Adobe lifespan exceeds 200 years with routine maintenance. Several Southwestern examples have stood for over 400. Taos Pueblo has been continuously occupied since approximately AD 1000–1450. San Esteban del Rey Mission at Acoma dates from 1629. The Palace of the Governors in Santa Fe has been in continuous use since 1610. Lifespan turns on three maintenance fronts: an intact plaster coat, a watertight roof, and ground drainage that keeps water off the wall base. Traditional adobe is re-mudded annually; modern homes are re-lime-plastered every several years. The earthen brick itself does not deteriorate. Failure almost always traces to a roof leak or eroded plaster.
More questions
All questions →