University of Maryland students to set up shelters in Haiti

Group will spend spring break teaching how to construct temporary housing by David Hill | Staff Writer, www.gazette.net It’s Sunday afternoon in College Park’s Calvert Hills neighborhood, and Desta Anyiwo — a 23-year-old student at the University of Maryland, College Park, — is being peppered with questions from curious onlookers. He explains that he and … Read more

Earth bag building – learn the basics

From www.raglan.net.nz: Want to know more about greener building techniques? Solscape Eco retreat at Manu Bay, Raglan are running an earth bag building course workshop from 16th-30th March. Read on to learn more about earth bag building. From the Raglan Chronicle, October 2009, by Edith Symes: It looks like a teletubby house, or maybe a … Read more

What Size Bag is Best?

The most common size bag for earthbag (sand bag) building measures about 18”x30” measured when empty. This is often called a 50 pound bag, since these bags are used to store 50 lb. of grain and feed. When filled, this size creates walls about 15”-16” wide. This is a good size for earthbag building because … Read more

How Long Will Earthbags Hold Up in Sunlight?

It’s difficult to know for sure how long earthbags will hold up in sunlight. Some brands fall apart pretty fast, as soon as a few weeks. Equatorial and high elevation areas may experience slightly more rapid deterioration due to increased UV levels. From my experience and what I have heard and read most bags hold … Read more