Cool house

[sjeng]

thinking of building a cool house,
does somebody have any experience with dubbel walls made from sinteblocks in stead of q block or the red bricks,
walls would be 20 cm thick so no colums in sight in or outside,
additional airgap from blocks and gap between?

[DrAndy]

no idea what a dubble wall or a Sinteblock is

please explain

QCON or similar are excellent at keeping a house cool

[oldgit]

I think he means a cavity wall made with cinder blocks.

[Rigger]

I have seen a mud brick home near Udon thani that had a well vented roof that work well

[sjeng]

sorry my english is a bit rusty cavity wall made from the cheap cinder blocks
thanks oldgit,

[benlovesnuk]

building a cool house is two fold, walls and roof, oh and one more thing height.....

the height is very simple, putting a house on stilts makes it available to passing winds and the ability to be caught at all angles from the bottom of the floor to the sides!!!!!

The walls are obviously again something you can do with manmade materials, or natural types have a look into rammed earth adobe block etc and mass as this is the best way to retain heat rather then 20 cm wall think more along 80cm to a meter!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

have multiple sources of inlets (windows and doors etc) the bigger in size is not comparable to achieving a cooler temp (i think about 20 % of the floor space), having cross ventilation means picking up of changing breezes, generally North to south though.

you can create ventilation inlets on your eaves or hangover of the roof, this coupled with another inlet low down as close vertically to the highest outlet on the roof will create good ventilation and cooling!!!!!!

Having windows boarded up from the sun, or even bamboo shutters or mats that drape are very effective. Locking the house up in the hottest parts of the day not letting hot air in helps and then opening fully in cooler periods!

The sun obviously travels over the south face east to west which mean north sides never get any sun, this means that putting no windows or doors on the south side (even though traditionally done in thailand) would stop heat from the sun passing over the house. If this is too extreme than smaller shaded inlets are preferable, though you could have a long extended roof that jets out to hide this and still retain normal inlets and doors.

It means if you wanted to have a big glass front to one side than the north side would be best for this, for that matter having as many inlets on the north side would be preferable.

I have noticed that some specific tiles on the floor give a much more cooling affect, in the house i am in we have a form of slate and this seems to not be very good, however a neighbor has plain ceramics tiles and they seem a lot cooler. certainly an interesting distinction between both.

applying layers to the roof will keep out the sun, there are obviously natural and man mades that can be used, depends on budget.

that is as much as i can give to start off with covering a wide spectrum of features to think about....................

good luck

[Marmite the Dog]

Here we go!!!!!!!!!

[sunsetter]

fit every room with aircan and voila! cool house! any more questions? feel free to pm me or visit my website www.howtobuildacoolthaihouse/readotherconstructionthreadsfirst.com

[benlovesnuk]

or fans

[blackgang]

The sun obviously travels over the south face east to west which mean north sides never get any sun

This is bullshit, where did you ever live that the sun never moved north?, No matter what is done, you will never get it below ambient temp with outside air circulating thru.
Insulate walls and allow super heated air to escape from under roof and above ceiling and mechanically cool the air and you have a cool house, or set in the draft of a fan to evaporate sweat and feel cooler in that one spot, but not in the whole house unless you have a lot of fans.

or fans

Yes as long as you set in the slip stream of a fan it is cooler.

[benlovesnuk]

i beg to differ, though the sun moves north in summer it doesnt move to a point that in the northern hemisphere it would give direct sunlight to a north facing house!!!

you seem to just disagree with most things i write without considering the context they're written im not saying all you need are these methods and then youll have a cool house period, are you being obtuse or moronic for a reason??????

im saying if you implement these factors into a build there will be a greater proportion of time you will not need A/C or fan to cool you or the house, which means less electric less spending overall over a period.

im sure that you being old has something to do with your obnoxious statements but also as you know from your many years on this planet fans do have the ability to rotate allowing for this stream affect to reach you!!!!!!!

i think you speak bull sir good day

[blackgang]

I have owned homes as far north as 49* N.Lat and the sun did hit the north side of the house, and it seems to me that I remember from 60 years ago when I lived in Homer Alaska in the Matanuska valley that the sun did hit the north side of our house.
And the reason that I disagree with you is that like a poster that we had on here before that used to post a lot of wrong shit, Just like you do and then argue about it to prove how truly intelligent her was, Just like you do when you are misinformed,, But we are not in northern latitutides, we are in Thailand [which is in the northern hemisphere]or are you so misinformed that you do not know that either.
Now do you want to argue about lawn grass having seed pods on it when it is mown to lawn hight?

