Timbrel vaults offer another low cost, sustainable roof building method. This method is suitable for do-it-yourself owner builders if you do the research. Suggestions include: use a simple design with a reinforced concrete bond beam and modest spans. Look into using low-fired, lightweight brick like the type used in Mexico and SE Asia. “The ‘Sustainable … Read more
“The small size (app. 600 sq. ft.) and super-efficient design fully lends itself to an inexpensive and minimal off grid solar wind inversion (4K or less) system, which could eliminate one fourth of our cumulative energy consumption if adopted by everyone. No one would need to be “ON THE GRID”…!” Source: Elevated Earth Technologies
“There’s a grassroots movement in tiny homes these days. The real estate collapse, the economic downturn, burning out on 12-hour workdays – many people are rethinking their ideas about shelter – seeking an alternative to high rents, or a lifelong mortgage debt to a bank on an overpriced home. In this book are some 150 … Read more
Free downloadable plans for the HNC House (Haitian National Congress) are now available at Teach Democracy.org. Be sure to check out their other amazing resources that will be used to help rebuild the Haitian economy. This is the most promising Haitian reconstruction plan that I’m aware of. Please spread the word. Previous blog post about … Read more
Kerry Bingham’s off-grid earth bag home in Turkey only cost $3,761 to build. Using dirt from her own 6,500 square foot plot of land, the artist and writer filled dozens of polypropylene sacks that were then stacked to create a striking circular structure overlooking Turkey’s magical Olympos Valley. “My goal,” she says, “is to change my … Read more
No heating or air conditioning, and yet Cody’s house stays around 72 degrees Fahrenheit. Cody’s website and book explain how he built his ferrocement house. You could build a house like this with earthbags on the sides and ferrocement on the roof. “It’s winter in the high desert as I write this, and last night … Read more