[papercreters] Re: Wild Harvested Binders and Fiberous Plant Matter

I agree with Spaceman's response, but at the same time, I also encourage experimentation with whatever resources you have available locally.

The key word here is "experimentation." Feel free to try things in small batches to make a few bricks with various ideas. As long as you keep your experiments small, you won't be investing large amounts of money or time in any particular attempt. Perhaps you will discover a technique that none of us here has considered before.

Please post about your experiments and the results here on papercreters.



In general, the most successful attempts to reinforce papercrete so far to date have come through applying a reinforcing mesh to plaster and stucco on the surface of a papercrete structure.


I have conducted quite a few experiments with latex paint. I have never found paint useful in CASTING BLOCKS of papercrete. However, adding latex paint to stucco or plaster is amazingly effective and I highly recommend it, particularly if you have a low cost source for latex paint. Using latex paint as part of a paper pulp enhanced surface coating can do amazing things.




As far as papercrete binders go. I encourage you to consider that a "binder" isn't particularly critical in papercrete as the paper fibers will bond to each other rather well without anything added, if the paper is pulped moulded, and allowed to thoroughly dry.

I AM NOT RECOMMENDING A PAPER ONLY MIX.

"Paper only" is extremely susceptible to fire, mold, insects, and rodents. That is not to say that some people haven't attempted it anyway. Sadly, there are far too many reports of such people abandoning houses that became unsafe or unhealthy to live in. Building a house is a massive investment in time and effort. Cutting corners that potentially can put that entire investment at risk may not be the best choice available to you.

If someone can discover a local source of an additive that will inhibit smoldering fire, inhibit mold, insects, and rodents, they should be able to design a mix that will support most any reasonably sized structure in great shape.

If you are seeking low cost alternatives for these additives, I suggest experimenting with the soils from your construction site mixed with the papercrete. Try different soils from different locations and different depths. A reasonable place to start is to seek the soil with the least organic content and the smallest particle sizes. Clay soils tend to work the best. The quantity of clay soil you will need to add to a particular quantity of paper will vary depending upon your local soil.

Another alternative is to seek local commercial waste products, such as fly ash, but you need not limit yourself to that alone. As you go about your daily routine, constantly be observant of what materials businesses are throwing away. Someone's dusty waste product, might end up being your perfect papercrete additive, just use appropriate care to know and understand what materials you are handling and take appropriate safety precautions.

Above all, when trying a new idea, start small. Make small batches, and test the results of various attempts thoroughly, particularly with respect to fire, mold, and how the material will perform if it gets re-wetted.

Once you think you have discovered your ideal mix, build a small shed or other small structure first. Make your mistakes on something small and learn from them. Only after you have proven that your ideas will work well should you proceed to invest the time and effort to build a larger structure.

Hope these thoughts are helpful.

--- In papercreters@yahoogroups.com, "SuperSpeaker" <rvbeary@...> wrote:
>
> This is my first post and so treat me gently! <smile>
>
> I was wondering about several things that I could not find regarding ingredients to Papercrete. First has anyone tried or thought about using sagebrush or greasewood type stems instead of or in addition to paper products in the mix? What might be the drawbacks and/or advantages of their use?
>
> Also, I thought since surplus latex paint is sometimes used as a binder if the dandelion stem milk (a light weight glue) and pine pitch might be used as binders as well or if anyone had tried using anything like that or any other nature type binders.
>
> Since these things are readily available in nature where I am, I thought it might be something which would work.
>
> Thank you for any ideas regarding this.
>
> rvbeary
> Building in southern Colorado
>




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