Building with Mud: A Continuum

Thanks for watching.
There are many ways to do all these building methods and people who specialize in them. This is just to show the difference between some of the methods and how little difference there is in the mix.
Thanks goes to my great video team, my brother Kalin Steen - videographer and graphic designer, and my mom Athena Steen - graphic designer, and text editor.
Music
State of mind by Julian Avila, extended for video.
Recipe ratios will vary greatly depending on your soil, but here they are as general reference.
Many of these mixes can also be used for things other than what's shown in the video.
Mix 1
1 clay, 1 sand, ¼ water
Uses: rammed earth, earthen-floor subfloor, earth-bag fill, earthship tire fill
Mix 2
1 clay, 1 sand, ½ straw, ½ water
Uses: cob
Mix 3
1 clay, 1 sand, ½ straw, ¾ water
Uses: adobe, plaster, mortar, earthen-floor finish layer
Mix 4
2 clay, 1 sand, 1½ straw, 1 water
Uses: wattle & daub, base-coat plaster
Mix 5
2 clay, 1 sand, 2½ straw, 1¼ water
Uses: straw-clay block, base-coat plaster
Mix 6
2 clay, 1 sand, 3½ straw, 1½ water
Uses: straw-clay infill, lighter straw-clay blocks
Clay mortar:
1 clay, 1½ sand, ¾ water
[e-mail]

[@JC_R8MEOW]

This was possibly the most concise, informative, and watchable video on these techniques that I've seen to date. Thank you for taking the time to put this together.

[@pundalikadagal]

In India house from mud clay made brick house are made thousands years ago,

[@1voluntaryist]

@@pundalikadagal Yes, all over the world. But they kept the brick/block shape the same, not interlocking. Why? No one questioned, just imitated without improvement.

[@lebanonchristian3951]

And what is the strongest and what is the weakest of them?

[@jonathandoelander6130]

What???? But he didn't even SAY anything!!!!!

[@ironmanandspidyroc]

@@lebanonchristian3951 well when you add calcium (eggs shells deposits crushed fired and add water to the mix fire again) then add and then fire the brick, it becomes calcified, making is resistant to water, there are also ash clay bricks, which as per the name is has furnace ash added to the clay mixture to get a stronger for defined well rounded brick

[@evelinefoneswilliams906]

In Africa they add in fresh cow dung to the mixture.The digestive juices plus the cud make it extra strong and less likely to crack. It also is added to the smooth plastering and hair from goats or cows added instead of straw.

[@suzanneguernier5352]

That is interesting to know.

[@MeanOldLady]

Some places also use animal blood when doing earthen floors to give it a hard sheen & help it resist cracking.

[@cieme2281]

bait?

[@rhodesianwojak2095]

@@cieme2281 hmm

[@wiremyear8989]

It's still very common to find horse hair in the plaster in buildings in England.

[@Barbaralee1205]

Benito! Oso! Kalen! Bill! Athena! Wow, your artistry has soared! So beautiful.

[@SunnyDMolish602]

This is one of the best clay educational videos! I will use these recipes when we build our first natural building. Thank you!

[@francesjohnson1052]

Your hands are an extension of your beautiful artistry...a joy to watch

[@Rainaman-]

Very clean and simple instructions and examples.

[@tinyearthcreations2754]

This was SO incredible and helpful! I am looking into natural materials for home building. No one has explained the materials as you have. Thank you!!

[@sariputri7743]

You are amazing! I want to build a house at my farm using those ingredients but no one can do it here. I am going to try to make those miniature wall and bricks using your recipe. I wish I could hire you

[@davideisenberg6304]

Love it! Great to see you guys carrying the work forward so beautifully. Bravo!

[@masterjimasterji6531]

Excellent video. Such construction material and practices are on widespread use in rural areas in the developing world. This can supplement construction needs in urban areas too.

[@adlozi]

I miss sculpting, i compensate it with gardening and getting dirty there, but I feel in near future I will be building something really satisfying.

[@Th3SimpleLife.Project]

Awesome video! Thanks a lot. Am just getting prepared to fix an 200 years old farm house with earth. Still not 100 % sure what to use, but I'll get there 😅

[@deepakmalik2241]

You got one permanent subscriber with this video👍

[@Jojo_Flake]

I love mud and dirt it’s my favorite dish to eat...

[@davidreed9916]

Thank you brother, this was a great get to know mud video!!

[@kirverbitski9164]

Awesome! Good vibes! 🖖

[@wjj4832]

Excellent... Thank you!

