“The back mass wall is up to the 7th course of bags and another course of foam insulation is about to start. In the video I show how the geotextile is woven through the mass wall making it monolithic. This is an invention by Howard Switzer (the Architect on this project) and he calls it “continuous buttress earthbag walls”. This design eliminates the need for poured concrete buttresses and battering the walls (leaning them back) and allows for a cleaner looking straight walled interior. We have had 300% the normal rainfall this summer in TN and this has resulted in much less progess than was anticipated.
solar house
The Solar Trailer Home for Owner-Builders
An enclosed passive solar trailer home can provide temporary living space while your main home is under construction. When the enclosure is complete, you can drive or tow the trailer out if you wish. While you might not want to use the exact method described in the following article, they do provide some interesting ideas to think about. A key benefit is living and working at the jobsite to reduce costs.
University of Maryland WaterShed
“Instead of focusing only on energy efficiency at this year’s Solar Decathlon, the University of Maryland is also tackling water conservancy with their entry, WaterShed. WaterShed was inspired by the ecosystem of Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay. WaterShed is an example of how natural water resources can be maintained and protected by homes and buildings, and the house features technology to manage and harvest stormwater, filter and recycle greywater, and minimizing water use in general. In addition, the house also has PV and solar thermal arrays for sustainable energy production.
David W. Allan’s Solar Home
“Located in the cooler central Utah climate at 6,000 foot elevation, the Allan’s solar home integrates at least ten different forms of solar, including: trombe wall, solarium convection, photovoltaic cells, propylene-glycol heat exchange, eutectic salt chamber, berm insulation, black chimneys and under-ground intake for passive solar air conditioning, and dehydration of food.”
Earth Sheltered, Solar Powered & Heated Home
The following text and video is from Daniel Geery’s article at OpEdNews. I can really relate to what this guy is saying about sustainable housing. Most of the technology was well known decades ago, as you can see in his video below. His house shows just how simple living off grid can be. “My family … Read more