How to build an earthen Kang in rural areas

The craftsmanship of the kang is difficult to explain clearly on paper.

Raw materials:

1. Cement: used to make the edge of the kang and build the outer brick surround.

2. Loess: used for tamping the layer and making the kang surface with living mud.

3. Clay tablets: It is rare to see people making clay tablets nowadays. Thin stone slabs can be used instead.

4. Bricks: Make a kang enclosure and make a kang path.

A few points that should be noted: When making the rammed soil layer, it should be high on the inside and low on the outside to facilitate smoke escape. Uneven situations can be resolved when making the kang surface. No matter how big the kang is, the kang path should not be too winding. The stove opening should be divided into three or four kang paths to allow smoke to escape. If there are fewer, the stove mouth will be too hot, and if there are too many, it will be difficult to escape the smoke. After setting up the kang, the kang must be burned before anyone can sleep on it, and something must be burned in the chimney to start the fire.

The earthen kang is divided into three layers:

1. Rammed layer: Mainly made of loess, it is about 50 cm high in order to raise the kang road.

2. Kang Road: It should be at the same height as the stove, about the height of a brick on its side, about 10 centimeters.

3. Kang surface: The Kang surface is divided into two parts, the mud board layer and the outermost layer plastered with mud.