Rapid Growth in Tiny Homes


“Leah Wymer and Brady Ryan moved into 98 square feet so they could pursue their passions. From growing wedding flowers to making honey and sea salt, they say their tiny home is at the center of it all. Leah Wymer and Brady Ryan’s house-on-wheels wasn’t some big, planned project. Wymer’s dad, a carpenter, thought it would be fun, so they bought a used trailer off Craigslist for $500 and started building.

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False Housing Dichotomy

Stealth cargo trailer camper conversion for cheap mobile living
Stealth cargo trailer camper conversion for cheap mobile living

Society presents a false dichotomy for how to house ourselves: either go deeply in debt for 20-30 years for a mortgage-financed conventional home or be trapped in an endless cycle of renting. But there are lots of other options.

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Low Cost Village Housing for Nepal

Buttressed earthbag corners are low cost and add significant strength to buildings.
Buttressed earthbag corners are low cost and add significant strength to buildings.

The greatest need for housing in Nepal is in poor rural villages. Not only can they not afford cement and steel, it’s not practical to carry these heavy materials 1-2 days over mountain passes. We need to identify the most practical low cost earthbag building methods and create a document showing best practices.

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Reciprocal Roof at Home-Farm.org

Reciprocal roof on earthbag roundhouse made with free eastern red cedar trees
Reciprocal roof on earthbag roundhouse made with free eastern red cedar trees

“Reciprocal frame roofs are highly regarded in the natural building community though there is a limited amount of information about them on the internet. Resources that we’ve found helpful are listed at the bottom of this post. There is evidence of similar structures dating back to antiquated castles of Japan and Eskimo huts, though I have yet to find images of these.

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Earthbag Building Nepal Radio Interview

Namaste Nepal Radio Show interview of Owen Geiger and Vava Pragya, the earthbag workshop coordinator who’s playing a pivotal role in organizing the training in Nepal. Interview starts at 2:20. Commercial breaks about 14:00-22:00 and 32:00-39:10.

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Open Source Disaster Resistant Earthbag Homes for Nepal

Open Source Disaster Resistant Earthbag Homes for Nepal
Open Source Disaster Resistant Earthbag Homes for Nepal

From the archives — I realized yesterday that this open source disaster resistant earthbag house could be easily adapted to Nepal.

Add a roof of recycled wood and metal roofing and for very little money (under $1,000) you’d have a safe, decent home in short order. This design is 25 sq.m (270 sq.ft or about 16’x16’ interior) It’s extremely simple and easily to build.

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