[@abady4ever283]

William Shakespeare Quotes. Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them I don't know which one is it from you You might be all of it

[@venugopal3510]

Hands make so many like this but this one is super natural house walls, good

[@liadnil]

Muchísimas gracias

[@palipali4264]

Super video!!!!!! Thank You!!!

[@joycelemos4971]

I Love your job!

[@gg-ld1zu]

Perfect video in everyway!.. brrawooo!..

[@johnhill1629]

Beautiful

[@noname-ef6sv]

Amazing!

[@slairdandraful]

Love it thank you.

[@pvm6732]

Brilliant. Thank you!

[@theantichrist6524]

We love clay .

[@shabistankhan7152]

Superb!!

[@sairaazhar4319]

Amazing 👌😍

[@AdamBechtol]

Nice.

[@sabrinawanderer7560]

Fantastic😱😱😱😱

[@Cactusworkshopchannel]

soothing! good job on all your videos!! new subscriber for sure!

[@Rhinoch8]

AWESOME

[@martinable6005]

The mini-adobe wall had me shook

[@hatzlmike1]

Thankful

[@hichamfilalizehri8500]

I love it

[@Grunberg97]

Awesome video! This is great for sharing this knowledges! Ive taken part on some mud building projects and now im starting to do it for myself. My doubt is to which would be the best mix for an earthen oven... Maybe the adobe brick, maybe the one with more straw in it tho insolate the heat... Does anyone know?

[@1969prasanna]

nice work, thanks bro...

[@mtbrain6499]

I have a cabin with old ugly wood siding - can I cover the wood with this type of mud exterior?

[@jubeidono]

Thank you for a great video. Might be nice if you could add annotations to clarify the units though. "1 Straw" refers to 1 what? 1 Kgr? 1 lb? Would be awesome if you could add annotations to clarify this.

[@carlosnajera2078]

Me acabas de agradar jejejej

[@stanleydenning]

There are Adobe structures in the deserts of southern California and Arizona that have stood for over 100 years.

[@skyson101]

What is the name of the background music ? Thanks .

[@ResearchNational]

350 Chinese drywall manufacturers disliked this video, lol.

[@Shura3]

You just answered all my questions about earth building in one 5-minute video!! Awesome!!! Best earth building video I've seen in a loooooong time!!! Thanks so much!!!

[@KRD137]

Great job!!!!!

[@nofurtherwest3474]

But which should be used? What are the pros and cons of each? Thx

[@muratgokirmak8398]

check very fast stabil Turkish formula

[@GIvanov71]

@@muratgokirmak8398 What's that "Turkish formula"?

[@muratgokirmak8398]

Strong resist water Turkish ör Anatolian formula...

[@rage9278]

Great video. might need the skill considering today’s real estate prices

[@definitelynotcole]

Yeah, the real issue is the building codes. It's always been what's made housing so expensive. But they do need the building codes because contractors will rip people off if they don't have them. I just wish I could build what I want on my own property.

[@lemonyarch3270]

Holy shit this is the first video that needs to pop up when searching for info about earth building

[@decodemodern]

Couldn't agree more. I have watched too many dragged out 15-20 min videos about rammed earth walls to get to here.

[@alxmetro]

Thank for the video! It is very interesting to see. I'm born at Kazakhstan and we have house which was build same Technic by my grands after World war II. We still use this house just my parents had build extra room and joint this together with my grands house. Nito please pay your attention for one important things, it is critical to maintain the house by white Lime paint. It will keep wall waterproof and weatherproof. I know what i say, my family living part of this house still now. So we have real live experience over 70 years.

[@outlaw1179]

What is white lime? The fruit?

[@centerstageads5819]

@@outlaw1179 No it's not the fruit. Google the words lime wash or lime plaster. It was THE main wall covering building material until the invention of drywall products and inexpensive concrete in the early to mid 20th century. Essentially, once it's dry it's limestone. So in a lime wash you get a micro coating of limestone over your surface. They were using it clear back in Egyptian times and many paintings done with it are still around today. It's fascinating stuff!

[@kercchan3307]

@@outlaw1179 take seashells or limestone or other calcium rich material, heat till the glow in a fire I dont know how long, after this cools off separate and introduce water to burnt limestone mix in a separate container and wait. it is something along these lines.

