CLAY PANELS
A natural, environmentally friendly and durable material with multiple properties
As interior finis we have chosen a simple but complex material, with multiple properties. Clay is a natural, local and durable material, used for thousands of years in constructions. The clay walls contribute to the regulation of the humidity inside, due to the capillary that allows the dispersion of the vapours from outside to inside and vice versa, depending on the season. The clay also contributes to the house's thermal comfort, due to the high thermal inertia that allows the storage of heat, which gradually radiates when the indoor temperature drops. In addition, clay panel are also a good acoustic insulator.
The LehmOrange Clay Panels fit very well with the wooden structure, as it helps to keep the wood dry, reducing the possibility of mold occurrence. The clay cladding has a constant moisture content of 6%, while the dry wood rarely exceeds 9% or even 12% for construction wood.
Being a very robust solution, the clay cladding can be used as radiant heating system by installing a thermal coil or an electrical resistance into the panels. The modular tiny homes are equipped with an electric radiant heating, due to the fact that each house has a very low heating load. Moreover this heating solution is comfortable and reliable in terms of energy consumption (low demand, low consumption).
The clay tiles can be installed in several configurations, depending on the structural system. In NIDUS Homes, we apply them directly on the wooden wall by screw fixings, over which we apply a layer of clay plaster as final finish. For situations where an additional layer of thermal or sound insulation is required inside, the clay plates are fixed on some vertical wooden uprights.
1. Interior wall
2. Wooden uprights
3. 100 mm insulating layer (hemp, cellulose, wood fiber etc)
4. Rigid 22 mm clay panels
5. Reinforcement fabric for joints between plates
6. Fine clay plaster
7. Interior finish of clay (coloured according to preference)
The clay panels that we use in NIDUS Homes are a modular, reliable and sustainable solution because it is a compact and rigid material with relatively low embodied energy and carbon footprint, compared to other interior finishes (the clay plates are dried at low temperatures). Clay as raw material is abundant and it requires low energy to be processed.
As for noise protection, the clay acts as a sound insulation when applied to the walls and ceiling as a finish. In the above configuration, where the clay plates are mounted on a 100 mm thermal insulation layer, the sound insulation value is 51dB. However, comparing the acoustic performances with a conventional material:
Acoustic performance
3 gypsum board (12.5 mm) = 1 clay plate (22 mm)
Learn more about clay and its special applications in construction from one of the most renowned manufacturers in Germany and Europe
