CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY According to Houben, H. and Guillaud, H. (1994), Mud construction is not a new technology; recently it has been utilized and investigated as a possible form of sustainable construction in the developing and developed world. There has been a large amount of interest and subsequent research into the use of mud as economical and environmentally sound method of satisfying the housing demand in many countries, particularly those of sub-Saharan Africa and the middle east. Mud wall construction performs considerably better; in environmental terms. They have significantly less embodied energy and help to promote the local economy and local labor. At first glance, it appears to be an ideal alternative for an economically viable, sustainable construction material traditionally, mud has been plastered with cement to overcome short comings but the use of cement relevant and necessary to ensure alternative to modern construction methods.
Cement plaster in mud are produced by using laterite, cement and water. Cement act as the stabilizing agent. The percentage of cement used can be between 5% to 10%. It was shown that mud with cement could be successfully used for single storey buildings,…show more content… Soil is widely used in the traditional construction of mould houses called “Chika bet”. Unfortunately, the traditional building techniques which are practiced in most part of Ethiopia. For mud house; constructions have serious defects. The main defects or problems are: walls can be easily be eroded by rain and suffer from extended shrinkage cracks, the construction consumes natural resources such as woods, its external and internal appearance is not muchty attractive, the dwellers suffer from health related problems, and the mud walls require a regular repairs( wastage of materials and energy