What is Digg?102 Comments
- marleysm, on 10/12/2007, -2/+24you can apply a natural resin to it so it hardens.that's what i think she is applying to the floor in the pic
- dominasian, on 10/12/2007, -4/+22id like that, absorbent flooring. that way when i spill a coke a can just let it get absorbed instead of just throwing a newspaper over it
- radu79, on 10/12/2007, -2/+20Actually, yes and no.
We used to have a dirt floor way back when I spent my vacations in the country. They are pretty nice if they stay dry. But if you spill some liquid on them, they get muddy and dirty and then the mud gets on your shoes/feet and it sucks. - a7bat, on 10/12/2007, -1/+18Here's a photo of an earthen floor: http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2007/02/08/garden/dirt.03.450.jpg
Is that tacky or nice? - a7bat, on 10/12/2007, -2/+18FTA: "Once sealed with a mixture of linseed oil and beeswax, it would theoretically be firm and water-repellent. Fans of such floors say that soapy water will clean them without turning them to mud, and that another coat of oil can renew the shine."
- Junkey, on 10/12/2007, -3/+19How much does this mud cost? My guess is a lot.
- radu79, on 10/12/2007, -0/+16But it's put in an oven for a while, and it changes it's structure.
- a7bat, on 10/12/2007, -4/+17FTA: "Labor costs included, earthen floors can run as little as $5 a square foot, compared with $15 or more for hardwood."
If you do it yourself, along with friends, the cost can even be lower. - hoyaman, on 10/12/2007, -1/+13UM, kind of like you never ever want to use too much water or oil when cleaning wood floors.....
wood: not water-resistant or waterproof
And don't even get started on wall-to-wall carpets, water, and mold...... - 13thfloor, on 10/12/2007, -0/+11Water-resistant, not waterproof. You would still want to soak up any spills before they soak in too far.
- TomP, on 10/12/2007, -5/+16What if you dropped a glass on the floor, there would be tiny bits of glass imbedded in the floor
- msprout, on 10/12/2007, -0/+10Doesn't this kinda forfeit the 5 second rule?
- broeks, on 10/12/2007, -0/+9That was the policy at my college house, and we didn't have mud floors.
- ELEM, on 10/12/2007, -2/+10ok come on digg, the edit system here is cool, but kind of weak at the same time. Once you click the edit button, lets please stop the timer. lets get on that!
- Wolfboy, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7as Kevin and Co. tell us: "Link to the source", not the blog that copied the source:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/08/garden/08dirt.html?_r=1&oref=slogin - 13thfloor, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7I worked at a lumberyard in the hippie capital of northern California, Humboldt. We sold a lot of bamboo flooring. It is very nice and costs less than the highest grades of wood flooring. Mud floor? Sounds like a fad. Don't think it's for me, but I'd still like to see one.
- a7bat, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8I think if I want a hardwood floor, I'd go with Bamboo. I recently saw a display at Costco and it looked very nice. Plus, bamboo can grow much more quicker compared to a tree's growth span.
- xrisnothing, on 10/12/2007, -2/+9Wow, quetranza, those damned hippies must really piss you off. From what I can tell, your position is that since we have SUV's, land for suburbs, land in Alaska to drill, we should take full avail of such opportunities to pollute the world we live in, like it's some kind of god given right, no duty, to do so. That's awesome.
- SPLASTiK, on 10/12/2007, -2/+8I'd rather have thick grassy jungle floors.
- Havoc114, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7@elem
Then you could press edit and leave the window open for ages and edit it pretty much anytime, nullifying the whole reason for having an edit time limit in the first place.
Solutions: Proof read your posts before posting or type faster ;) - hoyaman, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7@Mntbikeracr1
Well, apparently, hippies are rich, is that what you are saying?
And wood, tile, and marble floors are somehow "comfortable?" You ride mountain bikes and you don't find laying down on the ground comfortable?
It's an option. Those of us who like it can choose it. YAY CHOICE! - XStatic, on 10/12/2007, -3/+8Tile is made out of clay or stone, it all starts as mud...
- satanatnmtedu, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5Plus, it could be abused where I write something offensive, others call me on it, I edit it away and complain about the replying people and their rants on innocuous comments. Having a limit on editing comments is a good thing.
- devilbush, on 10/12/2007, -3/+8Great. Spill your coffee, down into the basement you go. I'm doomed.
- iDragonFly, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5Thanks for the link.
It answers a lot of questions brought up on this thread.
By the way, I think mud floors are gorgeous. - smackhero, on 10/12/2007, -2/+6that wouldn't work very well. there'd be a bunch of sugar/syrup in that area that'd still be sticky and attract ants or whatever. just cause the dirt might absorb moisture doesn't mean it will clean itself.
- cliffzdude, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Tile is a great flooring. Natural and all, economical if you don't go all Martha Stewart when you select tile.
My home is built on a concrete slab (Florida). Many homes here are just finishing off the concrete, polishing it and such to make a great floor. Considering I'm on a concrete slab anyway, this seems a bit silly. If one could build a home and be right on Mother Earth without a slab, with footers for the structure perhaps, I'd still hate to see what may poke its head out through my floor some day... - HadBeans, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Mud floors are big in Indonesia this year
- pgiessel, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3"But who can resist flooring that is this attractive, comfortable to walk on, heat-absorbing, and earth-friendly?"
