Cob house
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.....Earthship
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Straw bale house
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ECO-NOMICS 101
There are many types of natural homes that are made of everything from Mud and straw to old tires and the classic log cabin. Obviously this is something you only want to do if you own your own land, have a long stable lease on the land or a long term vested interest and permission. Traditional wood houses are easier and faster to build but the expenses can sometimes be off the charts to buy the wood and all the other finishing products you will need. One thing to keep in mind though is that archaeologist never dig up old wood built houses. ( think about that). Houses built from natural materials (not that wood isn't natural) such as stone and clay have withstood the trials and tribulations of time, and honestly I'm not sure why we stopped building with them other then the labor load involved in building with these materials, which is most likely the reason, men could be paid less and houses built faster with wood, which was readily available and in abundance at the time, but they were by no means energy efficient and were highly flammable. I grew up in an old drafty house and in the winter we would hang heavy blankets over the windows and towels under the doors, it didn't help much, the cold just rolled on through until summer came and then the heat would be unbearable because these buildings don't breath naturally,these homes were by no-means in tune with nature. Earthen building materials offer a more incorporated relationship with the outside factors , They are slower to cool in the winter once heated as a mass, and vice verse in the summer, helping to maintain a steady and even temperature throughout consistently. The best part is that most of these materials can be sourced right from the ground you are standing on.
Log cabins are beautiful to look at and everyone has has stunning somber mental picture in their mind somewhere that includes a log cabin, whether it be in a fresh snow fall or on the side of a mountain beside a stream, for a long time this scenario has been equated with Americana folklore. The fact of the matter is that they just weren't efficient. Massive amounts of fuel were needed to keep them warm and maintenance was very high. Structures built from earthen materials (i.e. Cob, straw bale, earth-ships) are just the opposite. If built properly as to be protected from the elements, maintenance would include a good lime white washing every 3-5 years. ( this will vary with every project and location). Once these earthen structures are heated in the winter they hold their thermal properties better then wood and dead air spaces. This is because Heat conductivity and thermal relation is very low in earthen material so as it takes longer to heat up so does it take longer to cool down, holding the heat for longer periods of time. If you were to take a blow torch to a piece of steel and to a rock which would heat the fastest? If you said the steel, you're are correct. it would take longer to heat the rock to the same temperature as the steel, but once heated the rock would take longer to cool, this is thermal conductivity, and earthen materials are vary poor at it, but that's a good thing because we want to hold the heat as long as possible. This all has to do with "microscopically diffusing and colliding objects" or Fourier's law if you would like to know more.
This is just plane old responsible building. Sourcing the materials from the location that the project is being erected on is good ecology. The fossil fuels burned to build a standard stick built house is enormous, The impact on the environment to build a stick house is enormous, The people employed and the impact on financial systems from forest to foundation is enormous. The American financial schismatic is based on "new housing starts" because of the chains of employment involved as well as the the fact that people are making money in other industries and are able to put pen to paper to sign on for a mortgage to build a new house and take on the debt. The measurement of societies health is monitored by this equation.
"Oh what a tangled web we've weaved." : Disenchanted Arachnid - circa: 20??
Environmental Impacts of Building Materials Forests On The Edge Assessing your land
Log cabins are beautiful to look at and everyone has has stunning somber mental picture in their mind somewhere that includes a log cabin, whether it be in a fresh snow fall or on the side of a mountain beside a stream, for a long time this scenario has been equated with Americana folklore. The fact of the matter is that they just weren't efficient. Massive amounts of fuel were needed to keep them warm and maintenance was very high. Structures built from earthen materials (i.e. Cob, straw bale, earth-ships) are just the opposite. If built properly as to be protected from the elements, maintenance would include a good lime white washing every 3-5 years. ( this will vary with every project and location). Once these earthen structures are heated in the winter they hold their thermal properties better then wood and dead air spaces. This is because Heat conductivity and thermal relation is very low in earthen material so as it takes longer to heat up so does it take longer to cool down, holding the heat for longer periods of time. If you were to take a blow torch to a piece of steel and to a rock which would heat the fastest? If you said the steel, you're are correct. it would take longer to heat the rock to the same temperature as the steel, but once heated the rock would take longer to cool, this is thermal conductivity, and earthen materials are vary poor at it, but that's a good thing because we want to hold the heat as long as possible. This all has to do with "microscopically diffusing and colliding objects" or Fourier's law if you would like to know more.
This is just plane old responsible building. Sourcing the materials from the location that the project is being erected on is good ecology. The fossil fuels burned to build a standard stick built house is enormous, The impact on the environment to build a stick house is enormous, The people employed and the impact on financial systems from forest to foundation is enormous. The American financial schismatic is based on "new housing starts" because of the chains of employment involved as well as the the fact that people are making money in other industries and are able to put pen to paper to sign on for a mortgage to build a new house and take on the debt. The measurement of societies health is monitored by this equation.
"Oh what a tangled web we've weaved." : Disenchanted Arachnid - circa: 20??
Environmental Impacts of Building Materials Forests On The Edge Assessing your land
The Great Fire
The great fire of 1849 Christmas eve in San Francisco was so horrific duly in part to the makeshift and over crowded conditions of the city, gold strikes were everywhere and the people were following the money. The city doubled in size every 2 yrs for some time meaning living quarters and establishments were thrown together quickly. The fire started in one such establishment, a gambling hall and saloon that was timber framed with a wood facade on the front street side but sail canvass was stretched across the rest of it to form the outside walls. They were walls of cotton and hemp saturated in oil based paints. (no wonder the fire spread so fast) This was more the norm then the uncommon in this day and age, not only in San Francisco but all over the west. It was cheap, fast and durable and as we now know- dangerous. Quick thinking men surrounded the fire with gunpowder and other flammables to do a burn-back and starve the now out of control fire and save what they could of the city. Forest fire fighters to this day use the same process, they are know as " Hot-shot " teams and the process is called back burning. Fighting fire with fire. Fire should always be your main concern when designing and building your home, not only the materials you choose but the location and the surrounding area as well as properly planned exits that are accessible from many points of the structure.
Here are some links to Eco-nomic building.
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Shipping containers
12 container houses Shipping living info Container home info For Blue prints, ideas, codes and more on containers houses. |
