Sustainable Building Methods

What is sustainable? Low cost to build? Low cost to maintain? Earth-ships claim to cost $100/year in total expenses after they're built and cost $10k(plus labour) to build. They reclaim used tires from landfills as well as plastic bottles, cans, etc. Straw-bale-construction uses straw and adobe with wire and boast similarly low costs to build and maintain with less labour.

Gray-water systems combined with rainwater collection eliminate the need for wells and sewage as well as provide humanure for plants.

Solar and wind provide ample electricity if correctly planned.

Passive solar greenhouses integrated into earth-ships provide food.

Collective living reduces consumption dramatically.

Bicycle-friendly communities don't require petroleum and cars.

DAMMIT! Those dirty hippies were right!!!

That's so cool... do you have any pics or something showing any?

Or maybe a few floor plans or "how to" files for building one?

Would this "tech" be considered a "prefered" building method for Jedi?

I have lots of questions.... I guess I should let a few others ask too.

I agree, do you have any pictures? I am very interested.

Well, i Googled it and they seems very sound, and seems rather good for a Jedi, although it is expensive to build.

I found a few pics...



Here's a few styles...



But I want this one!

http://earthship.com

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earthship

Wescli Wardest wrote: That's so cool... do you have any pics or something showing any?

Or maybe a few floor plans or "how to" files for building one?

Would this "tech" be considered a "prefered" building method for Jedi?

I have lots of questions.... I guess I should let a few others ask too.

Here's a full length documentary on earthships by the guy who invented them:



I think one would prefer a particular tech based on what's appropriate for a given bioregion. If you've got straw, use strawbale... No straw but have clay? Use Adobe or mud-bricks... etc

Alastor wrote: I agree, do you have any pictures? I am very interested.

Well, i Googled it and they seems very sound, and seems rather good for a Jedi, although it is expensive to build.

Expensive? How so?

Did you not say:

$10k(plus labour) to build.

That is expensive to some people, myself for example.

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Alastor wrote: Did you not say:

$10k(plus labour) to build.

That is expensive to some people, myself for example.

Sure, but in small town Springfield, Illinois, a 700 square foot home, 65+years old went for 50K about 13 years ago...

Thats how much my house cost...

10K is reasonable, and very cheap for housing...

$400 dollars a month for rent is $4800 a year...

A little over two years would pay that off...

But, that cost doesnt include the cost of the land Im sure...

Depending on where you live, a lot can go for 15k in town, and 10K for an acre in the country...

Lots of stuff to consider, but this is in mymind...

Someday the wife and I want to move to the country to get away from the zombie apocalypse, er, I mean the city...

This might be my way...

Buy the land, start collecting tires...

Whyte Horse wrote:

Wescli Wardest wrote: That's so cool... do you have any pics or something showing any?

Or maybe a few floor plans or "how to" files for building one?

Would this "tech" be considered a "prefered" building method for Jedi?

I have lots of questions.... I guess I should let a few others ask too.

Here's a full length documentary on earthships by the guy who invented them:

I think one would prefer a particular tech based on what's appropriate for a given bioregion. If you've got straw, use strawbale... No straw but have clay? Use Adobe or mud-bricks... etc

How many get built in colder climates?