Me. - betacmag4u, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3what about ultra cheap softwood floors. Maybe scrap from house building? cant get much greener than that.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3As a matter of fact, it does.
- a7bat, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4Well the article does state that mud (even if it is from your backyard) is not the only ingredient. Other ingredients include lime and sand, along with linseed oil and beeswax with any other components needed for the mix.
- smackhero, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4oh c'mon. give him a break. the "a" and "o" keys are so close to each other...
- bigredsk10, on 10/12/2007, -13/+16But wouldnt the bottoms of your feet always be dirty?
- jwigum, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4Two words:
Ant Hill. - smackhero, on 10/12/2007, -5/+8congrats. you win the most incoherent rant against environmentalism award!
- exodii, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5I logged in to digg just to digg you down. Just so you know.
- kirakun, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3"But who can resist flooring that is this attractive, comfortable to walk on, heat-absorbing, and earth-friendly?"
I'm not sure about the earth-friendly part, but Japanese Tatami mats are also really attractive, comfortable to walk on, heat-absorbing too. And I bet it smells and looks better than the mud too.
http://www.haikudesigns.com/images/shc-tatami.jpg - lifewithout, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3The rich and hip totally fetishize dire poverty.
- Tmacman, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2and you wouldn't have to be yelled at for tracking muddy feet across her floor, LOL
- bobcrotch, on 10/12/2007, -2/+4And the best part is that it isn't Vegan friendly!
Beeswax for the win - benijuana, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3i would love a mud floor. I would dance around to animal collective records in a hallucinatory trance, and paint myself camouflage to scare visitors
- itsxtian, on 10/12/2007, -4/+6All you're missing out on is the 30 ads and picture of the Martha Stewart look alike
article below:
"Track That Mud In!" Earthen Floors Are Hot
by Alex Pasternack, Beijing, China on 02. 8.07
Design & Architecture (flooring)
Okay, so forgoing hardwood or carpet in favor of dirt and mud may seem like going to extremes in the name of treehugging. But who can resist flooring that is this attractive, comfortable to walk on, heat-absorbing, and earth-friendly? The Times has a piece today on the growing buzz over rammed earth floors.
They are part of a small movement interested in “natural building” on the fringes of green architecture [The US Green Building Council doesn't even mention earthen floors in its current guidelines]. But they consider green architecture to be overly focused on energy efficiency, while they are concerned with the eco-friendliness of the entire process. The idea, according to Lloyd Kahn, a former shelter editor of the Whole Earth Catalog, is to use “materials that have as little processing as possible, like dirt, straw and bamboo.”
Because the floors can sometimes prove troublesome (high heels and table legs can cause cracks) a slowly growing number of "natural builders" like Bill and Athena Steen, both of whom grew up in adobe houses in the southwest, are working on making the floors "crack-free, solid, and really serviceable." (Mr. Steen’s canonical guide, “Earthen Floors,” is out of print, but an updated version is to be posted to the couple’s Web site, Canelo Project, within a few months.)
As durable as can be, among the greatest appeals of rammed earth construction (as also evidenced by this recent Architectural Review "Emerging Architecture" nominee) is the ease of getting rid of it -- and re-sourcing it if need be. And then there are the thermal benefits. The high density and low thermal conductivity of earthen materials makes them passive solar devices, easily capturing and retaining heat during the day and releasing it at night. But as warm as earthen floors are, there's no denying their cool factor. “When people walk in, they don’t say, ‘Oh, nice floor,’" says one natural builder. "Everyone gets down on their hands and knees to admire it.”
See Green Builder's sourcebook for information on natural builders near you. Landerland offers a DIY guide and House Alive offers general tips. - jgreath, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2FTA: "Once sealed with a mixture of linseed oil and beeswax, it would theoretically be firm and water-repellent."
I wonder how firm it really is. They do mention this: "high heels and table legs can cause cracks"
While I do find this interesting, I would be worried that my two ferrets would just end up destroying it all (those little weasels love to dig in any kind of dirt) and can be pretty destructive when they put their minds to it.
Personally, I think bamboo flooring seems to be a more reasonable choice. It's durable and fairly cheap, and bamboo regrows much more quickly than trees. - ShBm, on 10/12/2007, -4/+6Is it special mud, or could I just go get a bunch from outside and make my own floor?
- smackhero, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2it's coated with a natural resin to make it water-resistant and also give it a nice polish.
- ulyssesdraco, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2There's plenty of dirt flooring in Mexico, as its dirt cheap. Plain old dirt floor isn't too bad if cleaned regularly. I've been to places with earthen flooring done in this manner; and it's actually quite clean and pretty comfy. Maintenance is a breeze. It also looks very nice.
- iDragonFly, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Why would someone digg down this question?
It seems fairly reasonable to me. - Nevrast, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2@mushishi
"Congrats, you win the award for 'Person Least Able to Understand English'. The term for the concept is externalities; look it up, moran."
I think the word "moron" is also in the dictionary. - PH4GE, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Murine parvovirus? great floor, just do not sweep it!
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