Earthbag building (also called sandbag building) is surely one of the lowest cost, most practical building methods. First used by the military for building durable, bullet and blast resistant structures, this building method has recently experienced a surge of interest among do-it-yourself builders. There are now an estimated 1,000 to 1,500 earthbag structures, including homes, … Read more
I find it very heartening to notice that several earthbag dwellings have been approved by building authorities recently. The most recent one is located near Berea, Kentucky, and is profiled as the Kentucky Dome Home on our website. This house was designed by John Capillo, the owner, and was built with the assistance of HomeGrown … Read more
In my opinion nothing beats the warmth and rustic beauty of natural materials. Many people choose natural building materials to save money, and that makes perfect sense. But let’s not overlook design aesthetics. A home is much more than just an assemblage of materials. Natural materials have a way of seamlessly blending everything together, turning … Read more
Kelly and I try to track everything about earthbags and sandbags. Here’s a suggestion I came across on a January 4, 2009 post at SurvivalBlog.com. It’s another example of the amazing versatility of building with bags. “We came across a small discovery here on our ranch. We feed many animals and four dogs. So we … Read more
We have a new Project page featuring a double eco-dome in Joshua Tree, California. It will be the residence of Mark Reppert. Jeff Bousquet, who helped build the house, reports “It took us three months to complete the bag work of the project. The house blends into the desert. Most of the houses around where … Read more
I prefer heavy duty 2-gallon plastic buckets for filling earthbags, the same kind used for bucketing cement. They’re strong and small enough that everyone can handle them comfortably. In fact, they’re just the right size. Because they’re larger than the metal cans typically used, work progresses more rapidly. Two rounded shovelfuls fill a 2-gallon bucket … Read more