Sourcing Clay in Búðardalur

Sourcing Clay in Búðardalur was a day-long field trip to Halla Steinólfs' farm in the Búðardalur area of Northwest Iceland. It is not easy to find clay in Iceland due to the island's relatively young geology. Halla's clay (which is only about 15,000 years old) shows considerable binding strength and should make a fine earthen plaster. Initial plaster tests are pointing towards a mix ratio of 1 part clay to 3 parts sand. Sourcing Icelandic clay was the final step in material procurement for remote projects' ongoing wool wall project - a prefabricated modular wall system for a new generation of natural & sustainable buildings in Iceland. Other materials sourced during this visit to Iceland include washed raw wool from Blönduós (for insulation on the exterior side) as well as turf panels from Skagafjörður (to add thermal mass to the interior of the wall). Halla's clay will be used to finish the modules with an earthen plaster. A full-scale wool wall module (3m long x 2.5m high) and small test building are on the horizon.