So far very little has been written about earthbag basements. Earthbags are suitable for basements and other underground applications such as cisterns and rootcellars. Round or curved designs are inherently stronger than long, straight walls, which require reinforcing columns or buttresses. General guidelines for earthbag basements: – 24″ wide poly bags (measured when empty) – … Read more
Date: 7 days, April 19-25, 2010 Cost: $500 includes excellent hotel, shuttle van, breakfasts, dinners, snacks Location: Sakon Nakhon, Northeast Thailand Instructor: Owen Geiger Email: strawhouses [@] yahoo dot com Roundhouse information: Round earthbag office, 15’ interior diameter, 18” walls, earthbag foundation Wood doors and windows, small bathroom, earthbag benches 16 sided wood bond beam, … Read more
What is the best way to build a low-cost home that doesn’t harm the planet? Most materials such as concrete and steel are highly processed and transported long distances, making them unaffordable to millions who are in need of housing. These high-tech materials also cause a great deal of harm to the environment. The answer … Read more
Here’s another dirt cheap earthbag house – this one is in Mexico. I just found a new video about the house, and the owner’s daughter who helped build the house said it cost about $2,000! We need more stories like this. At some point people will stop paying ridiculously high prices and switch over to … 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&]
Steve over at Utopia Springs sent me a link about a fascinating housing idea for desert areas. These structures stay cool in the desert (in the 60’s) using just evaporative cooling. The galvanized metal roof is covered with burlap, and water flows down over the top. A small RV pump is adequate to keep the … Read more