Earth Plaster * Straw Bale * Cordwood * Cob * Living Roofs
“Clarke Snell and Timothy L. Callahan, whose popular Good House Book helped environmentally-minded readers create an earth-friendly home, have returned with a photo-packed, amazingly complete, start-to-finish guide to “green” housebuilding.
“A hobbit-style eco-home is threatened with demolition after it was built in open countryside without planning permission.
Thanks to Richard F. for suggesting this site. It’s a page of fun Norwegian Houses in Thai language. This site shows how natural building methods are spreading around the world. The focus here seems to be on living roofs/green roofs.
There’s lots of demand for solar homes, earth sheltered homes, super energy efficient, low cost/ do-it-yourself designs and domes. This design combines all these features. The main living dome in this stellar design is flooded with light and ventilation through a 12’ south facing arched window wall. Plexiglass skylight and ferrocement eyebrow windows (optional) provide additional daylighting and solar gain in lofts. Alcoves provide space for baths, walk-in closets, pantry, etc. Wood pole reciprocal roofs reduce heavy work high on the domes. Buttresses contain earth berms covered with grass, zeriscaping or edible plants. Additional domes can be joined with earthbag vaults to create larger homes in modular fashion. For instance, two domes could be joined side-by-side with south facing arches.
“The Eco-Sense House is alive! From dream (see episode 103*) to reality. Its curving cob walls embrace Ann and Gord Baird’s three-generation family. A living roof offers summer cooling and filters winter rains stored for garden water. The composting toilet provides rich soil for the veggie gardens, which supply much of the family’s food. This “net zero energy” house uses the sun for electricity, hot water, and warm floors. Tour this small-footprint house, designed as part of the ecosystem surrounding it. Episode 230.”
“If you are considering the cheapest simplest way of building your own home with natural materials, earthbag construction could be the best way to go. For the most part you will be filling bags with dirt and stacking them. In the August/September 2009 Mother Earth News, they ran an article on this small earthbag project which needs no building permit and would be great practice in the earthbag technique or even cob, rammed earth with tires or adobe.