Current through Register Vol. 35, No. 18, September 24, 2024
A.
General. The following provisions shall apply.
(1) Rammed earth shall not be used in any
building more than two stories in height. The height of every wall of rammed
earth without lateral support is specified in Table 1 of
14.7.4.8 NMAC. The height of the
wall is defined as the distance from the top of the slab or top of stem wall to
the underside of the bond beam.
(2)
Exterior rammed earth walls shall be a minimum of 18 inches in thickness.
Exception: Exterior walls that are also designed as solar mass walls (trombe)
as defined by the passive solar heating worksheet, dated June 2004 and prepared
by the state of New Mexico energy, minerals and natural resources department,
are allowed and shall be minimum thickness of 10 inches, not to exceed two
inches. They shall be fully attached to or integrated with any adjacent
structural wall and topped with a bond beam that fully attaches them to the
bond beam of any adjacent structural wall as described in
14.7.4.17 NMAC.
(3) Interior rammed earth walls shall be a
minimum of two inches in thickness.
(4) The first lift of rammed earth walls
shall be of stabilized rammed earth or minimum 2500 psi concrete, rising not
less than three and one half inches above finish floor level. Unstabilized
rammed earth walls must be covered to prevent infiltration of moisture from the
top of the wall at the end of each workday and prior to wet weather conditions,
whether the walls are contained within forms or not.
(5) Fully stabilized rammed earth walls may
be left unprotected from the elements.
(6) In no case shall a rammed earth wall be
reduced in thickness with back to back channels or nailers. Channels or nailers
rammed on both sides of a running wall shall not be opposite each other to
avoid an hourglass configuration in the wall section. Channels or nailers on
both sides of a running wall shall be separated from each other vertically at a
distance no less than the rammed earth wall thickness. (Refer to Figure 4 of
the earthen building figures supplement).
(7) An architect or engineer registered in
the state of New Mexico shall design and seal structural portions of two-story
residential rammed earth construction documents.
(8) The general construction of the building
shall comply with all provisions of the 2001 New Mexico Residential Building
Code (NMRBC), unless otherwise provided for in this rule.
(9) Passive solar structures incorporating
the use of solar mass walls (trombe), direct gain arrays or sunspaces
(greenhouses) as defined by the passive solar heating worksheet, dated June
2004 and prepared by the state of New Mexico energy, minerals and natural
resources department, are allowed.
B.
Fireplaces. Adobe or masonry
fireplaces and chimneys in rammed earth structures shall comply with
14.7.3.18 NMAC. They shall be
integrated into adjacent rammed earth walls during construction or secured to
them by suitable steel ladder reinforcement or reinforcing rods.
C.
Count Rumford fireplaces.
Count Rumford fireplaces are allowed as provided in
14.7.3.18 NMAC.
D.
Stop work. The building
inspector shall have the authority to issue a "stop work" order if the
provisions of this section are not complied with.
E.
Lateral support. Lateral
support shall occur at intervals not to exceed 24 feet. Rammed earth walls 18
inches to less than 24 inches thick shall be laterally supported with any one
or combination of the following: a rammed earth wall of bond beam height that
intersects the running wall with at least 60 degrees of support (refer to a
Figure 5 of the earthen building figures supplement); an adobe wall of bond
beam height and at least 10 inches in width that intersects with and attaches
to the running wall with at least 60 degrees of support (refer to Figure 5 of
the earthen building figures supplement); a minimum 20 gauge steel frame or
wood frame wall of full height that intersects with and attaches to the running
wall with 90 degrees of support, that is properly cross-braced or sheathed
(refer to Figure 6 of the earthen building figures supplement); a buttress
configuration that intersects the running wall at 90 degrees, of adobe or
rammed earth. The buttress base must project a minimum of three feet (or
thirty-three percent of the wall height) from the running wall and support at
least seventy-five percent of the total wall height (refer to Figure 7 of the
earthen building figures supplement). The thickness of a rammed earth buttress
shall be at least 18 inches. The thickness of an adobe buttress shall be a
minimum 14 inches. Rammed earth walls greater than 24 inches in thickness are
self-buttressing and do not require lateral support provided their design
adheres to Table 1 of
14.7.4.8 NMAC and the other
applicable provisions of this rule.
F.
Openings. Door and window
openings shall be designed such that the opening shall not be any closer to an
outside corner of the structure as follows.
(1) In rammed earth walls 18 inches to less
than 24 inches thick, openings shall not be located within three feet of any
corner of the structure. (Refer to Figure 8 of the earthen building figures
supplement). Exception: Openings may be located within three feet of any corner
provided a buttress extending at least three feet from the structure supports
the corner. A continuous footing below and a continuous bond beam above shall
be provided across such openings.
(2) Rammed earth walls greater than 24 inches
thick are self-buttressing, with no special consideration for placement of
openings within the area of the wall.
G.
Piers. Rammed earth piers
supporting openings shall measure no less than three square feet in area and no
dimension shall be less than 18 inches. (Refer to Figures 9-A and 9-B of the
earthen building figures supplement).
