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Wow!!!

I was just wondering if you could review what your doing with the walls and ceilings. Are you putting Drywall on the walls or is there some kind of plaster being put on directly? I read at the beginning of the thread that styrofoam beads are put in the walls and it looks like some kind of styrofoam panels on the ceiling as well. Any info on acoustic treatment and insulation package would be great!

Holy doodley–squat, you guys have a beautiful place to call home! Keep the pictures coming!

Originally Posted by BohemiaBeerBash

I was just wondering if you could review what your doing with the walls and ceilings. Are you putting Drywall on the walls or is there some kind of plaster being put on directly? I read at the beginning of the thread that styrofoam beads are put in the walls and it looks like some kind of styrofoam panels on the ceiling as well. Any info on acoustic treatment and insulation package would be great!

Walls are just plain 8" block. We filled the cells with foam beads to see if it will help insulate the block some. Some "experts" say it won't help. Others I know swear it makes a huge difference. Time will tell.

The walls are plastered with a mixture of sand and concrete, then have two coats of fine stucco on the exterior. The interior has one coat of stucco and one coat of pega-pasta. Pega-pasta is a super smooth plaster. The interior non-bearing walls will be steel studs and drywall.

The styrofoam panels are wired into, then poured within the concrete roof. Those panels do provide a lot of insulation for the roof. The interior ceiling, which is mostly foam, has two coats of stucco. The stucco adheres to the foam just fine. The two coats are left for about a week to shrink and crack. After a week, a third coat is applied. We did this same process in our guest house and garage, and in 7 years we haven't had any cracks form in the ceiling after applying the third coat of stucco.

Other than the foam in the roof, the only insulation we have are the foam beads in the walls. To keep warm in the winter, we'll have a gas stove, and to keep cool in the summer we tried to situate the shade structures so that most of the south and west walls are shaded in the afternoon. Windows are positioned to capture the breezes in summer. Nothing high tech.

No acoustic treatment. It's your normal echoing concrete interior. Furniture helps some.


Below is the first story roof / second story floor being poured. Concrete was hauled to the roof one bucket at a time:

Originally Posted by BigWooo

Walls are just plain 8" block. We filled the cells with foam beads to see if it will help insulate the block some. Some "experts" say it won't help. Others I know swear it makes a huge difference. Time will tell.

The walls are plastered with a mixture of sand and concrete, then have two coats of fine stucco on the exterior. The interior has one coat of stucco and one coat of pega-pasta. Pega-pasta is a super smooth plaster. The interior non-bearing walls will be steel studs and drywall.

The styrofoam panels are wired into, then poured within the concrete roof. Those panels do provide a lot of insulation for the roof. The interior ceiling, which is mostly foam, has two coats of stucco. The stucco adheres to the foam just fine. The two coats are left for about a week to shrink and crack. After a week, a third coat is applied. We did this same process in our guest house and garage, and in 7 years we haven't had any cracks form in the ceiling after applying the third coat of stucco.

Other than the foam in the roof, the only insulation we have are the foam beads in the walls. To keep warm in the winter, we'll have a gas stove, and to keep cool in the summer we tried to situate the shade structures so that most of the south and west walls are shaded in the afternoon. Windows are positioned to capture the breezes in summer. Nothing high tech.

No acoustic treatment. It's your normal echoing concrete interior. Furniture helps some.


Below is the first story roof / second story floor being poured:

(pictures later...my Hughesnet is running too slow to upload pics right now.)

Thanks for the great detail for those not really understanding what goes into concrete block construction. Most people in california are use to wood stud walls with paper/tyvek and stucco on the outside.

Originally Posted by BigWooo

Walls are just plain 8" block. We filled the cells with foam beads to see if it will help insulate the block some. Some "experts" say it won't help. Others I know swear it makes a huge difference. Time will tell.

The walls are plastered with a mixture of sand and concrete, then have two coats of fine stucco on the exterior. The interior has one coat of stucco and one coat of pega-pasta. Pega-pasta is a super smooth plaster. The interior non-bearing walls will be steel studs and drywall.

The styrofoam panels are wired into, then poured within the concrete roof. Those panels do provide a lot of insulation for the roof. The interior ceiling, which is mostly foam, has two coats of stucco. The stucco adheres to the foam just fine. The two coats are left for about a week to shrink and crack. After a week, a third coat is applied. We did this same process in our guest house and garage, and in 7 years we haven't had any cracks form in the ceiling after applying the third coat of stucco.

Other than the foam in the roof, the only insulation we have are the foam beads in the walls. To keep warm in the winter, we'll have a gas stove, and to keep cool in the summer we tried to situate the shade structures so that most of the south and west walls are shaded in the afternoon. Windows are positioned to capture the breezes in summer. Nothing high tech.

No acoustic treatment. It's your normal echoing concrete interior. Furniture helps some.


Below is the first story roof / second story floor being poured. Concrete was hauled to the roof one bucket at a time:

Thinking about this further I wonder how much energy is conducted from the outer wall to the inner wall through the interior part of the blocks. Theoretically if there was no contact between the two I would think that the beads would provide air gaps which insulate with no conducting medium. Even though I don't know much about physics I did pick up on the concept of Gradients from a soils class I once took. I really notice this even when plastic vertical blinds are closed the room stays warmer because it blocks the Cold gradient during the night. What do you think?

Originally Posted by BohemiaBeerBash

Thinking about this further I wonder how much energy is conducted from the outer wall to the inner wall through the interior part of the blocks. Theoretically if there was no contact between the two I would think that the beads would provide air gaps which insulate with no conducting medium. Even though I don't know much about physics I did pick up on the concept of Gradients from a soils class I once took. I really notice this even when plastic vertical blinds are closed the room stays warmer because it blocks the Cold gradient during the night. What do you think?

