Compacted earth wall

Compacted earth wall Nance House

Since I traveled to Mexico six years ago to participate in the workshop with the Mexican studio Taller AF, I dreamed of this construction system. I was hopeful, arriving in Panama I did some tests with what I learned but the truth is that I would not have dared to offer it or venture with a wall if it had not been for the arrival of my friend Andoni Iriberri. Thank you for being and being there! These construction systems are a lot of trial and error, so my recommendation is to always have an ally, consulting or advice from a professional, as it will save you a lot of time and materials.

Casa Nance is my house and was a guinea pig for this system, it was built in 2021. To start telling you about this project, I will share with you about the compacted earth wall it has. It is a decorative element, which shares one of the rooms and the terrace / living room. So that it can be appreciated every day. I do not know if it is the first wall of this construction system in Panama but it may be, and I am sure it will not be the last. Being the first, of course it was very slow, we did a lot of tests with different proportions of materials and clays. Also the formwork, assembly and tamping was a learning curve for the local master builders.

Historical review

Rammed earth has been used in construction for thousands of years, with evidence of its use dating back to the Neolithic period. Commonly used-especially in China-the technique was applied in both ancient monuments and vernacular architecture, including the Great Wall. Although interest in rammed earth declined during the 20th century, some continue to push its use today, highlighting its sustainability compared to more modern construction methods. In particular, rammed earth structures use local materials, so they have low embodied carbon and produce little waste.

Platform architecture - Lilly Cao

How to do it

The compacted or rammed earth wall is made with a formwork of two well braced parallel panels that is raised as it is rammed. The backfill consists of sand, gravel, clay and some stabilizer, we use a little lime and cement in a very low percentage. The mixture has a little water in it for wetting but it is relatively “dry”. After adding the mixture at a certain height, it is compacted by tamping with wooden rammers (we can also use a pneumatic tamper) and compacted to about 50% of the initial height. Then you go on layer by layer until you reach the desired wall height, re-using the formwork as you go up.

Benefits of compacted soil

Some of the benefits of this construction system is its appearance. It is beautiful to see the layers of earth and you can use different colored clays and even make shapes to give it an original look. The materials for this wall can be sourced locally (although you always have to test). If someday you demolish that construction, the earth from the wall can be reused. It has high structural capacity, is very durable and resistant to humidity (but not to rain, these walls should be protected under roofs and eaves).

It gives me great enthusiasm to encourage these practices to local Panamanian masters. So that local architecture can move towards more sustainable practices and the creation of new trades that promote creativity and new technologies. By using renewable materials found locally, it opens the doors of bioconstruction to all, generating a very nice virtuous circle. Encouraging the planting of timber and bamboo, protecting our resources, sharing knowledge and of course living in much cooler, beautiful and environmentally friendly homes. 

We will continue to experiment around these parts and share knowledge, in search of continuous improvements, with purposes that move away from the “economic” and towards the collaborative, regenerative and holistic.

Artificial wetland

This text is to share my new experience with the artificial wetland I have at home, as a secondary treatment system for sewage and gray water. We will implement it in December 2021.

Commonly, in rural areas like where I live, a septic tank is used and then a sump. This is a tank where the solids are separated and then travels to an underground space filled with stones where the liquid waste is drained to the subsoil. While this is allowed by regulation, it is not the most sanitary, because those wastes, as micropollutants, can leach into the groundwater anyway. 

I am a believer that everyone has a responsibility to be as careful as possible with our waste, starting with recycling, reusing, composting, etc. But it doesn't stop there. Part of my purpose this time around is to be active in all these issues and to inspire those who read this and those who are going to build their homes, so that they don't hesitate to incorporate these systems.

An artificial wetland

“Eco-technological and biological, designed in order to mimic the processes of natural wetland ecosystems, stand out as a potential alternative or supplementary system for wastewater treatment.”

United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT), 2008 

It is a shallow pool, filled with substrate and planted with aquatic plants, resistant to water saturation. The wastewater enters the pool and flows through the substrate and plant roots and is discharged out of the pool into an inspection chamber, where you can also regulate the depth of the water inside the wetland.

The water that comes out at the end of the wetland, can be reused for irrigation in the garden, which is great because in Panama, there are four months a year that it does not rain and in that time it is best to water your plants without using drinking water that we have to take care of. Soon we will be installing a rainwater harvesting system which is also something I recommend, and I wish I had done it from the beginning in my house, but this is how we learn. The good thing is that you can always modify and do it later.

My system

The system we have is a biodigester (it's like a septic tank but has extra ecological factors) as primary treatment and then runs to our artificial wetland.

Our wetland is a rectangle-shaped pool with a shallow depth. The measurements and the system was designed by the engineer Andoni Iriberri from Aparato A, this is necessary to know what size of wetland you need and how many plants to plant for a correct operation.

The pool has a layer of gravel on the bottom, then a textile geo covering the bottom and filled with natural compost substrate mixed with coarse and fine sand. We planted aquatic plants found in natural wetlands in the area. 

