skip to main content
Your Cosentino Shop
Sign In
Join as a Pro
History of Houzz
  • PHOTOS
    KITCHEN & DINING
    • Kitchen
    • Dining
    • Outdoor Kitchen
    • Kitchen Islands
    LIVING
    • Living Room
    • Family Room
    • Home Theatre
    • Sunroom
    • Fireplace
    • Study Room
    BATHROOM
    • Bathroom
    • Laundry
    • Powder Room
    • Small Bathroom
    BEDROOM
    • Bedroom
    • Kids Bedroom
    • Nursery
    • Master Bedroom
    • Storage & Wardrobe
    KERB APPEAL
    • Exterior
    • Driveway
    • Carport
    • Garage
    • Entry
    OUTDOOR
    • Garden
    • Courtyard
    • Balcony
    • Deck
    • Patio
    • Pool
    • All Outdoor
    MORE IDEAS
    • Granny Flat
    • Home Office
    • Home Gym
    • Staircase
    • Home Bar
    • Wine Cellar
    • View All
  • FIND PROFESSIONALS
    BUILDING & RENOVATION
    • Architects
    • Home Builders
    • Building Designers
    • Design & Construction
    DESIGN & INTERIORS
    • Interior Designers & Decorators
    • Home Stylists & Property Staging
    • Painting & Wallpaper
    • Carpet & Flooring
    • Shutters, Blinds & Curtains
    • Furniture & Home Decor
    • Artists & Artisans
    GARDEN & LANDSCAPING
    • Landscape Architects & Designers
    • Landscape Contractors
    • Garden & Landscape Supplies
    • Arborists & Tree Services
    OUTDOOR & EXTERIOR
    • Pools & Spas
    • Decks, Patios & Structures
    • Fencing & Gates
    • Driveways & Paving
    • Stone, Pavers & Concrete
    • Cladding & Exterior Contractors
    • Roofing & Gutters
    • Blacksmiths & Welders
    KITCHEN & BATHROOM
    • Kitchen Designers & Renovators
    • Bathroom Designers & Renovators
    • Kitchen & Bath Fixtures
    • Tile, Stone & Benchtops
    • Joinery & Cabinet Makers
    HOME SERVICES
    • Lighting
    • Heating & Air Conditioning
    • Fireplaces
    • Windows
    • Doors
    • Staircases & Balustrades
    • Wine Cellars
    SYDNEY
    • Architects in Sydney
    • Bathroom Renovators in Sydney
    • Builders in Sydney
    • Interior Designers in Sydney
    • Kitchen Renovators in Sydney
    • Landscapers in Sydney
    MELBOURNE
    • Architects in Melbourne
    • Builders in Melbourne
    • Bathroom Renovators in Melbourne
    • Landscapers in Melbourne
    • Interior Designers in Melbourne
    BRISBANE
    • Architects in Brisbane
    • Builders in Brisbane
    • Landscapers in Brisbane
    • Bathroom Renovators in Brisbane
    • Cabinet Makers in Brisbane
    • Fencing in Brisbane
    PERTH
    • Landscapers in Perth
    • Tilers in Perth
    • Bathroom Renovators in Perth
    • Kitchen Renovators in Perth
    • Cabinet Makers in Perth
    • Architects in Perth
    View All Pros View All Services
  • STORIES
    STORIES FROM HOUZZ
    • Houzz Tours
    • Kitchens
    • Bathrooms
    • More Rooms
    • Renovating
    • Building
    • Architecture
    • Interior Design
    • Gardens
    • Eco Living
    • Lifestyle
    • News Stories
    • How to Use Houzz
    HOUZZ RESEARCH
    HOUZZ TV
  • ADVICE
    HOUZZ DISCUSSIONS
    • Design Dilemma
    • Before & After
    • Polls
    • Kitchens
    • Living Rooms
    • Bathrooms
    • Gardens
    • Renovating
    • Home Decorating
    • Exterior
    • Flooring
    • Building a home
Sustainable Ideas
Sustainable Ideas
A Bad Wrap: How to Embrace Plastic Bag-Free Shopping
Top Ideabooks
A Bad Wrap: How to Embrace Plastic Bag-Free ShoppingCould You Live Like a Minimalist?Freegans! 14 Ways to Decorate Your Bedroom for Free7 Everyday Steps to an Environmentally Friendly Home
Appears in
Eco Living
Sustainable Homes
Sustainable Homes
Eco-Smart: The 5 Principles of Passivhaus Design
Top Ideabooks
Eco-Smart: The 5 Principles of Passivhaus DesignOdour-Free Composting Made EasyHouzz Tour: A Pioneering Passive House in AustraliaSo You Want a Sustainable Kitchen? Everything You Need to Know
Appears in
Houzz Tours
Building Components
Building Components
Best of the Week: 32 Spaces Where Tapware Steals the Show
Top Ideabooks
Best of the Week: 32 Spaces Where Tapware Steals the ShowPicture Perfect: 60 Amazing Exposed Ceilings Around the Globe10 Fresh Ideas for Good-Looking Timber Fences9 Things You Need to Know About Skylights
Appears in
Latest from Houzz
See also
ExteriorsFlooringWindowsCladdingDoorsRoofs and CeilingsFoundationsWalls
Eco Living
Eco Living
7 Everyday Steps to an Environmentally Friendly Home
Top Ideabooks
7 Everyday Steps to an Environmentally Friendly Home5 Secrets to Running Your Home Appliances More Efficiently7 Ways Sustainability is Changing Danish DesignTest Yourself: How Eco-Friendly Is your Lifestyle?
Appears in
Latest from Houzz
See also
Healthy HomeSustainable Ideas

