Recently, Joe Trumpey and a group of students put the finishing touches on the first straw bale building on the University of Michigan’s Ann Arbor campus. Besides the straw, many recycled materials were used for the structure. The wood used in the building was sourced from campus trees that were dead or dying. “It’s very … Read more
Bonnie’s new floating tiny house is a vision of extreme minimalism. It was designed for people who want to experience living with the bare necessities for a short period of time, and who want to enjoy the peacefulness of a quiet retreat on the water. Watch on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WBza3byXEt0
This 120-year-old farmhouse is so energy efficient it puts some new-builds to shame. Hill House in Blacklion, Ireland, was restored with sustainability at its core.The restoration took nearly two years. Inside, the floor and internal walls were replaced. Designed so that it could be heated through passive solar means, the center of the house was … Read more
Ten years ago when Tim Kroeker’s last child finally graduated high school, he and his wife decided it was now or never to follow through on their dream of building a house…an alternative house…in “the country”. With their years of research they could see the advantages (and some of the downsides) to the various possible … Read more
inhabitat.com featured an article about the pros and cons of using shipping containers as a basis for creating buildings. I think that they make some good points, so I’ll outline those below.Pros: CostCompared to building a similar structure with brick and mortar, on average, “cargotecture” can be 30 percent cheaper. Structural Stability Since steel containers … Read more
www.thefifthestate.com published an informative article about how to keep cool without costing the planet. The amount of energy used for cooling buildings has doubled worldwide since 2000, making it the fastest growing end-use for energy in buildings. We can’t afford to continue this trend. There are four ways for passive cooling: educe the heat gain … Read more