Adobe 101 “Adobe Design and Construction Worldwide”
Institution: Northern New Mexico College – El Rito Campus
Course Title: Adobe 101 “Adobe Design and Construction Worldwide” (Blackboard/Internet)
Degree: This class can be applied to NNMC’s Certificate in Adobe Construction.
Instructor: Kurt Gardella
Credits: 3
Dates and Registration: see www.adobecollege.com
This 8-week internet class covers the fundamentals of building with earth. We work through the current New Mexico Earthen Materials Building Code to help define key vocabulary and building procedures of a typical earthen structure. We also look at and discuss other earthen building traditions and techniques used around the world.
Theoretical topics include: the history of adobe design and construction worldwide, an overview of earthen wall building techniques past and present, an overview of earthen home characteristics and why earth makes sense as a building material (recyclable/reusable, healthy, low embodied energy, sound proof, breathable), an overview of the main parts of an earthen house from foundation to roof, an overview of main earthen architectural styles found in New Mexico, an overview of basic tools needed for adobe construction.
Our hands-on projects for this course focus on the preliminary steps that need to be taken before building a mud brick house.
Step-by-step hands-on video demos include: performing and evaluating soil tests to determine soil suitability, making a 2-brick mud brick form, making a soil screen, mixing soil for mud bricks and mortar, making and curing your own mud bricks, transporting and storing mud bricks, testing mud bricks for strength, calculating the number of bricks needed for a given project.
The course also provides you with podcast interviews on the above topics with our department chair Quentin Wilson. An online discussion group for interacting with the instructor and fellow students also accompanies the course.