Tin Can Wall - Coating

Coating

Once the wall is completed, the cans and the concrete are covered with a layer of cement or adobe mud mixture. What is applied depends on the location of the wall; if it is located in an area where it will be exposed to water (such as in a bathroom or utility room) it will need to be coated with a concrete layer. If it is located in a living room or bedroom, it can be covered with adobe plaster. A tin can wall that has half of its structure outside (such as the wall of an entrance to a building) will be coated with cement on the outside and adobe on the inside. The shape of the cans (their pull-tabs, etc.) and the roughness of the cement will provide a lath-like surface for the cement or adobe to stick to.

This initial layer is “screeted” (scratched with a tool that creates a ridge-like pattern thereby making it easier to apply another coat) and a second layer is added. More layers may be added, but it is up to the builder’s judgment and dependent upon the material being applied. In the case of adobe mud, once the initial layer is applied and allowed to harden it will crack and will need additional coats. With cement fewer layers are needed. The basic rule is: the more coats/layers, the stronger and better-looking the wall will be. This can be overdone however.

When a tin can wall has been sufficiently coated it will then be “finished” with a fine plaster (lime-based or other), stucco (if the wall is outside), or linseed oil (in the case of adobe). It can also be finished with a clay “slip”, or aliz, which is an earth-based coat that can have natural pigment and fine grains of mica mixed in to produce a beautiful shimmering and organic-looking surface.