[blackgang]

These are good to hold the temp inside, I have never seen them in hot country like mexico because they used 6" styrofoam batts down there for wall construction, Which would also work here.
But have seen a few in the northern Okanogan Valley in Washington state and they did work well up there and are some cheaper too as straw bales are not expensive and stucco and plaster are cheap too

Dearest Leni,
Anyone who has seen a straw-bale home will not be making any of the traditional jokes about the Three Little Pigs. The plastered walls are filled with solid bales of straw at least 14 inches wide, and the houses sit heavily, though beautifully, on the landscape. They are not going to blow down with a simple huff and puff.
I have several happy friends with straw-bale homes, so I'm biased in favor of this system. Straw bale seems not only ecologically sound and cheaper than traditional construction, but fun to build (if you, like me, love plastering). So yes, I'm in favor of straw bale, but I'm no expert. If you are considering building with straw bale, it's vital to find local knowledge, first as to whether your climate would be a good choice for straw bale, and second to confirm local building codes. Modern straw-bale construction is not yet covered by most building codes.
There are two general ways to build a straw-bale home. One is to build a fairly typical post and beam frame, but instead of then adding studs, insulation, and sheetrock, one piles straw bales between the timbers. The wood holds up the roof, the straw fills the wall. In load-bearing straw bale, the bales themselves hold up the roof. In both cases, the bales are plastered inside and out with any of various plasters, ranging from local earth to Portland cement.

Straw is a cheap, renewable agricultural waste product -- leftover stalks from grains and seeds such as wheat or rice -- that has been used in building construction for centuries. Just to mention a few straw-y considerations, bales used in construction should be dry, sterile, and densely packed, and design of the house should keep water off the walls. The roof should have a long overhang, bottom bales should be a certain distance from the ground, and all exterior finish work should be watertight. If the house is well designed, moisture within the walls won't become a problem.
Dense straw is a good insulator, with an R value around 2.4 per inch -- putting an 18-inch-wide bale in the R-40s (fiberglass batts of insulation generally range from the teens through 30s). It also has high thermal mass, meaning it is slow to release and absorb heat, keeps buildings at a lovely consistent temperature, and is a good choice for passive solar homes.
I did find a little information on retrofitting an existing home with straw bales. It sounds complicated. The exterior walls will basically become at least 14 inches fatter, which means extending the roofline or building a new roof, maybe extending the foundation, dealing with how doors will open, building new window openings, negotiating the boundary between old and new walls, and other considerations. Basically, you can do it, but it may not be the most economical or even commonsensical approach to insulating your home.
In sum: Yay for straw. The internet is filled with informative, enthusiastic straw experts (one is The Last Straw). Go unto them, find a local group, and get any further questions more than answered.
Ask Umbra: Can you make a house from straw?

[sunsetter]

60 years ago

respect due mate memorys still working good you mustve seen a few things
some of the posters here should remember that

[benlovesnuk]

i think you pointing out that i post wrong shit is contentious i post what most people post, which is my opinion, some of it right and some wrong im sure!

when most people post their opinion based on any information there is always an argument that can be brought out, that is nature of writing something down and having its context limited by explanation on a forum.


I dont post any more in-factual info then anyone else here, what i post i believe strongly, but do admit to being wrong if proven to be, i have no high horse from which i sit. i believe you about the north and sun(though in the manner that you compound personal attacks is unnecessary), however i would suggest that the amount the sun hits this position is limited and so is not to a point which would make the statement i made invalid.

on the theme of straw bale houses i can concur on there stability and nature to be able to be built to full western scrutiny rules and regulation, i will add that they can be built for as little as 1000 pounds in just material it self for a 3 bedroom 2 storey building (im sure in thailand this figure would be lower).
how ever as i have already pointed out straw bales in this relative humid climate is not the best material to use unless a full integrated dehumidifier was used to stop the destruction of the walls and in some situations destroy or break up the walls completely( due to high moisture content in the air of most parts of thailand)
This is understood as a common factor against building with straw bales around the world and why soil is more commonly designated in its place.

However i would like to point out the fact this is theory based as is understood by professionals, i was thinking of building in this manner in thailand myself until i discovered about the instability of building in this way here (as explained above). If there is someone who has built a complete structure with straw bale in thailand with a relative long term study of it being intact. i would gladly acknowledge otherwise as it would create a much cheaper way of building a much more sustainable reasonable material that does better to cool then any other.


i hope this is understood...........i meant no disrespect, i apologise there in for any made.

