This article reviews several common alternative building materials, evaluating their strengths and weaknesses. Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) is a panel system where each panel consists of multiple timber boards glued together in a perpendicular pattern. The result is a structural product that doesn’t bend and is very strong, rather like plywood. The panels are large, … Read more
Deep in the Andes mountains of Columbia, Julio Leon is building a three-room house made mostly out of earth. To make the walls, Leon shovels damp earth in between two wooden panels. Then, he climbs on top of the 3-foot-tall pile and pounds it repeatedly with a wooden ram, turning his mound into a sturdy … Read more
On a rural property on the slopes of California’s Sierra Nevada mountains, Morgan Bierschenk and his team have been refining a durable, mineral-like material to build sturdy dome homes with a particular matte-ceramic finish. They have called their modular dome homes Geoships. Geoships are made of “bioceramic.” Used up until recently on high-end consumer electronic … Read more
Rammed earth construction has gained increasing interest in recent years owing to sustainability demands in the construction industry and the advancement of digital fabrication techniques. However, the domination of cement-stabilized material in this industry poses environmental concerns, In this study, bio-based aternatives to cement are investigated through evaluating xanthan gum and animal glue as bio-binders. … Read more
Invisible Studio designed a rammed earth and stone yoga studio for a hotel in Somerset, UK, that features a 36-foot-long skylight made from a single insulated double-glazed unit. The studio is lined entirely in beech slats which provide a “warm and immersive sanctuary-like space.” The external skin uses the same rammed earth and stone as … Read more
Several years ago Kirsten Dirksen’s family embarked on a project where they found a derelict (and affordable) country home located in a tiny, well-maintained castle hamlet 1 hour outside Barcelona, Spain. They began renovation with the help of a young architecture studio. Can a home remodel celebrate the layers of past, present, and future? Do … Read more