Comment by abathur | Hacker News Reader

Comment by abathur | Hacker News Reader

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> 60% is "other organic material". I wonder what material is this.

IIRC from the YT video in my top-level comment, it's dirt.

> I also wonder how well the sargassum bricks withstand weather.

dopa42365's comment (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37176903) links a paper with the following claim:

> Studies carried out by the Secretariat of Ecology and Environment of Quintana Roo state, Mexico, found that the resistance of the bricks is 75–120 kgf/cm2, while its durability can be up to 120 years, regardless of the region or climate type where they are used (Desrochers et al., 2020). Currently there is no other sustainable material as resistant, or with such a long useful life. Sargabricks are therefore seen as a viable and safe material for the creation of ecofriendly buildings.

(edit: But the OP link also contains this 120y assertion. I haven't checked the paper's citations, so I'm not sure if everyone's depending on the cited study's analysis, or if that study is laundering claims by the people making the bricks)

> I also wonder how well the sargassum bricks withstand weather.

In the video they mention the first house built using these bricks was in 2018. It's still standing and looks like it's in good condition. They also mention the homes they build with these bricks are strong enough to withstand hurricanes.

Worth noting that these characteristics generally hold for most cob bricks as well. It doesn't seem like it's particularly special because of the seaweed except that it's a way to use an abundant resource. Significant imo because of the minimal treatment necessary and lack of ecological harm in construction.

Wanna renovate? Wanna expand your building? Wanna take it apart and rebuild it entirely? It's basically just dirt so it's flexible to future growth and needs with minimal costs. The West tends to build buildings as if they're permanent but of course even skyscrapers need to come down eventually. All that glass, plastic, and even stuff like asbestos previously, is eventually gonna be taken apart. Usually mostly dumped to a landfill

Round homes without sharp corners fare better than rectangular homes in hurricanes probably because the wind shearing force is lower. Deltec Homes sells round, radial homes: https://www.google.com/search?q=deltec+youtube+hurricane

Hempcrete on structural forms like LEGOs another type of CEB Compressed Earth Block: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compressed_earth_block

Radial blocks make turning corners with various radii easier; so that the wind doesn't grab the ~K'Nex cube of the structure and shear it under the roof and around the stairs.

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