3D printing adobe houses in Hungary

Adobe buildings have a certain degree of nostalgia to them. It really feels like a technique from the past that does not really have significance in this world anymore. Although it might seem old, the end of adobe is not yet here.

The ancient material

Adobe bricks have been used since prehistoric times for building. It is a durable and sturdy material that stands the test of time. It is not uncommon to see hundred-year-old houses built with this technique. Even though many of these old houses get modernised, in the current crisis, adobe bricks really seem like a cheap alternative to conventional building materials.

In the report of Deutsche Welle, Ádám Bihari demonstrated that old adobe houses can not only be renovated but also modernised. Because of the energy crisis and rising material prices, there is a growing interest in adobe once again. Renovation of old houses is power-saving, environmentally friendly and relatively cheap. Adobe can be used both for renovation works and building new houses. Clay, the main component of adobe, is quite abundant all around the world. This means that most of the time it can be gathered locally or from within short distances. Almost any kind of house can be built from this material.

A new technology

Eco-architecture is also interested in this ancient technology. With the right tools, it can be implemented into contemporary building techniques too. First time in the world a small Hungarian business tries to combine adobe with 3D printing technologies. Building a house from this material is not easy by manual labour, but with 3D printing, the time it takes to build a house can be lowered from one year to only two weeks. This new technology is still in an experimental phase but it was already implemented successfully to build a hen house. According to HVG.hu, in a few years, even the printing of houses might become possible

This new technology is being used in Hungary for the first time. If the experiments go well, it has the potential to become a new trend in architecture. As the housing crisis all around the world gets more and more severe, the new adobe printing technology might be the light at the end of the tunnel.