Earthbag Building: The Tools, Tricks and Techniques (Mother Earth News Wiser Living Series, 8)

Earthbag Building: The Tools, Tricks and Techniques (Mother Earth News Wiser Living Series, 8)

Book is in good condition! There is some wear from use. The pages are clean with no marks.

The illustrated step-by-step guide to constructing with earthbags is the only comprehensive resource available. A significant portion, over seventy percent, of the American population is unable to afford owning a contractor-built home that complies with building codes. This circumstance has sparked considerable interest in utilizing natural materials such as straw, cob, and earth for constructing cost-effective buildings that rely heavily on labor rather than expensive, and often environmentally-damaging, externally sourced materials. "Earthbag Building" serves as the primary guide encompassing all the necessary tools, techniques, and nuances required for constructing with earth-filled bags, commonly known as earthbags. Originating from an introduction to sandbag construction by the renowned Nader Khalili in 1993, the authors of the guide have refined the "Flexible Form Rammed Earth Technique" over the past decade. This technique provides a dependable approach to building houses, auxiliary structures, garden walls, and various other constructions. Notably, this method, which is sustainable and does not involve the use of trees, can be employed to craft aesthetically pleasing arched and domed structures in any geographical region - be it domestically, in developing nations, or during emergency humanitarian efforts. The extensively illustrated guide initially outlines the numerous advantages of earthbag construction and subsequently navigates the reader through essential components of constructing an earthbag building. These components include special design considerations, foundations, walls, floors, electrical and plumbing installations, shelving, lintels, windows, doors, roofs, arches, domes, exterior and interior plasters. Additionally, the guide includes dedicated chapters on cost analysis, crafting specialized tools, complying with building codes, and an exhaustive list of resources, making "Earthbag Building" a much-awaited definitive manual on this uniquely appealing construction technique. This insightful resource is part of the esteemed Mother Earth News Wiser Living Series.

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