A Temporary Housing Option

Pre-cast concrete posts, small diameter poles and thatch or metal roofing can create fast, low cost, easy to construct temporary housing.
Pre-cast concrete posts, small diameter poles and thatch or metal roofing can create fast, low cost, easy to construct temporary housing.

Most of the housing solutions we discuss here at Natural Building Blog utilize ultra low cost materials such as soil for earthbags, adobes or CEBs, poles from local forests, straw bales and other locally sourced sustainable materials. Houses built like this are very strong and durable. They’re primarily for permanent housing. But what if you need temporary housing to live in while your main house is being built? While a mobile home/camper would suffice, consider the benefits of building temporary housing. The temporary housing solution outlined here is designed for speed and ease of construction at low cost.

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Wigwam, Wikiup, Bender Tents/Shelters

Improvised shelters made of branches or saplings and covered with tarps provide emergency shelter as well as a place to live while your home is being built.
Improvised shelters made of branches or saplings and covered with tarps provide emergency shelter as well as a place to live while your home is being built.

“A wigwam or wickiup is a domed room dwelling used by many different Native American cultures. The curved surfaces make it an ideal shelter for all kinds of conditions. These structures are formed with a frame of arched poles, most often wooden, which are covered with some sort of roofing material. Details of construction vary with the culture and local availability of materials. Some of the roofing materials used include grass, brush, bark, rushes, mats, reeds, hides or cloth.”

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The Love & Haiti Project

The Love & Haiti Project provides a curriculum for sustainable living solutions to Haiti. In May 2011, we will be certifying Haitian students in Permaculture and training locals in Superadobe while building community structures with this technique around the island. The Love & Haiti Project’s mission is to provide the people of Haiti a safe, … Read more