Here’s a follow-up to our DIY Papercrete Brick Press.

Our mix (by volume) was 3:1
(3) shredded office paper (newspaper works well also) Soak your paper for at least one day.
(1) Portland cement
Add water as needed. Make your mix a little drier than oatmeal or experiment with it until you get the consistency you like.

Press form block (interior dimensions)
W: 5-1/2″
D: 5-1/2″
L: 12″

Papercrete block dimensions (after drying)
W: 5-3/8″ (loss of -1/8″)
D: 4-1/2″ (loss of -1″ due to compression)
L: 11-5/8″ (loss of -3/8″)

Final brick dry weight
4.8 lbs
2.2 kg

It was hard to say exactly how long it took to completely dry since we had it in the house (cold/wet weather during our test) but we figure it would take 3-4 days in warm/hot sunny weather, turning it twice a day.

It is very sturdy, light and hopefully a good building material.

Our next building test will be on latex concrete roofs and wall panels.

Stay tuned for that.