From the beginning until today, the stabilization process has been

Once the pool was made and its layers were inside and also substrate, aquatic plants were collected from natural wetlands in the area. They must be plants with good roots and/or rhizomes since it is the roots that work to clean the water. We then planted them with the help of Jenny and Bruce, neighbors with huge hearts who wanted to help. Something very valuable about the place where I live is that the community helps each other a lot, especially when it's time to get their hands in the soil. After planting we turned on the water and let it fill to the desired level.

When we started the wetland, it was populated with mosquito larvae, by the thousands, and lots and lots of tadpoles, which later grew into frogs and we had a festival every night with the froglets (Túngaras). The mosquitoes apparently did not grow and were all eaten, because they did not bother us in the house. We also put in some small fish that my neighbor Ray gave me, which to this day have their little family in the cleaner end of the wetland. They are tiny, different colors and very beautiful.

Three months have passed. The wetland is full of life, the plants are thriving and reproducing and there is still a long way to go. Every day I see new species of insects and a lot of diversity. I have been introducing more plants where some did not stick and also cleaning up dry leaves that have fallen. I have been told that it takes about four months to stabilize, and I hope this is the case because at night when the atmosphere cools down, it sometimes becomes aromatic like sewage.

I think the big issue of this wetland and perhaps a “contra” that we can observe, is the amount of little frogs singing at night. It is a spectacle to listen to them but living with them on a daily basis is a bit difficult, especially at bedtime. They stay up until midnight with the party. We are going to give them some time to stabilize, let the rainy months come in and evaluate the next steps. But, one solution would be to raise the water level so that the substrate and the water are at the same level. Today there are two inches of water flooded.

In my Instagram I made a reel and you can see the wetland on video. 

I hope you enjoyed it and let me know if it is something you are encouraged to do at home. In a few months I will do a follow up post.

Love, Fer.

Bamboo Culture Thorium

In January 2020, we were pleased to support a practical bamboo workshop in Torio, Panama.

 

The idea started when we met Henry Glenn in Punta Mona, Costa Rica. Sitting down to talk with him about bamboo was fascinating and it coincided that Torio was very curious and wanted to use this material and that he wanted to come and meet Panam. Between conversations, we decided it would be an excellent idea to do the workshop. He came to visit us in October 2019 to try some of the bamboos we had in Torio. When he came, he realized that we had very little bamboo and told me very confused, why do you want to do a workshop where there is no bamboo?

Don't get me wrong, there is plenty of bamboo in our region, it's just not the kind of bamboo we build with. We learned that there are hundreds of species of bamboo and that each one has its specific uses. Our region is characterized by a lot of Bambusa Vulgaris, or Hawaiian Golden. It is a very large bamboo, yellow with a green stripe, which is used mostly for temporary structures, furniture and handicrafts.

For a moment we were discouraged, but then we decided to do the workshop anyway. Henry has many years of experience in Costa Rica sharing knowledge, and promoting bamboo culture. Bamboo is super versatile. From making tea, and using it as utensils, to building your entire house. So expanding knowledge in an area where little is used or known about the material was a very good idea. This way, when we start propagating and planting this marvel, we will do it in a good way. Taking into account what we learned in the workshop.

The workshop was intended to be more practical than theoretical. Everyone had the opportunity to touch and manipulate the material in different ways. Overall it was excellent. Henry came along with his two partners from Finca Bamboo and they were super helpful. On our side, it was a lot of running around and logistics but the experience was excellent.

This will be the first of many workshops to come on bioconstruction. At Arquídea we are always thinking of ways to make the transition from conventional materials to vernacular materials, so stay tuned for more workshops to come.

Topics covered in the workshop:

- Introduction to species and uses

- Bamboo maintenance and propagation

- Bamboo conservation

- Bamboo handicrafts: blinds, weaving and carving

- Carpentry

- Construction of a bamboo shade pavilion

A review by the professor::

Henry Glenn

Co-founder of “Finca Bamboo” located in Cuervito de Pavones in the southwest Pacific region of Costa Rica, Henry Glenn is a Bamboo Educator, Innovator, and promoter of the “Costa Rican Bamboo Culture” brand.

Costa Rica's bamboo culture recognizes and honors the versatility, innate strengths and qualities of one of the world's most beautiful regenerative resources. It is committed to supporting the integrity of our natural (or native) environment through the use of bamboo in all its creative and sustainable forms.

For more than 20 years, Henry has studied and cultivated more than 100 species of bamboo and has experience working with this elegant, strong and adaptable material to create all kinds of practical structures, tools and accessories for everyday life, and even for food.

Over the past 5 years, Henry and the Finca Bamboo team have refined several treatment solution systems that allow bamboo to be treated according to location and applications. The “Finca Bamboo” treatment system is economical and environmentally friendly. It was designed to minimize treatment solution waste in an ongoing effort to preserve the earth.

Henry's most exciting works to date are his living bamboo platforms. Each platform is created from a clump of living bamboo. This creation becomes a unique piece of environmental art and a usable space that brings you ever closer to nature.

Henry Glenn is passionate about sharing his knowledge and experience of all things bamboo to help create a smaller, healthier footprint on our planet. 

If you want to know more about how this workshop went and see pictures, you can see the tag #bambooculturetorio

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