[@MeanOldLady]

Typically the lime layer is added first as it's the hardest & will crack more easily when stressed. Then the cob layer is added as a finish layer because cracks happen less frequently & are cheaper to patch. Slap on some white/color wash & you're good. For waterproofing, an oil that doesn't go rancid is applied every so often to keep it water resistant in areas with a lot of exposure to water (bathrooms, kitchens (Moroccan tadelakt)). But either way, those layers won't be preserved if the house doesn't have a good hat & good boots - deep roof overhang & a stone foundation that doesn't wick water.

[@Markus-uh7rr]

Where should the coat of lime go? Are you saying it should go in the middle of the wall? The lime coating goes on the outside and is the last, or second to last if you oil the surface, because the lime prevents mold and protects the clay wall itself. The lime coat IS the whitewash sotosay. Or do you mean build the wall from cob, etc, then a lime coat, then another thin layer of clay/cob to finish? So the last layer of clay would be a sort of sacrifical layer? @@MeanOldLady

[@anglishwolf]

I'm genuinely floored by your simply badass style of video making for such an honest and important subject that more people should be excited about. You, my friend, are an ARTIST!

[@Elcobong]

The real dirt! Hats off to the clarity and creativity! Loved the muddy hands celebrating at the end! Clay makes me feel that way!

[@livinginthenow]

Wow. Very cool demonstration. For those who would prefer not to work with fractions, the following are the mix ratios converted into whole numbers: Mix 1 4 clay, 4 sand, 1 water Uses: rammed earth, earthen-floor subfloor, earth-bag fill, earthship tire fill Mix 2 2 clay, 2 sand, 1 straw, 1 water Uses: cob Mix 3 4 clay, 4 sand, 2 straw, 3 water Uses: adobe, plaster, mortar, earthen-floor finish layer Mix 4 4 clay, 2 sand, 3 straw, 2 water Uses: wattle & daub, base-coat plaster Mix 5 8 clay, 4 sand, 10 straw, 5 water Uses: straw-clay block, base-coat plaster Mix 6 4 clay, 2 sand, 7 straw, 3 water Uses: straw-clay infill, lighter straw-clay blocks Clay mortar: 4 clay, 6 sand, 3 water

[@gregmorse5997]

Enjoyable and inspiring watch.I like the timing/editing of scenes, videography and the content. If you love creating with mud, this is like adobe porn.

[@gurudasbock]

Greg Morse adobe porn!

[@TheNitoProject]

Uncle Greglways always such a pleasure to read your comments LOL!

[@tonychan2504]

It was step by step, brick by brick, entertaining, informative, concise. 💕💕💕. Masterpiece.

[@funny-video-YouTube-channel]

*Ad some chalk against mold.* Good project !

[@YoannSs]

As I know, what you did is unique over the internet ! I personnaly build my house with mud in Brittany (France). I practiced almost all the techniques you described and I'm yet to find a website that would explain mud building techniques like you did. I immediately watched all your videos and that's an Amazing Job !! Please continue if you know other techniques that you can share. For example : How do you do, on very large walls (2 story house facade...), to keep an even look once finished ? One part will be dry when you come back with more mud and that will let a visible junction ! Specially when you are all by yourself to do all tasks (preparing and applying mud). Witch tool do you use for rounded corners ? Outer corners are simple with trowel but it's not convenient in inner corners ! I personnaly use semi rigid plastic (cutted in ice cream pot) to tighten the small cracs while mud is drying because trovel will let iron marks on dry mud. You dont seem to have this problem ? And before plastic technology, what was used ? Thank you for your amazing job !

[@TheNitoProject]

Woo I love this comment! Great questions you really hit on some of the finer points here, unfortunately there's no one answer to these questions, like Plastering a big wall by yourself becomes a big puzzle piece or a game where you plan out all your movements and migrations, what you do to prepare for it like trying to make everything go slow, and knowing where you're going to break sometimes it's making that into a emphasis itself, again there's not much I can really say here besides sometimes killing the suction as much as you can from the wall beneath, that means shading, saturating the wall, or even acrylic bonder sometimes, sometimes I even start hydrating the spot where I plan to break when I start in the morning, to allow me time for lunch. Corners is a great topic, because it's one of the most important parts it's because it's where the eye goes, I have footage for a video on Corners that I haven't made into anything yet but I'm hoping to get to soon. I'm sure I didn't answer any of your questions but thanks for them, and feel free to ask more.

[@YoannSs]

​@@TheNitoProject Yes, you did answer to the main questions !! For very large surface, you have to progress as quick as possible : try not to stop and prepare everything before. If you do have to stop... we are only mortal beings after all, even us, mud workers, that fly far above the rest of humanity, everybody agrees on this ! ;-) If you really have to stop, you have to find a way to keep the break as wet as possible (shading, saturating the wall beneath...). Thank you for your answer and keep doing what you do ! I can't wait to see your video about corners !

