Former rocket scientist and mud-home builder Kristina Turiya shared a video on Tik Tok of one of her many projects. She made a shower out of mud, sand, straw, bamboo, and lime. It’s completely waterproof without any use of plastic, sealant, or cement because of the Tadelakt technique (a lime plaster technique from ancient Morocco … Read more
You often hear that fossil fuels are phasing out, and solar and wind power can’t produce enough electricity to meet the demand in coming decades, so some advocate the use of nuclear energy to fill the gap. But that’s not the thinking of Amory Lovins, the 76-year-old co-founder of the Rocky Mountain Institute in western … Read more
There are several benefits to deconstruction versus mechanical demolition: environmental benefits, historical preservation and job creation are the big three. Shawn Wood, a construction waste specialist for the city of Portland, Oregon shares how its deconstruction ordinance came about. Wood said around 2013-2014 the country was coming out of a recession, and the city saw … Read more
If you go to strawbale.com you can download a free subscription to “16 Essential Steps to Straw Bale Success” e-course. For over two weeks you’ll receive a daily and information-packed lesson about straw bale construction in your inbox. Over 50,000 people have read it so far! Everything from Design, Choosing Best Bales, Creating Custom Bales, Creating Niches, Prep … Read more
Sage Stoneman’s cob home only cost $200 to build and allows him to live debt-free. He says, “I choose to live the way that I do because it’s a matter of mental health for me and emotional health, physical health as well, spiritual health.” He crafted his home in California to feel closer to the … Read more
I just finished reading Building an Earthbag Round House by Morgan Caraway of the Sustainable Life School. This PDF ebook describes Morgan’s experience of building his first attempt at earthbag construction some 15 years ago. As he says, there are many ways he would do things differently these days, but he basically got most of … Read more