Are Rammed-Earth Walls the Next Big Thing?

Rammed earth has natural warmth and beauty, plus the benefits of sustainability, durability and fire-resistance

Rebecca Gross
Rebecca GrossMarch 9, 2019
Houzz Australia Contributor based in Sydney. Design historian, writer and researcher. I study cultural history through the lens of architecture, design and visual culture. I have a Masters in the History of Decorative Arts and Design from Parsons The New School for Design, New York
More
Print
Embed
Facebook
Twitter
Email
Rammed earth is a construction technique that has been around for thousands of years and makes up long stretches of the Great Wall of China, the magnificent Kasbahs of Morocco and the enchanting Alhambra in Spain. It is also increasingly seen in contemporary architecture, revived as a sustainable building material for residential housing. The renewed interest in rammed earth walls is due to its thermal mass, strength, durability and visual impressiveness. Rammed-earth houses also have natural warmth and beauty that help tie them to the land and natural environment. Here, we lay the groundwork in this guide to rammed-earth walls in residential architecture.
Mihaly Slocombe
What are rammed-earth walls?
Rammed-earth walls are constructed by ramming an aggregate mixture, including gravel, sand, silt and clay, between flat panels, frames or moulds (otherwise known as formwork). It is an on-site construction method, and removing the formwork reveals the rammed-earth wall.

Traditionally, a wooden pole was used to ram and compress the earth mixture. Today, a mechanical ram is used. Plumbing and electrical points are positioned internally as the walls are constructed.
Rammed Earth Enterprises
Stabilised rammed-earth walls
Most modern rammed-earth walls in Australia are stabilised rammed earth. This means a small amount of cement is added to the traditional mixture for increased strength and durability. They are also usually coated with an air-permeable sealer to increase longevity. Stabilised rammed-earth walls are typically 300 millimetres thick for external walls and 200 or 300 millimetres thick for internal walls.
Mihaly Slocombe
This house on the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria has 300-millimetre-thick stabilised rammed-earth walls, with no finish. The wall acts as a spine in the house, providing a strong visual element and thermal mass, which helps maintain a comfortable stable internal temperature throughout the year.

