I’m going to donate one free copy of my upcoming earthbag book to the first person who locates a US supplier of raschel mesh bags. (Must be a type of bag or tube that’s suitable for earthbag building. Check carefully. There’s a 3/8″x3/8″ (approx.) mesh bag made of threads that soil would probably fall through.) … Read more
By now you’re probably getting excited like I am about using open weave mesh bags and tubes. I came up with this $10 solution for filling bags and tubes. It has a 3-gallon metal bucket chute with the bottom cut out and a heavy duty leather shoulder strap riveted on with three pop rivets per … Read more
From time to time we answer reader’s questions. Paul: In the EcoOcha video I noticed they tamped the sides to reduce the ‘log cabin’ look and to reduce the amount of plaster required. This smoother surface would be much easier to plaster. Owen: Yes, more and more builders are flattening the walls like this to … Read more
I recommend Precision Structural Engineering at Structure1.com for anyone needing engineering on their earthbag home or other buildings. Engineering is available for seismic and non-seismic areas. Precision Structural Engineering is a leader in the green building movement. They developed the first code approved earthbag building system that’s suitable for most any design.
I was able to find some fruit and vegetable bags that seem to match what is being used in Brazil by Fernando Pacheco, the developer of the Hiperadobe earthbag system. What I’ve located is an open weave synthetic fabric, 5 x 10mm weave with 2 x 8mm openings. It has vertical threads and horizontal strips … Read more
I think it’s abundantly clear we have hit some sort of tipping point or turning point for earthbag building. The list I put together Some Incredible Facts about Earthbag Building summarizes many positive aspects of earthbag. And every day brings news of additional ways to further reduce costs and save labor. Earthbag building is already … Read more