[@voidisyinyangvoidisyinyang885]

Mortal humans? This "person" is actually an "ant!" That's why it seemed like those walls were very small and incomplete. For an "ant' they were more than big enough.

[@garyvalencia4379]

Maintain a "wet edge"

[@fuckungminhrau]

In vietnam, we add molasses . In china, great wall add glutinous rice...

[@stillmaninmotion6081]

Please don't delete this video. Ever.

[@sivapriyap3251]

Your are just amazing.. sure even with PHD no body would be able to present such techniques with this ease... hatts off..

[@theotherwhitesage]

My absolute new favorite KZbin channel! Amazing seeing new creators make such quality content!

[@juliaauseuildesmurmures]

Dude, your channel is so cool ! Thank you for sharing all of this with us. Keep going, I want more of it ! :-D

[@kamilo495]

Quien mas vino por Un poco de todo

[@manologuerrerocalvo6474]

Yo

[@canocalisthenics157]

Yo

[@beatrizviacava-goulet3450]

👍🏼

[@fionntainmacb]

I second the last comment. Wow fabulous video, so incredibly to the point. Well Done. Thank you so much. Im selfbuilding an eco home at present and this video gives me so much more confidence :-)

[@eldoradohotelbusiness6241]

after years of just viewing random diy videos, I literally signed-up for youtube just so I could subscribe to your videos

[@TheNitoProject]

I am honored and it does make a difference thank you!

[@filsun3658]

Liked the second mixture. In my country one engineer found 16 types of mud of different color. He made a luxurious single storied house for himself just by these different mixture of muds. I'm really moved by the idea. And surely want to build one for myself inshaAllah.

[@1voluntaryist]

I hope you meant 16 ways to color mud, not 16 types of mud. I only know of 5 mud formulas, 1. unstabilized. 2. 1+straw. 3. Stabilized with Portland cement 4. Stabilized with emulsified asphalt. 5. Stabilized with geopolymers.

[@elsa_g]

@@1voluntaryistI assume OP meant 16 types of clay/dirt to make the mud mixture with, like how some dirt is more orange and some is more gray.

[@gavricful]

Thank you very much for the video, they are helping us a lot at work! We can not wait for the next video :)! P.s. We hope it will be for earthen floors :)!Greetings!

[@plotnikoff7928]

Greetings from Russia. Your video, like meditation, is very cool.

[@kassieeyler7814]

Now I know what wattle and daub is! That is so cool! I've heard that term before in books but now I can see the visual representation! Thank you!

[@lukypuky6932]

Like si vienes de UPDT

[@cesarmedelguitarist]

Thank you......loved the video, now that I'm about to build my own house aout of straw bales 😃

[@tboolah1]

هاه !؟ هذا طريقه بناء بيوت الطين عندنا بالسعودية ،، that how we used to build our houses in Saudi Arabia.

[@ttmoore4447]

I want a cob or hemp home now. The texture & design is brilliant plus eco-friendly. Home sweet home. 😁

[@apsutton336]

Great tutorial! But music annoying! Tks

[@oxpajama4313]

Dig the music

[@rodyates1]

Being pragmatic with the material available is essential, but with such clarity of method, you also need to consider the aesthetics, and not try to merely use the wall as a filling. Earth Building has its own "rightness of form". and to overlook this can be a sad mistake.

[@TrungDungTheCarpenter]

Thank you from Vietnam

[@Tolstyuk]

Dislikes? Probably tentacles instead of hands? ..

[@jhovanacampos4498]

Definitely!!

[@TheVandive]

Mi casita de tierra en minecraft xd

[@ShakarAhmadi]

Very old technique to me. . We used to have and also build mansions using this technique, when I was a child in Kurdistan Region at the northern part of Iraq.

[@carlajordon4540]

This method of wattle and daub was USED to build homes ,,,in THE OLD DAYS,,and a lot of them stand even on till today in the islands and also in Africa ,,,very strong method seems so simple but strong and durable

[@mzkaizer5972]

U miss 1 more which is the most strong one.. Mud straw and ash.. Ash is same portion as mud.. It will produce the most hard brick that have cooling effect.. If use to build house. The house is cool like u install air-conditioner in house.. If u use pure white ash in small cube or make a cup using it the water u store in it will cool down.. Its an ancient Japan use to use it..

[@wiseandfunfox]

This is an amazing channel! Just subbed, thanks for putting up really great videos!

