Friday, November 14, 2008

Re: [papercreters] COMPRESSED BLOCKS- CINVA RAM FERNSLER BUILT

I was introduced to CEB - contracted to build a trade show and web set up for a $250K machine!  Their point was to build 1 million blocks for large projects - then the machine was cost effective. The ram preasure was 250K - 1 block 15 seconds. The system worked just fine but was rebuilt after 1 million blocks. Good business idea if you can defeat the mud house image.   I was then introduced to a series of smaller machines that did half blocks.  This is not DIY!  Finally the manual ram and DIY.  5-10K blocks needed for a house.  Is possible if you are a serious DIY.  This company was only interested in business. $12K machine was the DIY step they offered.  I then computed the foundation cost - oops!  The walls were only 20% of the cost of the house - oops!  The numbers did not add up accept when the future utilities savings were discussed.  The cost savings of the CEB block in the construction phase were overstated.
 
I am assuming that the forming of papercrete does not require a lot of preasure to achieve form, density and imediate handling. CEB likes a lot of preasure.   As an artist I work with large scale paper mache press projects.  That is why I looked at papercrete.  My wife looked at papercrete as an outdoor paper mache.  The little we have worked with papercrete - it is very close to paper mache.  To press paper mache you need moderate preasure so you can improvise a system.  Manual CEB press concept is fine for small projects - 12X24" thus far.  The reason we chose to send CEB plans over seas instead of the machine was cost factor.  My assumption was that metal workers are easy to find in 3rd world.  The 3rd world metal workers are probably a lot more inventive that we are.  If they have the concept they will adapt and build.  I insisted that the idea be tested here.  Two DIY welders built the CEB machine from plans.  Tested in their backyard.  4 men mixed 5 yards of dirt/clay mix  A picnic was arranged and 50 church families arrived to build blocks.  The missionary directed all!  Blocks were built with little effort.  3rd world style.  These families were the core supporters that backed the 1 year project.  35 machine designs sent to Africa, South America and Central America.  I have no idea what happened after that.  No one documented beyond a few emails.  But the missionary was very happy! 
 
Papercrete apeals to my tree hugger heart.  It is only possible when you have free paper?  Questions to missionaries have turned up zero 3rd world interest because the paper resource is not valid for them?  So this is a treehugger DIY for me.  My original CEB house design calls for 5000 plus 12X14X3 blocks.  The CEB block builder was reasonable.  The foundation engineer was not.  At every corner the assumption was I would buy a machine and become a block builder - no!  One house and that is it.  I joked about buying CEB at Home Depot and renting a small machine.  Papercrete?  Can you rent a mixing machine or press?  Are blocks shipable?  CEB is not.  DIY?  The point for me is to get 5000 plus blocks.  Not design a machine or build a machine.  My mission is to build my design
 
 
 
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Monday, November 10, 2008 8:19 PM
Subject: [papercreters] COMPRESSED BLOCKS- CINVA RAM FERNSLER BUILT

www.ferncometal.com << shows a new automated, towable model ram press
http://www.ferncometal.com/products.htm << shows all the models he built

Hi again. Warren Fernsler built a manual cinva ram ceb from my
plans, and went on to create a hydraulic ram too, as manual is a lot
of work for most gringos... I often have people call me back after
building a manual press and ask where to get an automated one... but
if you look at Warren's website you can see what he did. he handles
steel and iron and is a pro welder so it was easier for him.

also Mike Gross at Terrablock contacted me years ago for the plans,
and went on to build several manual models for his very poor
customers in Russia and S. America who could not afford their fancy
automatic block making equipment. It was nice to see someone who is
the president of a very successful company take the time to use my
plans and create a low cost model;- he made me 25 video tapes on the
use- just a 5 minute how to clip, and I have given them all away over
the years, I wish I knew how to make a youtube clip or convert it
somehow.. I am sure I can pay a dvd company to do it

http://www.terrablock.com/

in any case these two men were able to build working presses.

as did Nils Gore- here is his University class project link.
The Mississippi State School of Architecture bought my planset in Feb
2000, and conducted a class to build one. Nils Gore- the professor who
built the ram- moved the site to KS state recently: See lots of photos
and excellent test brick performance data online at:
http://www.saud.ku.edu/ngore/nilsweb/cinvablocks/index.html
Cinva Ram type machine:
http://www.geocities.com/abonaccorsom/Vene-Ram.html

also there are FOOT press block makers for the clay brick trade, a
heavy clump of clay is tossed into a table top mould, and a foot
presser caused it to squish into shape, not as copmpressed as cinva,
but maybe not a needed..

German clay expert Frank ANdressen made a simple hand held block model
that I attempted to replicate. it is simply a raised board & form,
the size of a block you want.. and a 4 sided rectangle the same size
as the board + 1/4 inch all arounf.

you plop the soft clay mix into the form let set up and press down on
the FORM itself to revealsperfect brick.. virtually no work and a fast
easy way to make a shape and set aside the block to cure like a
regular adobe. he had a Lid-tamper, you tamped on the clay as you
filled the form to keep it dense and smoothly packed..

it is hard to picture mentally, but just imagine you made an
open-bottom wooden form the same size of a common cinderblock ( plus
1/4" so it can slide over the block), and stood the form on top of
it. when you push the greased wood form down you expose the clay
brick and the form now surrounds the cinderblock.

the block is removed with a thin metal pancake flipper, or just slid
off, and left to cure.

--
Ms. Charmaine Taylor/ Taylor Publishing
Toll Free Order: 1-888-441-1632
www.dirtcheapbuilder.com www. papercrete.com
PO Box 375, Cutten CA 95534


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