Anyone considering a large earthbag project should look into the advantages of mechanizing the building process with machinery since construction work by its nature is labor intensive. A foundation trench for instance could be dug by a mini-excavator or backhoe in a few hours versus a week of manual labor. The same trench could be filled very quickly with gravel using the same machine.
earthbag house
Finding Good Tools in Developing Countries
Getting good tools in developing countries is challenging since the market is flooded with very low quality products. Often the tools are worthless within minutes or a few hours of use. Sometimes they never work. For instance, I bought a screwdriver a few weeks ago that stripped out on the first screw. This is not unusual. It’s actually very common in poor countries.
Live from Nepal: Tour Update #1
As most readers have already heard, I am touring earthbag projects near Kathmandu in collaboration with Good Earth Nepal.org (winner of NEA design award). Every day is exciting, informative and productive even though there are many challenges traveling in rural areas on heavily damaged mountain roads. For instance, the “main road” to China, which one would think is a major trade route, in some places looks like a bulldozer simply cleared aside a crude path on top of millions of tons of rocks. And that is in fact what it is!
Earthbag, Straw Bale, Permaculture Workshop
Natural Building Ecovillage Cottage Workshop build
on the ‘Ranch Crawkiss’ Eco Village in Hotchkiss Colorado July and August 2016.
Join us this summer to learn how to build your own super efficient Earthbag, Strawbale hybrid cottage in our Permaculture Natural Building BAG BLITZ! Get dirty and learn about creating an ecovillage this Summer, 3 Day, 7 Day, 9 Day or 16 Day. Intensive Bag Blitz Earthbag / Strawbale / Natural Building Bag Blitz Workshops in beautiful Hotchkiss, Colorado!
Dr. Sunny Cai’s Earthbag Domes and New Website
“Dr. Sunny Cai (Liang-Juei Cai), Ph.D (in Ecological and Chinese Ancient Architecture), now retired from University and living in Taiwan, is an author and professor specializing in the field of ancient and ecological architectural planning and design. Dr. Sunny not only attempts to build houses with high standards, incorporate carbon reduction but also rummages raw materials, which is recorded in China’s ancient architectural books, to solve environmental pollution issues. Dr. Sunny, as a volunteer, tries to help people who are eager to build a comfortable and green house.
Rebuilding Earthquake-hit Homes in Nepal with Earthbags
“A SCOTTISH entrepreneur is using a new slant on a century-old construction method to rebuild earthquake-devastated homes in Nepal. Derek Cowan and a team of volunteers are in the village of Thangpalkot, in the foothills of the Himalayas, on a mission to replace 86 destroyed homes.