Renovation Insight: How to Choose a Sustainable Architect
Tim Ditchfield Architects
Insulated stabilised earth
Rammed earth has limited thermal insulating qualities. However, insulated rammed-earth walls – 400-millimetres-plus thick with a 50-millimetre styrofoam insert – can achieve higher R-value levels and are used more commonly for external walls. R-value is a material’s resistance to conductive heat flow and is measured in terms of its thermal resistance. The higher the R-value, the greater the insulating effectiveness.
Rammed Earth Enterprises
Appearance of rammed-earth walls
The natural materials used in the mixture will determine the colour of rammed-earth walls. Materials are often sourced locally to help buildings blend into their local environments, particularly in rural settings. Rammed-earth walls are typically cream, sand-coloured, peach, light tan or grey through to deep red.
Luigi Rosselli Architects
Step Inside Some of the Most Eco-Friendly Homes in Australia
Luigi Rosselli Architects
These 12 rammed-earth apartments have been dug into a sand hill in Western Australia, and the 230-metre-long rammed-earth wall is made from local soil and gravel. The iron-rich and sandy soil was extracted from local clay pans, along with pebbles and gravel quarried from the river bed. The result is a colour palette that blends seamlessly into the landscape.
Steffen Welsch Architects
The ramming process, done layer by layer, can introduce the effect of horizontal or stratified lines that can be used as a feature or removed altogether. Additionally, natural iron-oxide pigments can be introduced to influence the desired colour, and stones can be exposed or incorporated as features or for special effect. The texture and shaping of the formwork will also affect the final result.

Browse more contemporary living rooms here
Adrian Ramsay Design House
Benefits of rammed-earth walls
  • Excellent thermal mass: Rammed-earth walls collect heat from the sun during the day and release that warmth at night. The thickness and density of the material also means the heat or cold penetration of the wall is very slow and the internal temperature of the building remains comparatively stable.
Rammed earth is not recommended for tropical climates as walls can cause a house to hold too much heat.
Eco Sustainable Homes
  • Fire resistance: Rammed-earth walls are fire resistant as they contain no flammable components. CSIRO tests have demonstrated that a 250-millimetre rammed-earth wall achieves a four-hour fire-resistance rating. This home in Victoria is designed with rammed-earth walls for practical protection in a highly bushfire-prone area.
Feldman Architecture, Inc.
  • Low maintenance: Rammed-earth walls are extremely easy to care for. Once sealed, they shouldn’t need maintaining for at least 10 to 20 years, after which a second coat of sealer may be applied to exposed walls.

Eco Design Principles From the Ground Up
Kathryn Robson
  • Natural appeal: The beauty of rammed-earth walls is in its natural qualities, but they can be plastered, rendered or painted over should a change be desired.
Bryant Alsop Architects
  • Breathability: Rammed-earth walls are porous by nature. They are non-toxic, non-polluting and ‘breathe’, which can regulate interior humidity and improve indoor air quality, making them suitable for people with respiratory problems.
  • Sound insulating: Rammed-earth walls provide excellent sound insulation due to the materials and massing, and the dimming of external noise provides a quieter ambience.
Atelier Hsu
  • Moisture-resistance: In general, rammed-earth walls have moderate to good moisture resistance and do not require waterproofing. New water-repellent additives can be added for exposed external walls, but they may inhibit the breathability of the material.
Feldman Architecture, Inc.
  • Durability: Rammed earth is very strong in compression. Their load-bearing abilities usually exceed that of most timber-framed houses, and research in New Zealand indicates that rammed-earth walls perform better under earthquake conditions than brick walls.


Tell us
Are you building an eco home? Tell us about it in the Comments below, like this story, save your favourite images and join the conversation.

