Rammed earth, fine

Conluto rammed earth

Rammed earth is used for wall elements or for rammed earth floors. Its great advantage is its high weight. Rammed earth is one of the heaviest building materials. This makes it the perfect thermal store for solar energy or for use as a temperature-controlled building component. Using rammed earth in combination with a wood-burning stove or thermally activated building components makes perfect sense, both aesthetically and in terms of energy.

Rammed earth is a construction method that requires some experience. The formwork used must be extremely stable. As a rule, formwork from building construction or concrete construction is used. When properly executed, rammed earth is approved as a load-bearing building component.

Rammed earth is a ready-mixed product in accordance with the Lehmbau Regeln (earth building rules, 3.9) of the "Dachverband Lehm" (German umbrella association for earth building). It is made from mixed-grained to stony building clay with a binding strength of over 80 g/cm³ and mineral aggregates of coarse sand, gravel or chippings. Grain size: 0-8 mm. The bulk density is approx. 1700-2200 kg/m³.

Application for rammed earth walls

The rammed earth is placed in layers approx. 10-15 cm thick into suitable formwork (usually prefabricated formwork) and mechanically compacted. Standard large-panel formwork systems and slipforms, as used in concrete construction, can be used as formwork.

Manual rammers as well as electric or pneumatic compactors can be used to compact the clay layer. The compacted rammed earth layer is dimensionally stable, and the formwork can, and should, be removed immediately so that the drying and hardening process can begin straight away. Important: the consistency of the rammed earth must be checked before work begins.

Application of rammed earth floors

The rammed earth is applied to a clean, level, load-bearing and rigid substrate. The layer thickness should be no less than 8 cm and no more than 12 cm. Initial pre-compaction is carried out by hand, after which the surface is compacted several times with a vibrating plate. Reworking after compaction is no longer possible. Once the surface has dried out completely, the floor can be treated with a hard floor oil or with conluto carnauba wax emulsion (concentrate) + hard wax emulsion (Item no. 00.422.1 + 00.421). As rammed earth floors require a great deal of experience and craft expertise, we strongly urge you to obtain more detailed information from us or to consult an experienced installer.