It's against the law to even think at this level in Baja.

Originally Posted by DENNIS

It's against the law to even think at this level in Baja.

I agree, that just makes my brain hurt thinking about it. Let's see...each block has approximately 2.65 inches of conducting materlal. Multiply that times the density quotient as defined by the R-value of sand grain density, taking into account the quantity of white vs black sand, compression, and curing time. Apply that value to the C-value of cement, which of course varies by latitude. Divide that by.....

I just hope it's a bit warmer inside in the winter

Originally Posted by BigWooo

I just hope it's a bit warmer inside in the winter

I'm from the "Put on more clothes" school. Always seems to warm things up for me.

Electric blankets are tops on our list...

A guy next to us when down was doing something interesting for his roof/ceiling to add a bit of insulation for retaining both heat and keeping it a little cooler ...

He went between the "beams/studs" for the roof with, with 1 x 12's using the beams to tack a "rail" 1 x 2's in redwood on both sides forming the support for the insulation and the cover of 1 x 12's...

The opening created was large enough to place R-38, cut into sections and then cover by sliding the 1 x 12's down to the end of the roof's slope then working back up to the gables... also helps for pulling wire...

Came out looking really nice, and the lady who's home we were renting was going to have it done also... along with beefing up the roll down shades to help also on heat retention and/or reduction..

I took pictures, but can't find them at the moment...

Thought it to be a very good idea ... and not too much in cost either...

Our home in Nopolo has plenty of A/C but no heat. In mid winter the inside temperature gets some times to 68 at its coldest. Really no need for heat, a sweater will do. Can't say the same for A/C though. And I'm with BG about electric blankets.

Originally Posted by edinnopolo

Our home in Nopolo has plenty of A/C but no heat. In mid winter the inside temperature gets some times to 68 at its coldest. Really no need for heat, a sweater will do. Can't say the same for A/C though. And I'm with BG about electric blankets.

To put that in context; we're spending $350/month to get our house UP to about 65. We probably get even with you in the summer, with us not needing any AC, but I'm cold pretty much all the time in the winter.

Folks sure are different. I couldn't care less how cold it gets at night as long as I'm under a pile of bedcovers. Even in Boston winters I used to sleep with a window cracked (old building with a steam boiler and radiators). But once I crawl out, I'm bundled for the Yukon until it hits 80 or so.

This is a serious question for all you science geeks: Why is it that the same thermostat setting yields a different temperature "feel" in AC vs. heat? For example, my family's home in the US has central heating and AC (one system). When the heat is on, I'm comfortable at 70-71, uncomfortably hot at 73, and extremely hot at 75. With the AC on, I'm in severe hypothermia at anything below 75. At work I used to set my mini-split at 24C, which I think is about 75, to keep myself awake, though I needed a sweater.

Originally Posted by edinnopolo

Our home in Nopolo has plenty of A/C but no heat. In mid winter the inside temperature gets some times to 68 at its coldest. Really no need for heat, a sweater will do. Can't say the same for A/C though. And I'm with BG about electric blankets.

This has been a mild winter so far. The guest house, where we are currently living, which has no insulation in the walls, has been hovering around 67/68 degrees. The prior two winters though, it was much colder outside and the indoor temp was around 62, which to us is way to cold. I don't mind heat, but I hate cold. When the windy season starts, being holed up in a 62 degree ice box is pretty uncomfortable. A nice gas stove will be a welcome addition.

I don't know what electric blankets draw for electricity, but with solar power it may be a bit too much? Can't wear an electric blanket all day long.

Originally Posted by BigWooo

I agree, that just makes my brain hurt thinking about it. Let's see...each block has approximately 2.65 inches of conducting materlal. Multiply that times the density quotient as defined by the R-value of sand grain density, taking into account the quantity of white vs black sand, compression, and curing time. Apply that value to the C-value of cement, which of course varies by latitude. Divide that by.....

I just hope it's a bit warmer inside in the winter

You guys are making this more complicated than I wanted. When you stack the cement blocks together the ends are cement together that creates a path for moving temperature from outside to inside. That's all! One Molecule next to another molecule will conduct energy. I was just trying to come up with a hypothesis why concreat blocks are bad at insulating without additional help. Geesh!

Originally Posted by BohemiaBeerBash

You guys are making this more complicated than I wanted. When you stack the cement blocks together the ends are cement together that creates a path for moving temperature from outside to inside. That's all! One Molecule next to another molecule will conduct energy. I was just trying to come up with a hypothesis why concreat blocks are bad at insulating without additional help. Geesh!

Beerbash, you're right, the solid parts of the blocks are pathways for heat/cold transfer. BajaGringo had his blocks made with volcanic cinders in place of typical aggregate because the cinders are filled with tiny air pockets, and he then used cinders in the grout mix that fills the empty cells of the block and attaches the re-bar to the rest of the structure. The cinders create air pockets, which in turn break conduction through the block walls, at least a little.

Seems like the typical concrete roof incorporates foam blocks between concrete beams. There are still pathways for direct conduction, but not as many.

No one seems too concerned about super insulated walls. I know of some homes on the Sea of Cortez side that are regular block construction on 3 sides, and concrete filled foam forms on the south sides, where the summer heat comes from.

There are a number of peoples construction threads here, read through them, and then ask more questions. Everyone here seems very willing to share their information. Unless,of course, you want to know where that "secret" surf spot is located!

Wow, seriously cool pad... props to you both.

Originally Posted by BajaGringo

Setting up off-grid living requires some extra money and work...but it does have a couple of very nice benefits...haven't had to reset the microwave clock since we first bought and installed it.

Aporogies to our Asian friends in advance.