[benlovesnuk]

this information is taken from strawbale building website it points out the major benefits of using straw bale for those of us in thailand, like i said if someone can demonstrate a convention of relative humidity not destroying the walls i would be happy to create more information for people to get started on the great building material that is straw!!!!!!!


WHAT ABOUT MOISTURE?
moisture is the only real enemy of straw bales, if your bales get wet and have a moisture content above 20% then they will rot. BUT with careful attention there is no need for your bales to get wet, a few simple rules can prevent this.
Build your foundation a minimum of 6-8 inches above ground level and make sure that you have good damproofing and give the roof a generous(2ft) overhang. This is the equivalent of a good hat and boots, along with regularly limewashing the exterior render, should prevent moisture from entering your bales.
WHAT ABOUT RATS AND MICE?
Rats and mice usually like to run around in the cavities between walls, with strawbale walls there are no cavities for them to lurk in, also the walls are usually lime rendered which rats and mice cannot chew through as the lime will soon dry their mouths out. I have never come across an owner of a strawbale house that has a problem with rats and mice.
ARE STRAWBALE BUILDINGS STRUCTURALLY SAFE?
Strawbale buildings are as safe if not safer than any conventional building, they have been thoroughly tested for load bearing and are capable of structural loading far in excess of any accepted requirements, it has even been noted that when loaded to failure point that they fail in an unspectacular fashion when compared to conventional building materials.
ARE STRAWBALE BUILDINGS CHEAP TO BUILD?
The cost of building a 3-4 bedroom strawbale house will not really be any cheaper than a conventional build, there is possibly a slight saving on the cost of the walls but everything else, foundation, roof, doors, windows, services etc is the same, BUT for the same costs as a conventional build you end up with a superinsulated house. Many people who build with strawbales manage to lower their building costs by becoming dedicated recyclers and scroungers and by using friends and family for labour, in this way it is possible to build fairly cheaply.

[benlovesnuk]

here is one such inclination to proposed building with straw in the tropics:::


Do you live in a Tropical Rain Forest?

I am a big believer in the merits of straw bale construction. That's probably obvious by now; however, there is one major drawback to working with bales: climate conditions. Bale homes are ideal for dry and mostly dry climates, acceptable in wet climates, and difficult to deal with in very wet and humid climates.

The big demon is not water, in the form of rain at least. In stead, it is humidity. Rain can be handled with proper design so even the wettest climates can accommodate straw bale structures. Humidity, on the other hand, cannot easily be designed out of a structure. It pervades everything and gets into everything. A bale house can stay dry from rain and still be saturated with moisture inside the plaster due to the acclimation of the bales to the area's relative humidity. Everything eventually settles on a moisture content that is in direct relation to the relative humidity of its surroundings. Therefore, if the humidity is high, so too is the moisture content of your bread, your clothes, and your bales!

Let me give you an example, I used to live in Northern California, where humidity was often very high due to the coastal fog. My wife put her leather boots under our bed for a month and when she took them out, they were covered in green mold! Our house seemed fine and we surely did not expect to see that kind of mold anywhere near the inside of our house. But, the space under the bed is dark and has limited air movement, kind of like the space in between your layers of plaster.

What to do? Well, you must first consider if your climate is right for straw bale construction. If you have really high humidity and very little dry season each year, you may want to consider something other than bale construction. Another option is to consider mechanical help. If you install a whole house de-humidifier, you can minimize the amount of moisture in your house and therefore in your bales. Remember that when pressurized under normal living conditions, air moves out through the walls. If the air is dry, it is safe to pass through the walls. Systems like this can be installed into your HVAC system, if you have one, or can be stand alone units utilizing 4" duct work.

Remember to design and build for the water and humidity. You not only need to design to keep water out, but also to allow it to escape should it get in (nature has a way of blowing even the greatest plans!) Plan for both, and you will be okay. Nevertheless, if you live some where that you think is too risky, ask for advice and then make whatever decision you feel is best around the use of bales in your home. And know that this is coming from some one who loves bale construction so I'm trying to talk you out of your dream!Labels: Baling, Construction Details, Design, General Information
posted by Andrew Morrison [at] 7:09 PM

[sjeng]

back to basic, can someone yust answer my question? about experieence with sinter blocks.???????????????