I'm all for testing everything we can. The more we can quantify and
understand about each different recipe or construction method the
better.
That said. We should prioritize what numbers are most important for
us to get first. It is unlikely we will be able to create a testing
utopia overnight.
From what I've read and observed subjectively, the following
parameters appear to be of most interest to inspectors:
Compressive Strength
Insulation R-Value
Fire resistance/combustibility
Smoke generating capacity
Mold resistance
Insect (termite & carpenter ant) resistance
The following parameters will also be helpful to those making and
using papercrete:
Density
Wet slurry viscosity and/or slump.
Wet slurry adhesion (very helpful when wanting to use papercrete
as plaster or stucco)
The following parameters would also be nice to know but have a lower
priority at the moment:
Tensile Strength
Shear Strength
Impact resistance (storm debris) (gotta test this if only to
have an excuse to build an air cannon!)
Moisture Content (measured as papercrete is made, and measured
long term inside walls of completed structures)
Did I miss anything?
--- In papercreters@yahoogroups.com, Bob Cook <lifewithbob101@...>
wrote:
>
> Yes, we need to define just which tests are meaningful. Obviously,
strength, cohesiveness, shrinkage, moisture absorption, are a few
which come to mind. Maybe abrasion resistance. Does it matter
whether it will take a nail or how tight will it grip a deck screw?
Flammability is always something that comes up in discussions. It
has been my experience that PC is pretty impressive when you hold a
weed burner to it for 5 minutes but I've heard of startling failures
when allowed to smolder all night. We also need to establish a
workable size. I tend to think the smallest size block that would
allow marking is beneficial as I can imagine these are going to need
to be sent to and fro for comparison's sake. There have been several
easy to duplicate strength setups, usually involving a hydraulic jack
and a compression meter. If we come up with a standard size then it
would be relatively easy to decide how long we would want a block to
soak immersed in water to be considered
> stable and what we would expect a block to do, i.e. does it
crumble after 24 hours, flake, or go soft around the edges? Do we
want to invest in a moisture meter and take definitive readings? Do
we want to try to adopt an already established standard set for a
similar material (?) by the Bureau of Standards? Perhaps adobe or
rammed earth. Lots of information to process.
>
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