BUILDING WITH TRADITIONAL MATERIALS
:: Houses made with traditional materials must imperatively be constructed by qualified builders, as the know-how required is a veritable craft, passed down from one generation to the next. This tradition and know-how cannot be improvised.
:: Paradoxically, crews experienced in traditional construction are not generally "licensed contractors", the latter being accustomed to building urban-style housing made with concrete and cinder blocks, which require entirely different skills.
:: Traditional construction comes from rural and mountainous regions of Morocco. Those who have mastered its ancient techniques are simple folk, close to nature and raised on rustic lifestyles.
:: It is important to note that building a house with traditional materials is a slow process that can take from one and a half to two years or more. It requires great patience and tolerance of the local rythm, religious holidays and agricultural cycles (harvests, etc...).
:: One of the advantages, is that it allows the house design and conception to evolve as the construction progresses, making it easier to incorporate last minute alterations and afterthoughts. There is time to really reflect on the many details of your lifestyle, and to incorporate elements brought from abroad.
:: When it is correctly built, a stone house is solid, sound and well insulated against humidity and extreme temperatures. In order to avoid any structural weakness, it is important to scrupulously follow the safety guidelines of the craft.
:: A few of the rules that must be observed:
:: Proper processing and handling of lime, especially including sufficient preparation time.
:: Selection and shape of the stones is very important. Hand-shaping the stones, to maximize the walls' support capacity.
:: Thickness of the walls, equal or superior to the basic norms.
:: Correct dosage and mixing of mortar, essential to the solidity and insulation of the walls.
:: Efficient consolidation of supporting structure, with properly positioned timbers. Use of beams “in the heart” of the walls, according to an ancient and very effective technique.
:: Raising of the walls in stages, allowing for proper drying time.
:: These, and other rules, are sometimes disregarded in order to accelerate construction, but this is a mistake.
:: It is important to note that this type of construction will always have the minor aesthetic imperfections inherent to any traditional, natural and hand-made creation. This is part of the charm.
:: Furthermore, if the rules of the trade are properly applied, the structural sturdiness of the stone house will leave nothing to be desired, and will even increase as it settles. Properly maintained, these homes will become more and more beautiful and solid as time goes by.
:: Houses made with traditional materials must imperatively be constructed by qualified builders, as the know-how required is a veritable craft, passed down from one generation to the next. This tradition and know-how cannot be improvised.
:: Paradoxically, crews experienced in traditional construction are not generally "licensed contractors", the latter being accustomed to building urban-style housing made with concrete and cinder blocks, which require entirely different skills.
:: Traditional construction comes from rural and mountainous regions of Morocco. Those who have mastered its ancient techniques are simple folk, close to nature and raised on rustic lifestyles.
:: It is important to note that building a house with traditional materials is a slow process that can take from one and a half to two years or more. It requires great patience and tolerance of the local rythm, religious holidays and agricultural cycles (harvests, etc...).
:: One of the advantages, is that it allows the house design and conception to evolve as the construction progresses, making it easier to incorporate last minute alterations and afterthoughts. There is time to really reflect on the many details of your lifestyle, and to incorporate elements brought from abroad.
:: When it is correctly built, a stone house is solid, sound and well insulated against humidity and extreme temperatures. In order to avoid any structural weakness, it is important to scrupulously follow the safety guidelines of the craft.
:: A few of the rules that must be observed:
:: Proper processing and handling of lime, especially including sufficient preparation time.
:: Selection and shape of the stones is very important. Hand-shaping the stones, to maximize the walls' support capacity.
:: Thickness of the walls, equal or superior to the basic norms.
:: Correct dosage and mixing of mortar, essential to the solidity and insulation of the walls.
:: Efficient consolidation of supporting structure, with properly positioned timbers. Use of beams “in the heart” of the walls, according to an ancient and very effective technique.
:: Raising of the walls in stages, allowing for proper drying time.
:: These, and other rules, are sometimes disregarded in order to accelerate construction, but this is a mistake.
:: It is important to note that this type of construction will always have the minor aesthetic imperfections inherent to any traditional, natural and hand-made creation. This is part of the charm.
:: Furthermore, if the rules of the trade are properly applied, the structural sturdiness of the stone house will leave nothing to be desired, and will even increase as it settles. Properly maintained, these homes will become more and more beautiful and solid as time goes by.