Another Look At Domes In Mexico

As the weather turns colder

 it is nice to look back at some of my older posts from Mexico 

and this one comes from December 16th, 2010.

We have visited all these spots over the last five years.

Above is a beautifully tiled dome in San Carlos, Sonora.

Building A Brick House In Mexico

I have always been very curious about building in Mexico and 

this winter I have been trying to learn more about the various facets.

To see how the bricks are made go to the post:

Making Fired Bricks In Alamos, Sonora.

 They rarely use wood because of termites and the cost of lumber.

(Please Note: This is a reworking of the post

Building Mexico from 2/23/10.)

Wood Fired Ceramic Kilns In Mexico

As I continue reworking some of my very first posts 

and since the last post was on brick kilns, 

let's take a look at ceramic kilns, first in the Alamos, Sonora area. 

Making Fired Bricks In Alamos, Sonora

While we were in Alamos, Sonora a couple of years ago

 our friend David found this brick making operation

 near the campground where we were staying.

Being familiar with making adobe bricks,

 I had always wanted to see how bricks were taken to the next step of firing them,

and the guys working here were more than happy to show us the ropes.

Brickmaking In Afghanistan

     Saw this 3:16 minute video in the New York Times this morning and it presents a disturbing picture of slavery through indebtedness. But it also shows brickmaking in another part of the world. I particularly was interested in the form they used as well as how they handled the mud.

     There are two messages here for me. Stay out of debt, and build, or remodel, your own house using the material used most often around the world- earth.

     The video is: The Brickmakers of Afghanistan. Or you can see the article: In Afhgan Kilns, a Cycle of Debt and Servitude which includes a link to the video.

Building Mexico, More Update

I want to include a nice detail to the last post: 

Building Mexico Update.

and to the post from last year on this house:

Building Mexico.

In the photo above you can see the curved column 

that will hold up an arch.

Building Mexico Update

Almost a year ago I did a post on the typical building style here
which is a concrete post and beam with brick infill.

Please refer to Building Mexico from February 23th, 2010

 to see the beginnings of the above house.

In this post we will concentrate on the bond beam.

Ruins Of The Governors Mansion

Most every day that we walk into town from our trailer park

 we pass this old ruin and would wonder what is this?

What happened here?

Cement Trim And Brick Floor Detail

You may remember this photo above, 

from a post I did on Ernesto and Elena's remodel 

on a very old house in Alamos, Sonora.

I want to get back to technique;

 and when I took the photo Ernesto had said he wanted to trim out

 the base columns for the archway into the kitchen.

Decorative Brickwork In Mexico

When it comes to building there are so many things that Mexicans are good at 

and brickwork is one them.

The Finished Concrete Pedestrian Bridge

Just over a week ago we were sitting at the Epic Cafe in Tucson
when I posted Building A Concrete Pedestrian Bridge using photos
I took last year showing the form work for the above bridge
 in Alamos, Sonora, Mexico.

Domes In Mexico

One of the things that interests me the most

 about building in Mexico is the domes.

Above is a beautifully tiled dome in San Carlos, Sonora.

Building Mexico

I have been very curious about building in Mexico and 

this winter I have been trying to learn more about the various facets.

 They rarely use wood because of termites and the cost of lumber.

(To see a rewriting of this post go to Building A Brick House In Mexico.)

Brick Making and Kilns in Sonora, Mx.

     (PLEASE NOTE: To see an updated version of this post please go to: Making Fired Bricks In Alamos, Sonora.)

      Welcome to this new blog on alternative building which will cover topics such as earthen building, passive solar energy, energy conservation, owner builder issues, tiling, stone masonry, woodworking, and the trades in general. Mixed in will be design ideas and as we ( my wife and I ) travel we will be reporting on what we find on the road especially in Mexico. Comments would be very appreciated and please bear with me as I learn the ropes on blogging.
     We are currently in Alamos, Sonora, Mexico where there is much of interest for builders. A friend of ours at our campground was interested in wood fired kilns for ceramics and ran across some guys firing a brick kiln nearby. Having worked with adobe as much as I have in New Mexico I  was always interested in the "next step" of firing the bricks. Here is what we found: