A sunset view of the pumice-crete home completed south of Albuquerque. This pumice-block home uses a unique block design made 40 miles from the home site manufactured by hand. The bricks are made with a combined pumice and cement mixture, which is then formed into interlocking blocks with three channels. The beauty of this material is the light weight of the blocks, with an “R” value of 2.5 per inch. This gives these 12″ blocks a rough “R” value of 30. Once the blocks are stacked and secured, a pumice-cement slurry is poured into the block channels to create a solid pumice wall. The availability of pumice locally and how well it performs as a highly insulated material make it a viable option in the desert Southwest.
If you have reviewed the other photos in this gallery you will see a rather dramatic transformation. This “after” image when compared to the “before” image when we arrived on the job site for the first time, shows just how far this project came from May until early fall.
This home design has always been one of our favorites. The interesting details such as the entry privacy wall, the tall ceilings in the great room, the various gently curved walls throughout and custom details add to the overall uniqueness of the home.
