Desert Botanical Garden: THE DESERT HOUSE: Walls of the House

Integra ^TM concrete blocks are uniquely designed to provide strength, thermal storage and insulation all in one package. The block is H -shaped, with one interior side thicker than the exterior side for thermal mass, and a polyurethane foam sprayed into the block cavities for insulation. Installation of these blocks is the same as for ordinary concrete block, except that this wall system is held tight by adjustable threaded tension bars to minimize air infiltration. Grout and steel reinforcing rods are not necessary. Interior perimeter walls are framed with 2 X 4 lumber and the exterior was framed with 2 X 6 lumber. Each wall side is capped with drywall board. All interior walls are treated with gypsum based texture and painted. This is a very common interior finish in houses in the Phoenix area. The exterior wall has a Portland cement scratch coat, covered with an elastomeric stucco. This stucco is composed of acrylic polymers that will shrink and expand in response to outside temperatures and will not crack like more conventional Portland-based stuccos. This maintains an impermeable seal on the wall. A pigment was applied to the final stucco coat to give the exterior a long lasting color. Total R-value for the wall is 30.