As a way to gather and share the best original earthbag building ideas for my upcoming earthbag book, I’m running a contest called Earthbag Building 2.0. The goal is to help take earthbag to the next level and hopefully mainstream its use. Winning entries will be credited with your name, and if your business is … Read more
Some earthbag builders have problems with drooping (slumping) earthbags at corners and next to window and door openings. Without another bag to support the unsupported bag end, bags tend to slump. (All other bags are butted against other bags and don’t have this tendency.) But like everything else in earthbag building, there’s a simple solution. … Read more
Larger structures such as schools and other commercial structures in earthquake zones require strong reinforcing. Patti Stouter and I have been working on a school design for Haiti. The first earthbag school is now under construction near Leogane. Part of the design is this reinforced earthbag buttress, which will help stabilize the long walls. Complete … Read more
Patti Stouter has expanded and updated her soil testing guide Soil Tests for Earthbag. We’ve added the report to our EarthbagStructures.com and EarthbagBuilding.com websites, where you can find indepth information on every aspect of building with bags. Using the right soil is very important. After all, earthbag building uses soil as the primary building material, … Read more
I’ve been caught up in the tiny house movement lately, in large part because of Michael Janzen’s excellent Tiny House Design and Tiny House Living websites. These sites really are a gold mine of information. This line of thought has helped inspire me to think of smaller, simpler house designs. What do we really need … Read more
[The following excerpt is from Paul Coleman’s Environmental Booty blog] The design is of four domes and a courtyard and when people see it I am sure they will be reminded of a fairytale world. It will fit in with the view and will disappear among the surrounds. Most of the materials will have to … Read more