Open Source Disaster Resistant Earthbag Homes for Nepal

Open Source Disaster Resistant Earthbag Homes for Nepal
Open Source Disaster Resistant Earthbag Homes for Nepal

From the archives — I realized yesterday that this open source disaster resistant earthbag house could be easily adapted to Nepal.

Add a roof of recycled wood and metal roofing and for very little money (under $1,000) you’d have a safe, decent home in short order. This design is 25 sq.m (270 sq.ft or about 16’x16’ interior) It’s extremely simple and easily to build.

The small symmetrical plan, rounded corners, single story, lightweight roof, and earthbag benches all help make this house earthquake resistant. The porches (which could be added later) provide a lot of outdoor workspace that could be left open or enclosed to create future living space. In other words, this design provides a safe, low cost, disaster resistant core that’s culturally appropriate and can be easily expanded later on.

For maximum strength, please refer to our earthquake resistant earthbag building guidelines for Nepal.

8 thoughts on “Open Source Disaster Resistant Earthbag Homes for Nepal”

  1. We are building an e-bag roundhouse with a self supporting gable roof in the Upper Peninsula, we will not have time to plaster the outside or inside walls, Is it possible to cover with tarps until spring?

    Reply
    • Yes, if you secure them carefully. Wind can really whip tarps to shreds quickly, so use high quality tarps and tie them on securely.

      Reply
  2. I’ve heard of a proposed government shelter aid kit that will provide metal roofing, nails, hammer, tape measure and a few other basic tools. The idea is to let people use their choice of walls and the government provides a few tools and materials to help finish the roof. This is all preliminary. We’ll see what eventually transpires. But the basic idea sounds pretty good.

    Reply
    • Owen
      Its true. The government has decided to provide metal sheets, nails,… etc. Apart from these things,even 1000 US $ is not easy for almost all families in the remote villages apart from the Kathmandu valley. Does it work even during the monsoon ? The monsoon will arrive soon,around half of june and will continue till september.It would be better if one can construct shelters without things like metal rod,cement,….

      Reply

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