There’s a whole industry that specializes in industrial geotextiles, and an excellent online Geosynthetics Magazine for building professionals. They use similar polypropylene fabric as earthbags (sand bags), but use it for industrial purposes such as highway projects. We’ve blogged about Geosynthetics Magazine before, but it’s been a long time and so I’d like to profile another one of their projects here. Note how many of the same building processes could be used in home construction such as basements, living walls and retaining walls, and building into hillsides (earth sheltering). Geotextiles can last indefinitely since they’re not exposed to sunlight. The US highway administration tested geotextiles to at least 500 years, and that’s why they meet code for highway projects. So it’s easy to see that earthbag projects can also be extremely strong and durable.
Source: Geosynthetics Magazine
Polypropylene Tubes for Pipeline Foundations and Beach Erosion Control
Thank you so much for this post..first, this is a revelation to me to see a line of products like this, and second..I’ve a question.
Could any of these products be used in the construction of an Umbrella House?
There’s a whole range of geosynthetic products and I can’t say for sure which product is best for you. In general, standard polypropylene bags are excellent for the main structure and any retaining walls. Then you’ll need a different material to trap the heat around the house. Polyethylene sheeting is the standard material for this. https://naturalbuildingblog.siterubix.com/pahs-principles-explained/