Finish Plaster and a Rocket Mass Heater: Phase III of Project Chilliwack

Last summer our crew went to Chilliwack, BC for two weeks to tackle the infill of a chip & slip house.  We got it done.  It was hot, sweaty, laborious and mosquitoey.  And so good!  The house is a two storey with c&s downstairs and conventional framing with Roxul upstairs.  The log work was done by one of the client’s brothers.  (I think she has 4?  Maybe 3.  There were a lot).   In March, my friend Pat Amos of Shiizen Clayworks and I headed back to do the plastering, and build a rocket mass heater.  (I wasn’t part of the stove, that was Pat’s project).  We did a 1/2″ base coat of local clay plaster (clay, sand, straw), and then a finish coat of bagged white clay and sand (and sifted straw, wheat paste and mica for extra sparkles).  There was also some cow and horse poop thrown into the brown coat for good measure, just so the owners could say they did to scare the neighbors a little.  (Although of course such things are totally acceptable in the natural building community).  If you scroll down to older posts you will see some more pics from this project.

One of 7 doorways…

Dave and Suze were basically the best clients you could ask for.   I can’t say enough good things about them, and can confidently call them good friends of mine.    I was really happy in Chilliwack, walking across a field to get to work, playing with Libby the cow on my way home most days.  Life was good there!  And the house was looking pretty durn good too when we left.

a dark brown plaster

A white plaster with no pigment added.

Pat Amos doing his thing. First burn! The stove works great.

The rocket mass heater finished and oiled.

Earthen Floors. Tough, smooth, stunning

I have been installing earthen floors for a few years now and I enjoy it immensely.   The texture and appearance is so beautiful and unique, and coupled with in-floor heating, oh. my. goodness!  With the ingredients clay, sand and straw, the footprint of these floors is minimal, far less than concrete or laminate.   Similar to softwood (such as fir) floors in hardness and durability, earth or cob floors are a great alternative to wood or concrete.  They can be mopped, repaired, danced on, wrastled and rolled around on, dogged, babied, red-wined, anything you can throw at them they can pretty much take.  Finished with non-toxic oils and waxes, they look and feel amazing in any space.  Earthen floors can be installed in any building, including existing homes.   Perhaps that old linoleum is looking a bit… not so amazing anymore?  🙂

Close-up!

Pouring the floor in Cobble Hill.

Pouring a floor over hydronics at OUR Ecovillage

Freshly oiled