The "Wet Brick" System
​
This is a system we developed in the 1970s, and first applied to this test home in the early 1980s. The system uses small sacks filled with an admixture of concrete and insulating materials (which can include a variety of recycled materials). The sacks are stacked like bricks while still wet, and pinned together with small metal rods for extra strength. After curing, a waterproofing and stucco coating is applied to the exterior, and mortar is applied to the interior, followed by plaster. (Lath strips and drywall can also be applied.) The mortar can include an admixture of fiberglass for high shear strength. Reinforced concrete beams and columns can also be added at the corners and tops for additional shear strength, as was done for this house.
​
Above, the construction process. Below, the finished house.
Below, the plan for the house, just 488 SF.