Page 2 of 6 FirstFirst 1234 ... LastLast
Results 11 to 20 of 52

Thread: earthbag construction.

  1. #11
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    timber missouri
    Posts
    20,314

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Thunder View Post
    I would think barbed wire would rip the snot out of the bags. It woul seem to be a good idea to keek them intact.
    i suppose it would IF there was a major shift in the bags,but otherwise you are just nicking the bags with the barbs enough to hold them in place as the work progresses..

    Quote Originally Posted by sorrow View Post
    what about rain drainage inside.......

    it looks to be sloped down into your shed.......

    very inspiring.......!
    oh its sloped, everything here is sloped.. lol. the back wall in the photo is about 4 feet high,so thats a 4 foot drop in 8 feet. and thats one of the flatter spots on the property..lol

    because georgia clay is,,well,, clay,seepage isnt a problem here. this will be our third underground project here (again easiest way to build as we have NO flat spots). first was a sweat lodge,second was the root cellar and now this.
    we have found that simply by digging a drain channel around the high side and down the sides,then covering the whole thing with a couple layers of 6mil plastic, making sure it lays in the drain channels before we cover everything with dirt is all that is needed to keep the inside dry.

    the sweat lodge is now 6 years young and it doesnt leak a bit,root cellar is 4 years young and the same results..

    Quote Originally Posted by heiwa View Post
    My DH and I built a three room cabin last summer out of earth bags. Because we were building in Montana, we opted to use lava rock to fill the bags for added insulation. We were running out of time by October, so covered them in a mud/straw mix to see us through the winter. It worked well, but started to fall off when the Spring rains came (too much sand in the mix). This past week we started putting papercrete on the domes. It's been a wonderful project.

    If we were to do it again, we would get the UV protected bags - the intense MT sun really does a number on them, and they were hard to keep covered while we were working (pesky wind up here). We have some pics on our blog: http://halcyontimes.wordpress.com.

    Jen
    awesome heiwa.. you just made my day and it hasnt really started yet.. :)

    i LOVE the bee hive style.. is there a reason yall decided on the bags rather than the tubes?? if we were to ever do a bee hive structure i think i am leaning towards using the tubes..

    would love to read your thoughts on this..

  2. #12
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    timber missouri
    Posts
    20,314

    Default

    just a little update. after taking a inventory of bags for our project we seem to be short by quite a few bags so we had to place a order. after several phone calls to find a company who would sell small orders of bags we found white bag company out of little rock.
    http://www.whitebag.com/

    they sell the exact same size bag we have been saving, 16.5x36x4 for 40 cents a bag minimum order of 50..

    this bumps up our total cost of the project considerably,but in the end it is still going to be MUCH cheaper than any conventional built shed would be..

    next up will be making a homemade tamper and felling some trees for the roof structure.. stay tuned..

  3. #13
    Join Date
    Nov 2008
    Posts
    562

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by dilligaf View Post

    awesome heiwa.. you just made my day and it hasnt really started yet.. :)

    i LOVE the bee hive style.. is there a reason yall decided on the bags rather than the tubes?? if we were to ever do a bee hive structure i think i am leaning towards using the tubes..

    would love to read your thoughts on this..
    Thanks! We decided on the bags for a couple of reasons. First, 90% of the project was done by just two people, so we thought it would be easier and safer to fill bags at one station, then move them to their final destination as opposed to lobbing buckets of lava rock 10 - 15 feet into the air. I can definitely see the advantage of using the tubes, though.

    We only made one tamper, and it was in sad shape by the time we were done, so I'd recommend making several (Thank goodness for gorilla tape!).

    Good luck - I'll be happy to answer any questions as best I can!

    Jen

  4. #14
    Join Date
    Jul 2009
    Posts
    5,140

    Default

    Excellent blog Heiwa, it's inspiring...really.
    But what weapons can you use to dispossess someone who will not accept anything except Holy Scripture interpreted according to his own rules?...Where Lutheranism reigns, learning dies. They seek only two things: good pay and a wife. The gospel offers them the rest — that is, the power of living as they please.

    I understand now how Arius and Tertullian and Wickliff were driven into schism by malicious clergy and wicked monks.

    (Erasmus regarding Luther and the church, 1527, 1529)

  5. #15
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    timber missouri
    Posts
    20,314

    Default

    Thank goodness for gorilla tape!
    Amen !! lol great stuff.

    i made us a hillbilly tamper yesterday that i feel should get us through this project .

    i calculate that we are only going to use somewhere in the neighborhood of 150 to 175 bags.. tiny, i know, compared to what yall accomplished heiwa..

    and i agree with reb,,inspiring..and i am not easily inspired nor impressed,yall impressed me as well.. :)

  6. #16
    Join Date
    Nov 2008
    Posts
    562

    Default

    Aw, shucks!

    We learned so much from this - my biggest surprise is that we give so much authority to "professionals", when it isn't truly necessary. Every one can be their own doctor. Everyone can build their own home. It was a wonderful surprise to discover that even without any experience, we were capable of this. And, in fact, we laugh and say that we're glad we were so naive, otherwise we probably wouldn't have attempted it!

    Not to say it's been perfect (we just had a rainstorm that soaked through our bags and turned the bedroom into a rainforest), but we did manage to get papercrete on the kitchen dome last week, and it stayed wonderfully dry.

    BTW, dilligaf, I showed your outdoor stove/oven to my man, and he said he'd build one for me this year - so thanks for your video!

    Jen

  7. #17
    Join Date
    Nov 2008
    Posts
    562

    Default

    is there an echo in here?
    (double post)

  8. #18
    Join Date
    Jun 2010
    Posts
    9,682

    Default

    Keep us posted on your project.


    I've been saving feed sacks just to make a dirt bag shelter of some sort.
    "Of all tyrannies, a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. ...those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end for they do so with the approval of their own conscience."
    C.S. Lewis



  9. #19
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    timber missouri
    Posts
    20,314

    Default

    will do homesteader..

    so i have been busy today moving fences (dont ask) and pondering on how i am going to do the roof structure and i really,REALLY want to do a reciprocal roof design for the framing..

    i dont consider myself a carpenter,more a wood butcher lol, but i.from my rudimentary knowledge of structures think that this type of roof system would be great for the strength needed to support a earthen roof and the goat shed would be a perfect place to experiment with it so when and if one day we build our dream home i can incorporate the design (which we both love) into it..

    anyone have any experience with this kind of design? would love to hear your thoughts..

    for those wondering what i am talking about..


  10. #20
    Join Date
    May 2007
    Location
    Klamath Falls, OR
    Posts
    2,544

    Default

    No experience, but I've been intrigued with it for quite a while. That picture you posted appears to have bamboo timbers.

    I wish we could get good feed bags here -- I buy feed in paper bags, and can't see how they would work for earthbag construction.

    Kathleen
    Psalm 27:4 One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire in his temple.

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •