Do-it-yourself warming of a house with straw, clay and sawdust? Review + Video

The high cost of modern thermal insulation materials often pushes developers to look for an alternative. Not many people know that such an alternative exists. For many years, as a insulation in a fairly large number of private houses, wall insulation with straw, clay and sawdust has been used.

The use of natural materials is not only cheaper, but also a much more environmentally friendly option for organizing home insulation. In addition, traditional natural heaters are not inferior to synthetic ones in terms of basic parameters, including thermal insulation.

[contents ]

However, natural insulation should be properly prepared and applied, therefore, insulation of the house with straw should be done strictly following the technology. We will talk about this below in our article.

Thermal insulation of walls with straw and clay

Today in the modern market of building materials we have a wide selection of thermal insulation. Each of the materials has certain characteristics and individual properties, as well as certain requirements for installation technology. But since we are looking for a more environmentally friendly and at the same time effective way of insulating a wooden house, we will focus on the old, but not forgotten method and consider insulating a wooden house with straw.

The popularity and relevance of insulating houses with clay is explained by the following advantages of this method of thermal insulation:

1. The clay insulation mixture is easy to prepare and apply. To insulate a frame house with straw and clay, no special building skills are required; you can organize the whole process and bring it to its logical conclusion on your own. This insulation can be done by hand without any problems.
2. Low cost of clay insulation. The comparative cost of clay insulation is much lower compared to synthetic materials.

3. High thermal insulation values. This is a fairly reliable way of thermal insulation of premises. It can be used for insulation of floors, ceilings, roofs, etc.
4. This composition prepared in accordance with the technology is not attractive to rodents and insects.
5. The environmental friendliness of this insulation is beyond doubt.

   All leaves are of natural origin, which means they are not toxic.

The disadvantages of this method of thermal insulation include certain labor costs and duration of work.

The composition of the insulation made of clay

Clay is considered optimal for the preparation of the insulation composition red rocks. Red clay is quite hygroscopic and plastic. You can also use white clay, which is slightly inferior in these characteristics.

The maximum insulation effect can be achieved if the insulation is carried out with clay with the addition of sawdust or chopped straw.

It is better to choose sawdust from coniferous wood or oak.When preparing this component for the manufacture of insulation, the sawdust should be dried and soaked in an antiseptic. To protect against rodents, lime should be added to the solution.

Clay-straw warming is also actively used, when, instead of sawdust, chopped straw is introduced into the clay solution.

Most often, the roof or ceiling is insulated with straw, but walls are also insulated.

Preparation of a mixture from the named components is one of the main points in the process of insulating the walls of a frame house. The result of insulation will depend on the quality of the composition. If the proportions were violated during the preparation of the clay mass, the insulation will not perform its functions in full, most likely after drying it will crack and sprinkle.

The process of applying the clay mixture is not that long.

It will take more time to dry out the clay layer, which at positive temperatures will take at least a month.

The clay insulation technology consists of only three stages:

1. Preparation of the insulation composition.
2. Applying insulation.
3. Drying and curing.

There are several ways to insulate the ceiling using clay.

Clay-sand mortar: we insulate the ceiling

The traditional method is when the ceiling is insulated with a solution of a mixture of clay and sand in a ratio of 6: 2. Water is added in such an amount that the resulting mixture is similar in consistency to thick sour cream.

The algorithm for warming with clay-sand paste is as follows:

1. The ceiling of the room is sheathed with dry boards of the required thickness.
2. The gaps between the boards are covered with clay and left to dry.
3. The plank ceiling is covered with a vapor barrier membrane.

   Better to use a whole piece. If the vapor barrier is made of several pieces, the film is overlapped.

4. The seams of the film are fixed with tape.
5. Clay, sand and water are mixed in the specified proportion and the mass is brought to a homogeneous consistency.
6. Boards and film are covered with a layer of mortar 5-8 cm thick.

   The poured surface is leveled with a wooden plank. A horizontal level is set along the top fill layer.

7. When the clay mass hardens, a layer of dry sand 10-15 cm high is poured over it.
8. Logs and a finishing floor are mounted on top.

When laying logs, attention should be paid to the organization of the ventilation gap.

Insulation of the ceiling with clay with sawdust

Composition for insulation may consist of clay and sawdust (or chopped straw). Such an insulating mass should have a thicker consistency. Clay and sawdust are taken in a 2: 3 ratio. Warming clay straw is also mixed in a given ratio of elements.

The algorithm of work on insulation with this composition will look as follows:

1. Ceilings are covered with waterproofing material.

2. Over the waterproofing with a step of 30-40 cm.ten-centimeter slats are stacked and fastened.
3. Prepare the composition, for this clay and wood (straw) filler are mixed in the specified proportion and brought to the desired consistency.
4. Spread the mortar between the slats and let dry.

Do not be afraid that after drying, cracks or crevices will appear on the surface of the putty.

This is a natural pouring of material. These defects are eliminated with the help of a thin layer of liquid clay, which can be covered from above with a layer of sawdust or earth 5-6 cm thick. After eliminating the cracks, you can start installing the finished floor.

Laminated insulation with alternating clay and sawdust

In this case, we are talking about layer-by-layer laying out of insulation layers of clay and sawdust alternately.

The layer-by-layer insulation algorithm is as follows:

1. We arrange a vapor barrier.

2. We make a mixture of clay and straw (sawdust) in a ratio of 2: 3.
3. Add water until the mixture becomes homogeneous and thick similar to sour cream.
4. We spread the resulting mass on boards covered with a vapor barrier, with a layer of 2-3 cm. Let it dry completely.
5. If cracks appear after drying, fill them with liquid clay, as mentioned above.

6. After complete drying, the clay insulation is covered with a layer of dry bulk substance. Sawdust, shavings, straw can be used as a dry layer.
7. Lay dry soil 5 cm thick with the topmost layer.

A wooden flooring can be made on top of the insulation. If the attic is not planned to be used, then the puff insulation can be left unopened.

Wall insulation outside

Despite the fact that most often clay-based mixtures are used to insulate the ceiling; you can also use this insulation to increase the energy-saving properties of the walls of the house.

An important point is the condition that the walls are insulated with a clay mixture only from the outside. The use of this kind of insulation indoors is not effective and short-lived. Under the influence of humid air, the clay insulation becomes soaked, and with a temporary increase in temperatures, it dries up again. Thus, the clay coating applied to the inner surface of the walls very quickly loses its strength, cracks and crumbles.

However, clay-straw / reed / sawdust insulation is very suitable for insulating the outer walls of a frame house or a brick house. See also our article about adobe houses (https: // domsdelat.ru/karkas-doma / dom-iz-solomennyx-blokov. Html)

The algorithm for warming the walls of a frame house is as follows:

1. On the wall to be insulated, a shingle lattice made of a centimeter strip 2-3 cm wide is fixed. Thus, a reinforcing layer is obtained on which the mixture will be applied.

2. An earthen solution is prepared, into which sawdust, chopped straw or reeds are added to reduce thermal conductivity.
3. The mortar is applied to the shingles and leveled, the evenness of the layer is checked with a level.
4. After the mixture has completely dried, the lathing is attached to the walls and the facade is sheathed. If exterior cladding with siding, block house or other materials is not provided, the clay layer can be covered with whitewash with the addition of lime.

There is another method of insulating walls with clay, when the insulation of vertical surfaces is carried out using previously prepared clay slabs.

Such boards are made very simply:

1. The prepared mixture is poured into a mold made of boards laid on a sheet of plywood.
2. The mixture is leveled and left to cure.
3. After complete drying, the finished slabs are removed and attached to the walls with a wooden lath.

As we can see, the technology of thermal insulation using clay insulation with the addition of sawdust or straw is quite simple. At the same time, subject to all requirements, this insulation is quite effective.

Its use will help you not only to increase the thermal insulation performance of the structure, but also to save significantly.

( 8 marks, average 4.38 of 5 )