reconstructing 3400 year old double wattle wall with clay slip hay insulation (video)

I added subtitle commentary to each image - just click on English subtitles to read the commentary. And watch in 360 - thanks




This primitive hut is based on a 3,400 year old building recently unearthed and analyzed via archaeology - so that is 1400 BCE approximately. So it turns out this ancient design has better insulation than any modern building construction until recent high efficiency standards from the mid-1990s.

I harvested the willow on my land - using a hand saw and lopper. I harvested the hay on my land, using a scythe and bucket (garbage bin). I used a cordless drill for framing and rock wool for further insulation on the roof and end walls. The side walls are 12 feet long with 6 to 8 inches of clay slip straw packed insulation between the two wattle walls. So a total of four wattle walls, as the video details. Then on the exterior walls I used a lime cement masonry horse manure mix for water proofing on top of the horse manure-clay cob daub mix on the willow wattle in the interior and exterior.

The door and wood stove were added later - no measurements at all were made for this building except for the initial 10 x 12 feet exterior area wall limitation (no permit is needed for a structure that size). Since there is no floor and the wattle wall is pliable along with the pliable canvas roof (a total of three tarps for the roof), this is more like a Tent-Hut or Tent-cabin than a permanent structure. So as a tent-hut I can use it for seasonal camping (up to 7 months a year on the land with no permits needed). Since it is less than 150 square feet then no conditional use permit is needed.

The chimney has rock wool insulation between a 6 inch and 8 inch duct pipe along with a spark arrest screen and a rain cap. The wood stove is a two dog with a baffle as further spark arrest. I use no damper but instead heat up 4 gallons of water and have bricks around the stove and hut - to create radiant heat after a short hot fire. Since the walls are so thick with insulation then they also store up and radiate heat back.

I have a composting toilet and use the wood ash as well - so heated toilet during winter camping - along with a tub for bathing and the stove for cooking. I have a single bed frame metal for sleeping and meditation.

You can see my blog posts that I filmed for this video - for further details: http://elixirfield.blogspot.com and just search "hut"

Feel free to give critical feedback as I am not practically oriented. haha. I did test this out in the winter - I have images for that also. Just scroll way down on my blog.
https://elixirfield.blogspot.com/2019/12/hermit-hut-winter-wonderland-photos.html

This could be a lot of fun to build say an animal structure where you want to use nothing but natural materials, combine it with some of the skills used by Primitive Technology like his tile roof:

Mark Brunnr wrote:This could be a lot of fun to build say an animal structure where you want to use nothing but natural materials, combine it with some of the skills used by Primitive Technology like his tile roof:

thanks! I have not seen that vid yet. Amazing Kang bed stove - and the tile roof - looks like a real traditional Chinese hermitage hut! I did just research the "Tabin" phenomenon. Tabin as in Tent-cabin or Tent/cabin.
https://elixirfield.blogspot.com/2020/01/i-built-tabin-prospectors-tent-cabin-is.html
You have to scroll way down to see the images.

Anyway I wanted to make sure the structure could be considered a "tent" and so the "Tabin" confirms that I was correct. I did not realize the Tent-cabin is a legitimate thing and seems to be making a return.
Only yes the Bronze Age design has the insulation needed for the northern cold climate - at least for a few more years until abrupt global warming really kicks in. http://arctic-news.blogspot.com says that el nino next year should kick off the East Siberian Arctic Shelf methane bomb and then the planet will really double in warming - fast.