Building with stone & earth: Part II
Practical Action
done with either pure mud mortar (remember to wet the walls to help the plaster stick if this
is done after the wall is completely dry) or with a plaster made with cement. Cement-based
plaster does help prevent minor damage in the rains, but if it is difficult for you to get
supplies, do not worry; your building will still be good and strong. If the outside is plastered,
some people paint their rondavel a single colour, and then decorate it with a simple design.
In parts of Africa, some family groups are known by the different pictures each one uses.
Painting the rondavels white helps keep them cool in the hot season, and makes them look
very smart and cheerful.
Maintaining your building
Your building will last very many years -almost certainly much longer than you! There should
be very little need for any maintenance or repairs, provided you have made built a roof which
hangs over the walls as much as possible, as explained in the previous article. You may need
to mix up a little bit of mud mortar and press it in between the stones after the rainy season,
but it is unlikely. The roof will probably need more regular maintenance than the building.
Further reading
Building with Stone and Earth - Part 1 Practical Action Technical Brief
Building Dry Stone Walls Practical Action Video
Stone: An introduction A Shadmon Practical Action Publishing 1996
This article was originally written for the Appropriate Technology magazine
24/Number 3 Dec 1997 by Richard Tufnell, a dry stone mason with many years
experience of dry stone, and illustrated for the Appropriate Technology magazine
by Bill Holmes, also a mason
Richard Tufnell
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