Welcome to the Newberry Adventure!
They say that one should not say "site under contruction" because why did you put it up if it ain't finished.
Well, they could say why are you living in a house that ain't finished yet?
My answer would be that it will never really be finished as there will always be one more thing to do, one more thing to change. I've been fooling with this house for 10 years now and there is only so much one can write about clay and sand. Love the stuff, don't get me wrong, but it's time to expand. One bit of new information is that most of my current projects concern interior type work. For example since the walls are mud, you can't really nail into them very well. So I have begun to work with small pine trees harvested off my land that are about the size of a 2 x 4, perhaps a bit bigger in some cases, perhaps a bit smaller in others. I'm working on some closets now and will shortly be adding some to the kitchen to be able to hang cabnets. What I do is peel the logs using a draw knife and then I basically use them in place of regular lumber.
Anyway, at this stage of the game I will be getting more into using ferro-cement to create a ferro-cement roof as well as some walls. While in all honesty, I've mostly used hand techniques in the many of my processess, I've also realized if I have any hope of finishing in my lifetime it does not hurt to check out labor saving devices. One of those devices is the Hopper-sprayer by Nolan Scheid. You can see his link in the resources section on the left.
I'll be adding more photos and updates as I begin to re-do this web site and try to keep you posted on the Newberry adventure.
Pat
