I’m very happy to see more details of this excellent design. We’ve been following the construction progress on their YouTube videos. Now, they’ve added a website with much more information. I have to say, this is one of my favorite designs. It is very well thought out, very affordable, very practical. I would love to … Read more
This video is a perfect example of how durable earthbag construction can be when subjected to submersion in water and the onslaught of waves. According to Shari, the builder, “This garden bed was an experiment, it was built on a shore line of a large lake. I wanted to see how earthbags and plaster held … Read more
I came across this great article at Mother Earth News magazine and just had to share it. Merle Alix describes his family’s experiences of living in an underground house for the last decade. They love the energy savings, low maintenance, quietness and privacy. The biggest downside is the difficulty of obtaining financing for underground houses. … Read more
Update: This living wall is thriving. I built a second design with an aluminum frame and removable potted plants and so far the plants prefer this living wall made with fishing net. This is a living wall experiment using a small prototype to test the concept. It’s easy to make and very low cost. Living … Read more
A reader asked if perlite is a good choice for building earthbag roundhouses. Perlite should work if you make some adaptations. It has excellent R-value and so, in my opinion, is well worth a little extra effort. In fact, it’s a top choice because of its R-value of 2.7 per inch. So 15″ would give … Read more
The most recent issue of The Last Straw journal (#60) has my article about earthbag/stone foundations. The following information is just a short excerpt. You can buy the full length article from The Last Straw. The design outlined here can be used with load-bearing and non load-bearing straw bale walls, earthbag walls, cob, adobe, cordwood … Read more