What are the Merits / Advantages and Demerits / Disadvantages of Mud Flooring?

Merits / Advantages:
1.It is cheap
2.It is hard
3.It is fairly impervious
4.It is easy in construction
5.It is easy to maintain
6.It remains warm in winter and cold in cold in summer and hence most suitable for places where the temperature is extreme during these seasons.

Demerits / Disadvantages:
1.It is only well suited for small towns and villages.

Where(which places) is Mud Flooring found?

It is found in tropical country like India.

Since these floors remain warm in winter and cold in summer. These are most suitable for the places where the temperature is extreme during these seasons. These are commonly used in small villages and towns of India. E.g.Small towns in TamilNadu, Karnataka. Andhra Pradesh. Etc.

How to construct Mud Flooring?

Firstly, the floor bed should be well prepared.

A 25 cm thick layer of selected moist earth is evenly spread out and is rammed well so as to get a consolidated thick ness of about 15 cm.

It is important that no water is used during the process of ramming.

In order to prevent the formation of cracks after drying, chopped straw in small quantity is mixed with the moist earth before ramming.

The floor is maintained by giving a thin cement cow dung wash (1:2 to 1:3) once or twice a week.