Extract

Abstract: This paper presents the results of a study to investigate the thermal performance of two houses
that use rammed earth as the main material for the walls. The study was conducted by monitoring the
internal and external temperature and humidity of the houses. A comparison was also made with the
thermal performance of a reverse-masonry veneer construction. The monitoring results were used to
calibrate computer simulation models, and the calibrated models were used to analyse the thermal
performance of the houses in a what-if scenario to test the sensitivity of the impact of wall materials on the
houses’ thermal performance. Monitoring results show that the indoor temperatures of both of the
rammed-earth houses during summer are comparable with that of the reverse-masonry veneer house;
however, winter and night-time temperatures of the rammed earth houses are lower.

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