What Is Papercrete?By Tara Dodrill on June 27, 2014

Papercrete is the ultimate building material for preppers, homesteaders, and off grid

living enthusiasts. Not only is the building material incredibly inexpensive and Earth-friendly,

it is also extremely durable.

Papercrete building blocks are most often made by upcycling used or discarded paper

products with a sturdy frame of possibly rebar and metal lath added for support as well.

Building prepper retreat, homestead, or an off the grid home is most commonly done on

a tight budget with self-sufficiency in mind. Paper concrete,, or papercrete homes are not

exactly a new concept, but one that is undergoing a rapid resurgence and expansion around the

world. Canvas concrete style temporary structures have been used by the military for many

decades.

History of Papercrete

Papercrete gets its name from the fact that most formulas use a mixture of water and

cement with cellulose fiber. The mixture has the appearance and texture of oatmeal and is

poured into forms and dried in the sun, much like the process for making adobe. Research tests

into papercrete have been carried out by Barry Fuller in Arizona and Zach Rabon in Texas…

Fuller directs government-funded research on papercrete through the Arizona State

University Ira A. Fulton School of Engineering. He is also head of a subcommittee for the

American Society for Testing and Materials, and it is his goal to set standards that will lead to

acceptance of the product within the architectural community and commercialization of the

product, especially for affordable housing. (via Wikipedia)

As with all types of off the grid living housing alternatives, folks who live in areas

bursting at the seams with permit officers, building inspectors and zoning departments, must

get every step of the project approved and apply for all necessary permits in advance.

Papercrete may not have the approval of the International Code Council, meaning its use within

municipal limits in incorporated areas in the United States may be impossible.

Preppers and homesteading advocates who are blessed to live in rural regions like where

I call home, can most often just gather their materials and get building without all the

government hoops to jump through.

Papercrete is a building material which is comprised of “re-pulped” paper fiber with clay

or Portland cement, or other soil added. The material was first patented during the 1920s and

experienced a revival during the late 1980s. The environmentally friendly nature of paper

concrete is often debated.

While the construction material often consists of a high percentage of recycled material,

the presence of concrete also turns off some eco-building advocates. Both Mike McCain and

Eric Patterson have been independently been credited as inventing papercrete. They often

referred to the building material as fibrous cement and padobe.

Dome shaped structures are very popular with paper concrete builders. Getting a

building permit, where it is necessary to do so, for papercrete structures that have load bearing

walls is reportedly very difficult. Many builders feel that not enough testing has been done to

determine if a papercrete building alone can support the weight of a roof. If the paper concrete

structure will not house people, the approval process is allegedly a bit more feasible. A post and

beam approach when setting the foundation and starting the walls is the preferred building

method for both safety and inspection reasons.

Papercrete is also highly regarded for its insulation properties. Walls of paper concrete

storage buildings, barns, and homes are typically 10 to 12 inches thick. The upcycling building

material is known to be mold resistant and has been heralded for its “sound-proofing” qualities.

Unlike adobe or concrete blocks, papercrete blocks are very lightweight, about a third of the

weight of a similar sized adobe brick.

How Papercrete Is Made

Watch a video on how to make it,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xPW9C-CtU9s

In structural tests, paper concrete has reportedly tested in the 140-160 psi range. Some

claim that the strength reaches into the 260 psi range. The stiffness of papercrete is a whole lot

less than a solely concrete building of course, but it is reportedly strong enough to hold up the

load of a roof on “low-height” buildings. Two-story structures have been built with concrete,

and are very attractive and appear to be sturdy homes.

Papercrete Tips via Living In Paper:

Papercrete may be mixed in many ways. Different types of papercrete contain 50-80

percent waste paper! Up to now, there are no hard and fast rules, but recommended standards

will undoubtedly be established in the future.

The basic constituents are water and nearly any kind of paper. Cardboard, glossy

magazine stock, advertising brochures, junk mail or just about any other type of ‘mixed (lower)

grade’ paper is acceptable. Some types of paper work better than others, but all types work.

Newsprint is best.

Waterproofed paper and cardboard, such as butcher paper, beer cartons, etc. are harder to

break down in water. Catalogs, magazines and other publications are fine in and of themselves,

but some have a stringy, rubbery, sticky spine, which is also water resistant. Breaking down this

kind of material in the mixing process can’t be done very well. Small fragments and strings of

these materials are almost always present in the final mix.

When using papercrete containing the unwanted material in a finish, such as in stucco or

plaster, the unwanted fragments sometimes show up on the surface, but this is not a serious

problem. Papercrete can be sculpted into any shape and painted.

Common additives to the paper concrete mixes in addition to Portland cement and clay

often include sand, glass, and “fly ash.”

The first three or so papercrete application must be either impaled or drilled into place

above the rebar set in the concrete foundation. The rebar is necessary to prevent wall movement

in a horizontal direction. Once only a couple of inches of the rebar is showing, lay another

piece or rebar and wire it to the vertical pieces protruding from the foundation.

Papercrete builders then recommend pounding the vertical piece of rebar until it is

almost level with the papercrete block. Once this is done, cover the emerging wall with your

papercrete mortar of choice and start the next row of blocks.

Wait at least several weeks after the walls have had time to settle before installing doors

and windows. You can frame the wall and window area by leaving rebar out as you build the

wall in the desired spots or use a chain saw and cut the openings out later.

Papercrete Mixing Materials

Newspapers

Cardboard food boxes

Shoe boxes

Paper sacks

Food can labels

Mail envelopes

Fast food wrappers, soft drink cups, and French fry holders

Cardboard shipping boxes

Wrapping paper

Toilet and paper towel cardboard rolls

Pet food bags

Juice boxes — cut open and allowed to dry thoroughly

Soft drink and beer cardboard cases

Used poster board, construction paper, and discarded homework and folders

Using wood harvested from your own property to support a barn, stall, or shed roof

further increases the cost effective nature of papercrete building projects. Unlike some

commercial building materials, papercrete does not contain any potentially harmful chemicals

that could negatively impact livestock.

Papercrete can be painted after stucco has been applied or the Portland cement tinted to

create a more pleasing appearance if desired.

When I first began making papercrete, I started with a small batch in a 5-gallon bucket

and used a standard drill with a stucco bit. The mixing instructions often found online are

merely estimates, so I used the least amount of water to avoid ruining the batch and added more

as needed.

Before embarking on mixing enough papercrete to build a barn, home, or shed, make a

dozen or so small batches and use the material to make some hand-poured blocks. Once you

have the mixture amounts ironed out, more onto larger batches run through the stock-tank

homemade mixer.

Building with papercrete is a great cost saver. Even if you already have an off the grid

home or prepper retreat constructed, outbuildings, cellars, storm shelters, and barns can be

constructed from upcycled paper products in order to save funds and provide added livestock

shelter and storage for preps.