.  In a location with variable and 
dramatic rain and moisture cycles, it's even harder to predict whether 
a given plaster job will stand the test of time, or is just about to 
fail during the next hurricane.  Finally, as I understand it, the 
people who will be building and using these buildings don't have a 
tradition and experience with LoE systems, which makes it very 
difficult for them to do effective maintenance, address problems, and 
make effective repairs.

There is a tradition of LoE in the Caribbean, coming out of both French 
and Spanish colonial periods.  However, almost all of the knowledge and 
experience has been lost in the popular context, and I think there are 
too many challenges to try and regain the skills quickly.

Derelict

Derek Roff
Language Learning Center
Ortega Hall 129, MSC03-2100
University of New Mexico
Albuquerque, NM 87131-0001
505/277-7368, fax 505/277-3885
Internet: derek at unm.edu



--On Tuesday, March 1, 2011 12:11 PM -0800 Bruce King 
<bruce at ecobuildnetwork.org> wrote:

> Hi, folks, we've got a bit of a debate going as to what constitutes a
> security barrier, which is fine by me, but I for one would really
> like to hear more about lime plasters over earth.
>
>
> Answers so far, as well as my experience, suggest that LoE (lime over
> earth) systems work very well if, and only if, you have a familiar
> and consistent mix of lime, clay, straw, etc.  All of the ingredients
> are finicky (you can't just substitute one lime for another, or one
> clay for another), all depend on careful workmanship (application,
> curing, scratching, etc.), none are for newbies.
>
>
> In Haiti, though we will have one or two pros running things (maybe
> some of y'all), we will be working with a Haitian crew of unknown
> skill, using clay, sand and lime whose properties and behavior are
> unknown.
>
>
> Are we crazy to even contemplate a LoE system?  Remember, this will
> be a very public house seen and scrutinized by a lot of people and
> organizations.  There's no room for screwups or excuses.  If it
> cracks, or delaminates, or in some other way fails, the whole project
> looks bad.
>
>
> We'd rather look good.  Any further advice would be much appreciated.
>
>
> PS to Graeme North:  thanks for the tips, I know that cintoflex is
> good stuff, and may even be available in Haiti.  And prayers for New
> Zealand, you guys got hit hard.  Prayers for Haiti, too;  a year
> after their earthquake, the city and country still look like it
> happened a week ago, there's that little recovery.  Poverty,
> dysfunctional government, and a lack of infrastructure is a fairly
> deadly combination that even the most noble and intelligent people
> (as are Haitians) can barely overcome.
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Thanks,
>
>
> Bruce King, PE
> Director of EBNet
> Ecological Building Network
> the art and science of building well
> bruce at ecobuildnetwork.org
> PO Box 6397
> San Rafael, CA 94903 USA
> (415) 987-7271
> follow us on Twitter: @EBNetwork