Learnings from Sustainable Architecture

Session 7 summary

Marvels of Mud Architecture

What is a Mud house?

The houses are often distinguished into Kaccha house and Pakka house and it is often perceived that a Kaccha house is a Mud house. In the present times there is an overuse of cement and other modern building materials. There is a need to upgrade the Kaccha houses without using the modern materials. The solution to this is Mud architecture which uses sustainable materials which are easily available in the area and cost a lot less that the modern building materials.

Types of Mud Architecture

Cob- The mud houses built through this technique makes the design of the house flexible and renovating the house is quite easy. Rammed Earth- It’s traditionally done by hand, the composition is mostly clay and sand. It results in strong, colorful and straight smooth walls. Wattle and Daub- These types of mud buildings work wonders where there is excessive rainfall. There is a skeleton to the structure that also supports the roof. Mud is plastered all over all over this mesh of bamboo, cane and straw. Adobe- It is a building with sun dried clay bricks. Adobes are made of thick malleable mud often added with straw. After being cast they are left to dry under the sun and then plastered with the same.

Didi Contractor

Didi Contractor was an American architect known for her work on sustainable building in India, using adobe, bamboo and stone for materials. She was a recipient of Nari Shakti Puraskar, India’s highest civilian award for recognizing the achievements and contributions of women. Didi has made phenomenal mud architecture examples in Himachal Pradesh using sustainable mud and locally available materials. Didi liked to experiment with alternative materials to reduce carbon footprints and also made designs to address the problem of garbage especially plastics.

Few things learnt in the pursuit of mud architecture

• Flexibility of mud house and little or no carbon footprints.
• Observing nature and building according to the natural surroundings.
• Importance of drains and how to protect our mud houses from water.
• Smarter ways to recycle garbage and plastic through architecture.
• Vastu is nothing but a smarter way to design how the light comes in our house.
• Smokeless choolha.

“The ideal house should be built with the materials found within 5 miles radius of the house”

• We need to use as much local materials as possible.
• We need to keep a check on the Carbon Footprint before using any materials. Procuring materials should be easy and locally available as they are the best suit according to the microclimate of the surrounding. Mud houses built in Kerala, Ladakh, Jharkhand and Assam are greatly affected by what nature provides in that region and the climate of that region.

Locally available plants and trees play a very important role in for the habitat

Plants can be used as a solution to our problems as it compliments the beauty the beauty and strength of the house, like the mosquito repellent plants, plants which prevent seepage of water, plants which absorb toxins, etc. The locally available stones can be used as tiles indoors and outdoors and the local trees may be used as fence around the house.

Importance of Drains

Stagnant water is a silent killer for any type of houses therefore we need to let the water keep flowing. The path for this should not be straight as it tends to gush through it which may cause landslides and erosions. A zig-zag path like a snake would decrease the speed of the flow without causing damage to the surroundings. Building French Drain and planting plants which absorb water is very helpful in controlling the flow of water.

Smarter ways to recycle garbage

‘When we can dump garbage on the earth, might as well utilize it. Some examples of utilizing waste are-*Using old tyres to make a bern/wall. *Mixing Paper Mache to give a smooth plaster in mud houses. *Plastic bag filled with discarded empty tetra packs, plastic wrappers and packets from shops and houses, tied and moulded to use as building blocks. *Wattle and Daub using plastic fillings. *Using glass bottles for lighting.

What is Vastu?

Vastu is nothing but a smarter way to design lighting of the house. Simplifying the direction of sun and available sunlight according to the needs of the space. Lighting plays a very vital role in any space, from kitchen, bathroom and bedroom, we need natural light in different amount in different areas.

The wonders of a smokeless chulha

We can’t deny that nothing tastes better than something cooked on a Chulha, but in our experience Chulha has always been full of smoke. To avoid the smoke a smokeless Chulha is very advantageous.