Earthbag building (sometimes called sandbag building) started about one hundred years ago providing safe, bulletproof and bomb resistant shelters for the military. They proved to be fast, simple to construct and durable. The same qualities that make earthbags useful for military and flood control purposes apply to building houses. Now people all over the world … Read more
Owen Geiger has a new earthbag video showing how to build earthbag domes. It’s short, fun and lively, yet shows all the important steps. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ODplmnpSts&hl=en_US&fs=1&]
Embedding bottles in a wall creates a really stunning effect, especially when sunlight shines through bottles of different colors. However, many bottle walls are thin walls. Here are some suggestions for using bottles in wide earthbag walls: – Buy a bottle cutter or rent a wet tile cutter to remove the ends. Join bottles of … Read more
My favorite low cost, sustainable foundation method is earthbags filled with gravel on a rubble trench (double-bagged for strength). But it’s always good to have options because each project is a little different. ‘Urbancrete’ is slang for old concrete that has been torn out. Flatwork slabs such as sidewalks and driveways work best. It can … Read more
Earthbags have proven to be incredibly versatile. They can be used throughout your home for foundations, walls, benches, privacy walls and other uses. And let’s not forget about stairs. Think how much money you can save by using earthbags to build your stairs. And they’re sturdy, too. Here’s a picture of curved stairs. In the … Read more
We routinely ask readers to document their projects and allow us to publish them on our Projects page at EarthbagBuilding.com. This enables other readers to learn much more rapidly. It’s the old “two heads are better than one” except here we’re dealing with thousands who are working together and sharing ideas. Very powerful. A perfect … Read more