There are several ongoing issues with strawbale construction, that seem to be giant thorns in the side of the system. Moisture from the exterior… big porch areas… no second stories moisture from the interior…. permeable exterior coatings, that allow exterior moisture problems. Low load bearing capacity… No second stories. Excessive labor for plastering bales. I […]
Category: Housing
Little House Framing – Interior Walls
This is my first post in a series that will describe, discuss, and probably debate, new ways to frame a little house, using standard construction materials, as well as others, such as locally milled timbers. There will be some assumptions made, based on information that I will fill in later, as I describe various sub-systems […]
Solar Greenhouse Garage Attachment Questions
The house burned down. The garage didn’t. Then I bought the property. It has a septic system, a well, public electricity to the site, telephone to the site, a damaged cinderblock foundation that was the basement of the previous house, and a 864 sq ft garage with a great solar exposure. The property is in […]
Solar Greenhouses & Sunspaces
If you can build your greenhouse on the south side of your house, then they can share heat, and the greenhouse can act as a big walk-in Solar collector in the winter, while your house (with a woodstove?) can keep the green- -house from freezing at the growing season extremes. It will also cost less […]
Small Houses and Wood Heat
I have a trash burner that I got for a song, and it is in storage, waiting for the time when I can install it in my own house. Right now I am looking at a floor plan that is 20×20, including an partially enclosed porch. It still seems a bit *big* LOL for me… […]
Houses of the Future: The Clay House
The Clay House uses the twin concepts of a courtyard plan and the inherent mass of clay brick products to create an intimate and private house. The driving concept behind this design is that it can fit into a small block, and has high level of thermal comfort that doesn’t rely on artificial cooling and […]
Houses of the Future: The Glass House
The Glass House reveals the latest in Nano technology research from around the world. It will showcase both commercially-available products, and prototypes of recent research into materials science, to demonstrate the ways in which these products can: Enhance our lifestyle; Improve natural lighting, thermal and acoustic performance of buildings; Result in lower maintenance costs over the […]
Houses of the Future: The Timbler House
Innovarchi’s concept for the timber house explores the single-family dwelling and its relationship to the environment. The architects, Stephanie Smith and Ken McBryde of Innovarchi, have conceived of a surface that is metaphorically a piece of landscape. Based on the idea of the Möbius Loop or Klein Bottle this surface, or skin, is simultaneously roof, […]
Houses of the Future: The Cardboard House
The Cardboard House represents the reduction of technology and the simplification of needs. By demonstrating that we are able to recycle 100% of the building components at extremely low cost, the Cardboard House is a direct challenge to the housing industry to reduce housing and environmental costs. Stutchbury and Pape, working in association with the […]
Houses of the Future: The Steel House
The Steel House was conceived as a pre-fabricated, modernist, compact dwelling that is both environmentally responsible and utilitarian, and available as an off the shelf, affordable product. It is a simple steel-framed modular unit, elegantly protected from the elements by a striking over-sailing roof. It is encircled by a delicate steel veranda, and appears to […]