Diy Trombe Wall Made From River Rock And Wire

Images credit DesignBuildBLUFF

While researching The Trombe Wall: Low Tech Solar Design Makes A Comeback I stumbled over the work of DesignBuildBLUFF, the principal mission of which is to “design and build safe, sustainable off-grid homes for needy families living on the Navajo Nation Indian Reservation in the four corners region located just outside of Bluff, UT. "

The Dora and Baxter Benally home employs hand-made earthen brick, cork, and a river rock passive solar trombe wall.

First year graduate students at the College of Architecture + Planning, the University of Utah design and build the homes. In their entry for the GreenDot Awards, they write:

Wow. The last trombe wall we showed was made of concrete and slate; This is nothing more than a gabion of wood and wire mesh, filled with river rock. But it does the same thing, creating a thermal mass that absorbs heat all day and releases it at night.