With the help of Patti Stouter, I have revised the index page for available test data and reports at www.earthbagbuilding.com. Instead of just links to half a dozen existing test reports that are specific to earthbags, there are now references and links to over three dozen such reports, many of which relate to other types … Read more
This post by Patti Stouter is part of a larger effort to summarize existing test results and hopefully organize and conduct more earthbag tests. “During 2010 and 2011 engineering tests of earthbag increased. Universities involved in evaluating earthbag structures have ranged from Ghent, Belgium, to Cape Town South Africa to Stanford and Brown Universities. Test … Read more
What’s the most effective way to provide bullet resistance for your home? Here’s a field trial test of Joel Skousen’s gravel wall system. Compare the bullet resistance of this system to: Sand bags Compressed earth Impact testing compressed earth by black powder cannon
Here’s the latest from Patti. “People building with trash have relied on bottles filled with sand or adobe or film plastics to provide strength in infill walls. They have needed either cement mortar or chicken wire to hold the walls together. Some good info on previous projects is at: http://inspirationgreen.com/plastic-bottle-schools.html#jfafa3e6aa Because of the strength of … Read more
Full text of the video is available on my Naturalhouse’s YouTube channel. This blog post will focus on summarizing the test results. Please note that even though half the samples were earthen blocks, you can do these same tests on earthbags to help develop a good soil mix. A link to additional tests can be … Read more
Breaking news. This just in from Brandon Ross, P.E. whose team has just completed an earthbag wind test in Florida. Text is from his preliminary report. Final results are expected to be published in a few months. “The University of Florida chapter of Engineers Without Borders has completed wind testing of an earthbag wall. The … Read more