Adobe Construction

Adobe Construction

Lay the foundations for your exciting career in the adobe construction field with a Building Construction and Science Technologies Adobe Certificate. This one-year program prepares you for entry-level employment in adobe construction and earthbuilding fields, or for the design and construction of your own adobe home. You can also continue on this path and earn a two-year, Associate of Applied Science degree in Building Construction and Science Technologies preparing you for career in the rapidly growing natural building industry.

Classes focus on traditional New Mexican construction principles as well as contemporary green building practices using sustainable materials. You’ll learn the basics of adobe construction techniques, from the foundation to the roof, and become skilled in the ancient art of adobe blockmaking. Coursework includes:

• Passive Solar Adobe Design (site planning, building layout, natural heating and cooling)
• Adobe Construction Basics (soil selection and testing, adobe block production)
• Adobe Wall Construction (earthen mortars, block coursing, lintels, bond beams)
• Floor Design and Construction (poured earth, earth block & rammed earth floors)
• Finish Practices (interior and exterior earthen & lime plasters, natural paints)
• Roof Design and Construction (flat roofs, shed roofs, gable roofs for adobe structures)
• Preservation Practices (common examples of deterioration in adobe structures and their solutions)
• Adobe Building Practicum (hands-on field work with local companies & organizations)
• Compressed Earth Block Construction
• Rammed Earth Construction

You can also take courses in water and wastewater operations, plumbing and many other areas to gain a comprehensive understanding about working with technologies and sustainability in adobe construction.

Adobe building has long been popular in this region of the Southwest and it’s growing more popular every day, thanks to New Mexico’s increasing population. The median salary for an entry construction worker in New Mexico is $28,592 a year, while construction managers can earn, on average, $67,365 a year.