On May 8, 6:57*pm, "Joseph Meehan" wrote:
"ransley" wrote in message

...



OK dirt insulates, it sucks out your heat in winter, an insulated
basement wall underground will reduce heating costs. Does dirt
insulate better than stone or concrete, R value of stone might be 0.5-
1 R" im guessing here.

* * You over estimated. *It is about 0.25* as compared to wood at about .50.
Of course when you consider that it is DIRT CHEAP, that's not so bad. * *The
mud buildings in the American southwest use it because of both the price and
the insulation value when you have walls several feet thick.

* *It varies a great deal depending on the soil mix and the amount of water
in it. * It is also a good heat sink and will temper day-night changes very
nicely.

--
Joseph Meehan

*Dia 's Muire duit

In cold climates with no insulation and dirt covering the basement
walls it is a drain on the utility bill, single pane glass is 1R,
imagine heating a glass house. I insulated my basement walls with 2
and 3" of R 7.2 foamboard, up to R 21, it helped dramaticly. Adobe
usage is in areas that even today dont have heating equipment. OP will
save alot by using more than 1" of foam. Logs homes are actualy fairly
well insulated, wood is near 1-1.2R. A 12" log might be 16R