[@adamsloan9616]

Neat! Thanks for giving the recipes in the description. I've been wanting to do some stuff like this around a campsite that I'm setting up in some of our woods.

[@MHLnL]

So inspirational and beautiful. Earthy and artistic. Would love to make dirt my home. Thanks so much for making this video. Hope to see more and would be awesome to see step by step builds on functional spaces.

[@ZachMaxon]

Your light straw clay is more like heavy straw clay. Properly done for insulative purposes would be pouring just enough clay slip into straw to get it to stick together. The more thermal mass the less insulative in temperate climates like Germany where the technique originated... Still an awesome and concise video though. Thumbs up

[@marcoreale9259]

Many thanks for your video. You have shown ancient building techniques with some modern help. Interesting to notice that wattle and dub buildings in Lavenham, Suffolk, England are still standing today from Tudor times. You also demonstrated how mud-brick with hay is made and that shows how hard must have been for the Israelites in ancient Egypt as described in the book of Exodus to produce the quota of bricks and go and find hay. You have illustrated not only techniques, but historical techniques which would help us to understand (with the removal of few modern tools you used) how walls were built and why some many people would have been engaged in the massive building projects of ancient civilizations. Strange how some of their buildings have survived and how some modern buildings are pulled down after 20-30years...Again thanks and hope these more enviromental techniques would be rediscovered to build buildings for various kind of use.

[@Twobirdsbreakingfree]

Is the clay mortar (for building with the Adobe bricks) just powdered clay and water?

[@multimossad]

What about adobe/cement ? sometimes portland cement is used to stabilize poor clay mixtures also sometimes lime is used for the same reasons , not all the soils are good for adobe so it is necesary to add some aditive.

[@EN-ZHANRun]

等等等等，到底聖女是怎麼變成未來那個死樣子的，訊息量太大了

[@1voluntaryist]

I prefer interlocking blocks because they remove the necessity for mortar. Also, geopolymer binders for harder, stronger blocks.

[@jessegreywolf]

Way to spectacularly miss the point of an earthen home

[@1voluntaryist]

j.g.: "...the point..."? As if there could only be one point? Don't you mean, "Your point?" I started working with earthen blocks 71 years ago and have learned over the decades by questioning traditional formulas. There is no scientific study and little experimentation, sadly.

[@panagiotisfloros9421]

When they say clay what do they mean? A soil containing clay is sth completely different. There are companies that sell 100% clay particles but as i see from the video this is clay soil. So it is good to remind to people that it is dangerous to mix ingredients without knowing what you are doing. A very good video indeed but i just indicate a very important aspect of the percentage of clay in soil. (first bucket of every recipe. Please let me know if i am wrong. Thank you for the video :)

[@hopefilledsinner3911]

Ha ha yes ive heard its a little different according to soil /clay content. Every situation is different. In New Zealand where i live we have pure yellow clays.

[@GardeningWithDoug]

Well done. You show us how to do this quickly in less than 6 minutes. I look forward to trying this to make garden walls when the weather improves.

[@shaluthakur8244]

How long does it takes for bricks to get hard in its wooden case so that it's good to use. 🤔🤔🤔

[@GilBatesLovesyou]

That bamboo lath is really clever, I like it! :)

[@kuissumbekevinloic9225]

In Cameroun and African villages, building houses and structures with mud is a habit. This method of building with other methods of mud building has been practiced in Cameroon for decades if not centuries. Great to see that mud building is practiced in the rest of the world. I think it is a safer form of construction of buldings with less polution and more suitable to human health. But many things has to be done in order to make this techniques applicable to all kind of structures.

[@bakedto420]

Hemp works so much better than straw. Or a stone aggregate

[@martinengelbrecht5384]

The most amazing video on every form of clay / straw building ... Excellent thanks very artistic ... any method better / quicker ?

[@aussiefarmer8741]

In Australia the wattle and daub is called a "PUG HOUSE" many were made in the 18/1900's in rural areas. Many are still on private property still standing.

[@kjw1856]

Thank you, for helping me truly appreciate the beautiful and diverse application. You inspired me in many ways… thank you!

[@jacksonbenefield1778]

This is definitely the best videos I've ever seen showing all the ways of earth building! well done! Thank you

[@healthyrootsstrongwings538]

This vdo is awesome. Can't wait to check out your other vids. Quality :)

[@TheBebelehaut]

OMG, y'all, I learned life is simple from this video!

[@federicoeco9030]

Yes ! That is very true !