More
Thinking of working rammed-earth walls into your next renovation? Find a local architect here for advice on eco-friendly building techniques
Print
Embed
Facebook
Twitter
Email
See 22 comments
Explore Related Topics
Sustainable IdeasSustainable HomesBuilding ComponentsEco Living
Read Related Stories
A Bad Wrap: How to Embrace Plastic Bag-Free ShoppingA Bad Wrap: How to Embrace Plastic Bag-Free Shopping
By Janet Dunn·71
Sustainable Homes
Could You Live Like a Minimalist?Could You Live Like a Minimalist?
By Julia Fairley·23
Lifestyle
Freegans! 14 Ways to Decorate Your Bedroom for FreeFreegans! 14 Ways to Decorate Your Bedroom for Free
By Pia Sinha·3
Decorating
7 Everyday Steps to an Environmentally Friendly Home7 Everyday Steps to an Environmentally Friendly Home
By Kate Shaw·17
Eco Living
Slow Living Comes to Home DesignSlow Living Comes to Home Design
By Giulia Zappa·18
Trends
It's Time to Get Inspired by These Sustainable SolutionsIt's Time to Get Inspired by These Sustainable Solutions
By Houzz AU·16
Sustainable Ideas
How Do You Run a Sustainable Business?How Do You Run a Sustainable Business?
By Houzz AU·1
For Pros
In Conversation With Cradle to Cradle Founder Michael BraungartIn Conversation With Cradle to Cradle Founder Michael Braungart
By Jadranka Kursar·25
For Pros
Designer Tips for Using Sustainability in Interior DesignDesigner Tips for Using Sustainability in Interior Design
By Houzz AU·6
Houzz TV
How Modern Architecture Can Connect Us to NatureHow Modern Architecture Can Connect Us to Nature
By Annie Thornton·17
Architecture
Global Snapshot: Sustainability Solutions from Around the WorldGlobal Snapshot: Sustainability Solutions from Around the World
By Houzz AU·5
Houzz Around The World
So You Want a Sustainable Kitchen? Everything You Need to KnowSo You Want a Sustainable Kitchen? Everything You Need to Know
By Georgia Madden·5
Kitchens
Earth Day: 12 Sustainable Ideas From Landscapers Around the WorldEarth Day: 12 Sustainable Ideas From Landscapers Around the World
By Lauren Dunec Hoang·44
Most Popular
Global Snapshot: Challenges to Building a Sustainable FutureGlobal Snapshot: Challenges to Building a Sustainable Future
By Houzz AU·8
Houzz Around The World
10 Furniture Classics You Can Turn Into Bathroom Vanities10 Furniture Classics You Can Turn Into Bathroom Vanities
By Rebecca Gross·10
Most Popular
People who liked this story also liked
A Bad Wrap: How to Embrace Plastic Bag-Free Shopping
A Bad Wrap: How to Embrace Plastic Bag-Free ShoppingFull Story
Could You Live Like a Minimalist?
Could You Live Like a Minimalist?Full Story
Freegans! 14 Ways to Decorate Your Bedroom for Free
Freegans! 14 Ways to Decorate Your Bedroom for FreeFull Story
7 Everyday Steps to an Environmentally Friendly Home
7 Everyday Steps to an Environmentally Friendly HomeFull Story
Slow Living Comes to Home Design
Slow Living Comes to Home DesignFull Story
It's Time to Get Inspired by These Sustainable Solutions
It's Time to Get Inspired by These Sustainable SolutionsFull Story
How Do You Run a Sustainable Business?
How Do You Run a Sustainable Business?Full Story
In Conversation With Cradle to Cradle Founder Michael Braungart
In Conversation With Cradle to Cradle Founder Michael BraungartFull Story
Designer Tips for Using Sustainability in Interior Design
Designer Tips for Using Sustainability in Interior DesignFull Story
How Modern Architecture Can Connect Us to Nature
How Modern Architecture Can Connect Us to NatureFull Story
  • Australia
  • ABOUT
  • MOBILE APPS
  • PROFESSIONALS
  • BUTTONS
  • FAQs
  • CAREERS
  • ADVERTISE
  • Terms & Privacy
  • © 2021 Houzz Inc.