Earthships! and Alternative Building
 

I recently started reading about sustainable developement for some random reason.. and these puppies came out. I began to read about them and noticed that I couldn't stop.

I someday dream about building my own house.. and I think this would be it. These things are just amazing.


This link is a 5 min video on the basics of an earthship.

http://www.earthship.net/

and this is a link to Earthship Biotecture, the company that came up with the idea.

For anyone who is interested in sustainable development or alternative, I think they should give it a check. I was just amazed by the concept and thought I should share it.

also, if anyone else would like to put forth any ideas on sustainable or alternative building methods, please feel free.

its amazing what you can do with some left over garbage.

**Placed in the how-to section, to share knowledge of topics.. not politics =)**

I'll point tecoyah to this thread, as we are currently in the process of finishing construction on a straw bale structure, the first in our county.

Here are some pictures of the building progress:

and yes... there are a TON of pics in here:

http://flickr.com/photos/pjchmiel/se...7604143533254/

wow, I looked through every one, thats a nice photo diary you have of the construction process.

I'm curious, why did you decide to go with Straw Bale?

I mean there are so many choices out there.

I think the honeycomb sandbags are also fairly interesting

also, did you require any permits or such?

"wait, don't drop that cigarette!...." *WOOOOOOSH!*

i seriously hope you have some sort of fireproofing in that house!

back to the OP: that's a cool project to start! i wonder what the overall cost would be.

The walls are covered in mud, so it should be pretty much fire proof! =D

If i am correct by the end like 6 inches of mud / lime plaster


** Sorry, Thats for an Earthship **

from what I have read for one room, somewhere around 10,000 ... upwards of 200,000 ... depending on size, systems, glass, labour, etc.

The average seems between 20,000 and 50,000 for do-it-yourselfers (including, systems, resources, etc.)

This building is more fireproof than virtually anything but steel or concrete as the bales will smoulder under extreme situations but cannot burn. The cost ended up about $5000, and almost $1000 of that was the legalities involved with introducing alternative construction to the City, getting the insurance/Engineers stamp/ permits in place. I chose Straw Bale due to its proven longevity, thermal properties, ease of construction, and environmentally sound usage (its usually burned in the field or used as livestock bedding because nothing will eat it). Added to this is the asthetic beauty of the house, and the flexibility in construction.

One of the motivators in this project was creating a legal framework, and acceptance with an eye on low cost housing. As it is, the project has drawn much media coverage, and community awareness...So it seems I have succeeded in this, and become somewhat famous...infamous, heh.

I am now doing the hardest part.....earthplastering.

I have also heard some good things about rammed earth houses as well.

There have been a few straw bale houses in Canada, if I remember correctly.

There's an earthship in Peterborough, Ontario. Old tires, pop cans—the whole nine yards...uh, I mean 8.2296 metres.

This thread turns me on.

No, really. Crompsin and I spent about an hour talking about home designs and sustainable living on Saturday and it really made me happy. I have lots of ideas, and it's nice to see photos and such of people who have achieved what I'd like to do.

do you have any links or info? I have discovered about three in Ontario, from my estimates lol...

but not much information on any of them.

I can imagine, the great thing about them also is most of the materials are flexible in a creativity sense. Your mind is really the limit.

thank you for posting out ur this idea and information about sustainable development and i wish to go for more..................thanks once again

It's like a mix of Biodome and the houses found on Tatooine.

It's nice in concept, but not something I would live in.

parents know some people that built a straw bale house- apparently it matters a great deal how one goes about it- 5 years later they are demolishing it due to black mold and a rodent and bug infestation- Humid here in the midwest, and obviously they had some way in....

http://www.youtube.com/user/stophelandis

This is pretty much a set a youtube videos following this one specific earthship being built, they are still building it, and the last video was put up on friday, the 27th of june, so they regularly update it.

yea, I've heard it is the most important to make sure moisture doesn't get into the walls, or else, it just molds away. I could see so many ways of that happening..

-Didn't wrap it properly
-Didn't coat it properly
-Stacks weren't compressed close enough together

just to name the major ones I could see. Humidity definitely doesn't help.

Looks like I am famous now....woo hoo


Video - Breaking News Videos from CNN.com

Whoa! A real life celebrity!

I wonder if any TV celebrities post here.

You can do pretty much anything you want. I was inside the building awhile back, and noted there was not enough light in the Loft...so I climbed up, took out three bales, built a buck and put in another window before rebuilding the wall.


