An image of the project in process in this small adobe home office upgrade. Seen here are the newly painted fresh matt finished white walls and the damaged earthen floor we have just removed. This interesting 1970’s passive solar house in Santa Fe, New Mexico was is in good shape and only needed a few tweaks to help the new owners enjoy it more.
When the floor was demoed, it came up in uneven chunks, something we had to be very mindful of upon pouring the new earthen floor (also called as we do here, poured adobe floors, or mud floors). The room was small (200 sq. ft.) and therefor manageable. We adjusted as we went, upon pouring the floor, but did have to stay on our toes, given the mix was a fine one designed for only 1/2″ application.
Upon completion of the room we really loved the contrast of the whitewashed looking walls and deep tones of the earthen floors. Proving again why poured adobe floors are one of our favorite floors to create. They are very easy on the feet and legs (compared to say, cement) and look like one large tile and are simply gorgeous. The fact that they have a history of being the floor of choice of the indigenous people in this southern area influenced by Latin cultures, makes them even more interesting.