A building made of natural Hebel

[tramcar trev]

This building is made from blocks of compressed shells bonded togehter by calcium carbonate from the sea water, its the original Hebel, light and sawn from a quarry with ordinary steel tools.
I suspect this building may have been an old Telegraph station that has bee transplanted to the current location on the esplanade at Denham WA. Would make a great subject for Hebel modelling.

 

[trammayo]

Lot of buttresses? Anyway your lucky - you can get the blocks! Out here its concrete, concrete, and concrete. If you can't strangle yer danglies lifting it, it aint worth having out here. Mind you there's nearly as many quarries and block makers as there are farms!

 

[tramcar trev]

I found this receipe. Uses perlite (expanded mica) and cement or try styrene beads and cement. Make your own lightweight blocks.
As I recall some chap on here was making buildings casting concrete in a mould, this would be a ripper idea, maybe GregH can apply for a research grant to take this further...
http://www.themoldstore.info/Concrete_Formulas.html

 

[tramcar trev]

Sort of except that the shells dont disintegrate and there are a lot of air pockets in it...

 

[gregh]

I found this receipe. Uses perlite (expanded mica) and cement or try styrene beads and cement. Make your own lightweight blocks.
As I recall some chap on here was making buildings casting concrete in a mould, this would be a ripper idea...

A very interesting website. Could be useful for those unfortunates who can't source Hebel.
I'll just nip down to Bunnings thanks.