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It was the early-’80s and building performance via better insulation was
taking a hold in the Tucson, Arizona, market. We were using foam boards
on the exterior and coating over it with stucco, both versions; one
coat and three coat. Being a relative newcomer to the stucco industry
and having not yet been introduced to my BFF, EIFS, I thought stucco
over foam was the best cladding ever.
If
we were to go way back to the “missionary” period in Arizona, the
Native Americans of that area, the O’odham, had insulating construction
figured out. They built with what they had; water, dirt, grass, ocotillo
and mesquite. It was an earthen construction, as old as the Pharaohs,
combining the water, dirt and grass to make blocks known as adobe. The
adobe blocks were then laid in a running bond pattern, cemented with
more of the same mud. Some notable buildings around Tucson are San
Javier del Bac and Tumacacori churches. What made the Arizona soil
perfect for adobe bricks was a rock called caliche, a calcium carbonate
that made the bricks very durable when added to the dirt. It is common
knowledge that adobe wall construction is an excellent thermal
insulation construction method. The point is that insulating buildings
is not a new thing.