Ordinary soil, farm wastes and cement equals durable hallow blocks.
Rural folks can beat the high prices of housing materials. Out of farm waste and ordinary soil, one can make durable hallow blocks comparable in strength to commercial ones. The hallow blocks can be made right on the building site fashioned similar to commercial hallow blocks. Although considered strictly non-load bearing, it is very satisfactory for low-cost housing. Its compressive strength ranges from i97 to 386 pounds per square inch (psi).
This simple technology, developed by the Forest Product Research and Industries Development Commission, makes use of a minimum amount of cement to make a stronger hallow block. One bag is enough to make 20 four-inch blocks or 12 six-inch blocks.
The first step is to gather agri-wood wastes such as sawdust, coconut trunk particles, sugar cane bagasse or ordinary soil. The latter has to be pulverized and sifted using a 1/4 inch wire mesh. Abaca waste, left after extracting fiber from the stalk, as well as coconut coir dust, the residue from processing coconut husk in coirflex plants, can also be used. Rice hull works too, but additional soil is needed when mixing this with cement.