Thatching is the craft of building a roof with dry vegetation such as straw, water reed, sedge (Cladium mariscus), rushes and heather, layering the vegetation so as to shed water away from the inner roof. It is a very old roofing method and has been used in both tropical and temperate climates. Thatch is still … Read more
I see at least two main approaches to building a pit house with earthbags: 1. Mimic Mike Oehler’s greenhouse design using earthbags instead of poles and shoring. 2. Mimic conventional walipini pit greenhouses. That’s what I’ve chosen to do in the following drawing. It’s very similar to typical walipini’s, so follow the directions in the … Read more
Here’s another version of the Hobbit House (five versions altogether) showing an open-air second story deck and rectangular windows. The deck adds another 471 square feet of living space at very little extra cost. This design is perfect for hot climates where breezes make a big difference in comfort. The deck can be accessed by … Read more
Instructables.com is one of my favorite sites and so I’ve been publishing how-to articles there for the last year or so. Here’s a list of the most popular Instructables on earthbag building. How to Build an Earthbag Dome Step-by-Step Earthbag Building How to Build an Earthbag Roundhouse How to Build Dirt Cheap Houses How to … Read more
Builders Without Borders assisted with creating this Earthbag Foundation for the first strawbale house in Haiti. Many of the bags were sewn from slavaged tarps, the bales were compressed by hand from local rice straw, the roof trusses were partially built from used wooden pallets, and the floor and plaster is earthen.
Just when you thought you’d seen it all, here’s a new way to insulate basement walls with foam glass by Misapor. More on this topic at my Geopolymer House Blog. (The same material can be used to make lightweight insulating plaster, concrete, etc.) “Until now, Misapor has mostly been known for providing horizontal insulation. Now … Read more