The water/mold/rodent issue came about because of poorly made walls, and likely a short overhang on the roof. Just like any wall, you need to do it properly during construction, or it will fail.

way to go tec!

when is it due to be fully completed?

About a month to go...I only have about 12 hrs a week to work on it, and tours/press/curious folk, take up a good 8 of that....heh

Congrats!
Funny enough, a video of the rising cost of energy followed...

Need some art for those walls? *wink wink*

nice job on the video!

the house looks great also..

how do you plan on finishing the floors? earthen finish or, you gonna bring in something else?

prolly cost him the same as the whole house!

I did a french trench foundation, and have started the Passive Geothermal floor. Bare earth leveled/vapor barrier/Sand. I will build a floating frame system imbedded in the sand, and lay tile on top to allow the temperature of the Earth to heat and cool the interior. This combined with the passive solar window area should make it comfy year round.

That is very interesting method of building the floor, I haven't read anything on it.

are there any books you would recommend on these houses and the "fixtures" or additional things you have added?

I recently purchased the "Earthship Library" which includes The three earthship volumes, 2 DVDs, 1 PhotoCD, and the book Water from the Sky.

I am currently about a quarter through the third book.. and wow, just some of the science and thought behind the additions to the earthships are awesome. The most recent one that I have read, was on a Thermal Mass Refrigerator.

Are you going to be doing any rain collection?

We built a shed style roof with coated metal to keep from contaminating the water, and expect about 800 gallons a year from the surface area and rainfall amounts. I will set a 110 gallon cistern behind the building with a sand filter (I do not feel like creating a carbon unit). Unfortunately....after completing the building I noted the tree that overhangs the roof...is a damn Mulberry tree.

http://i254.photobucket.com/albums/h...9253f76617.jpg

Very interesting. How long will a structure like this last?

The oldest still standing is a Spanish mission built around 1500

If I get 500 yrs, I'll be thrilled....dead, but thrilled

So you'll have fruit juice instead. :)

That's pretty awesome. I wonder how that sort of thing would hold up in Canadian weather.

About 1000 were built in Canada in the year 2000


In fact Canada and Nebraska were the first in North America to start it.

http://harvesthomes.ca/building/straw_bale_primer.pdf

So...are you building it for yourself or someone else?

Its a Kiva for Mom's 70th Birthday.

That's an awesome present :thumbsup:

Getting around building codes; shotcrete; LOW cost
 

Ok, here's the deal - I live in Oregon. I am a poor man, but bery capable and clever.
I can build whatever I need/want with shotcrete one way or the other.
In my area (classified,lol) I do not need a building permit for retaining walls 4ft or less high, or for 'accessory' buildings less than 200 sq ft and under 10ft high.
I can do a lot with this - the problem? I need good, strong sheds (Shotcrete/permanent), but area building codes demand I build a house (avg 600 sq ft min., etc etc) before any 'accessory' buildings.
This is a problem. I am super poor, but can do a whole lot with very little.
I cannot afford to build "their" house, that I don't want anyway (alternative building methods), and I cannot afford to buy even a small mobilehome (trailer, RV, etc not allowed).

I need to get around building codes any way I can!
I live alone, have no intention of renting/selling/etc. and intend to retire and die of old age on the property I will be buying.

- Looking for good ideas/suggestions/etc...

You might be able to come up with an experimental home and get approval that way. Say you are trying to make a low-cost home for third world countries.

Look into the designs of poured earth homes, and try and make it look 'native'. It might be easier if you are in a desert environment to get approval and make it look good, but I bet you could use some modern, clean, euro design. Or you can go ultra-green. There is a home in my hometown built into a side of a hill. Three sides and the roof are grass covered. The front could be the shot concrete. So, don't try and get around the law, explain why this house would be a good example of how homes should be built. (Insulation, energy usage, fire resistant, bug resistant, sound deadening, light blocking for your mock-up home theater...)
CU.MotherEarthNews.com | View Galleries, Upload Photos - Topeka Mother Earth News

And I'm assuming you know about using concrete to make bathroom and kitchen counters. You may want to splurge and add hot water heat in pex piping in the floors. I think you could make a decent house for not a lot of money that way. There are a few things like windows, doors, and skylights that might cost something, and the design should look pretty cool.

And go to the library and look at magazines or the Internet for cool architecture designs that you can 'barrow'.

I want that house now.