Modern

Earthen Floors
with
Sukita Reay Crimmel
of
From These Hands
and
Claylin

According to "THE ELEMENTS OF

STYLE" encyclopedia as late as 1625 the
ground floor of most European houses
still lacked a wooden floor. Most houses
had a beaten earth floor that required
visitors to wipe their shoes on a entry
mat to prevent this natural floor from
getting muddy or dusty depending on
the weather. The second floor, if you
could afford one, had wooden joists and
plank flooring sometimes 2 feet wide of
oak or elm.
It wasn't until the Barouque Era (16251714) that wooden floors became elegant,
starting with the French parquetry and
marquetry patterns.
The great abundance of wood in North
America brought common use of the
plank floor on the main floor during the
Colonial Era (1607-1780). At last the
new Americans could get off the
earthen floors and enjoy the resiliency
and warmth of wooden floors.

 Housecleaning for Passover started

weeks before the holiday: airing out
the clothes from the winter
dampness, washing out all the
baking utensils, whitewashing the
stoves, and covering the earthen
floors with a new coat of yellow mud
that we dug up from the backyard
and mixed with water.
The old worn benches were
scrubbed with a brush, using sand as
a cleanser. I used to sweep the
earthen floors with the broom my
father made from birch twigs. I was
young and could hardly hold it in my
small hands -- the broom was as tall
as me

Cracking, dusting, smelling,

denting~ why?

Sand

Straw

Clay soil

Mixing

Even when produced by a machine, a finished earthen

slab is estimated to have 90% lower embodied energy
than finished concrete.
(Adapted from Adobe and Rammed Earth Buildings,
1984)

Earthen floors can go almost anywhere

As a slab on grade

Slab on new or old concrete

Slab on new or old framing

Finished wall
Finish base trim

On Framing
ClaylinTM Finish Wax
ClaylinTM Oil (penetrated into floor inch)

ClaylinTM Finish pour (3/4 - 1 inch thick)

ClaylinTM Base pour (1-5 inches thick)
Hydronic hot water tubes or electric
grid for radiant heated floor (at least
1 inch below finish floor level
Hydronic hot water tubes are stabled
down to decking
Vapor retarder (to keep decking dry)
Decking on top of joists
Insulation between joists or the space is
insulated

This drawing is for assistance in planning your ClaylinTM floor and is not to scale.

 ClaylinTM floor weight of 130 pounds per

cubic feet therefore at
= 7.5 pound per square foot
1" = 10 pounds per square foot
1 = 15.5 pounds per square foot
2 = 20 pounds per square foot

Deflection
A framed floor should have a deflection value similar to what you
need for tile. Deflection is the give in the floor. Measure floor
deflection. Secure a piece of string equidistant from the floor, while
attached at either end to the floorboards on opposite sides of the
room. Measure the distance from the string to the floor at both ends
of the string. Apply a heavy weight to the middle of the room, then
measure the distance from the string to the floor at this location. If
this distance measured is greater than the string-to-floor distance at
either wall, floor deflection is present.
2 Calculate the span (wall to wall) of the string in inches, then divide
by 360 for ceramic tile or earthen floors. This value is the maximum
allowable deflection in inches for a room the size you are testing. If
the string-to-floor measurement at the center of the room exceeds
the string-to-floor measurement at the walls by more than this
amount, excessive deflection is present.

On
Concrete
Slab
Finished wall
Finish base trim

ClaylinTM Finish Wax

ClaylinTM Oil (penetrated into floor inch)

ClaylinTM Finish pour (3/4 - 1 inch thick)

ClaylinTM Base pour (2-4 inches thick)
Hydronic hot water tubes or electric
grid for radiant heated floor (or
inside concrete slab)
Wire grid to tie down Hydronic hot
water tubes (or inside concrete slab)
Poured concrete slab (at least 4 inches)

Insulation (extruded polystyrene)

Vapor Barrier
Compacted drain rock (at least 4 inches)
Compacted sub soil
Perimeter stem wall and footing

This drawing is for assistance in planning your ClaylinTM floor and is not to scale.

Finished wall

On grade

Finish base trim

ClaylinTM Finish Wax

ClaylinTM Oil (penetrated into floor inch)
ClaylinTM Finish pour (3/4 - 1 inch thick)
ClaylinTM Base pour (2-4 inches thick)
Hydronic hot water tubes or electric
grid for radiant heated floor

Wire grid to tie down Hydronic hot

water tubes
Insulation 2-3 inches(rigid or compac
volcanic rock)
Vapor Barrier

Compacted drain rock (at least 4 inches

Compacted sub soil
Perimeter stem wall and footing

This drawing is for assistance in planning your ClaylinTM floor and is not to scale.

Yes, the bathroom

Cleaning products

Yes, re-wax every 1-5 years,

depending on use.

LEED and Living Building

Challenge
Thermal mass that can help regulate energy
needs and overall comfort
Low embodied energy
No toxic heavy metals or chemicals and their
surface is easy to keep clean.
Waste stream materials
Beautiful and inspiring!

ready mix earthen floor product, how to manual, trainings

Claylin
can be installed on grade and on a framed sub-floor or concrete slab.
can be installed into new and remodel construction.
can be designed to use in passive solar designs.
can be poured around radiant heating systems (electric and hydronic).
has a slight give that is kind to the body.
is made of raw non toxic materials.
is made in the USA
has color options available.

Requirements to be a listed Claylin Installer;

Successfully complete a 3 day Claylin Earthen
Floor Installation Training and have applied
1,000 square feet of Claylin floors with client
references for work performed; and submit a
recommendation from a listed Claylin installer.
or
Successfully complete 1 day Claylin, Earthen
Floor Installation Training and have applied
10,000 square feet of Claylin floors with client
references for work performed; and submit a
recommendation from a listed Claylin installer.