Narrow Lot House
Specifications: 435 sq. ft. interior, 2 bedroom, 1 bath, 18′ exterior width, Footprint: 18′ x 32′
Description: Designed to fit narrow lots, this house has a compact yet efficient layout. Note: this plan is now listed in the free shelter category.
I would like to have a set of plans for this home as it seems to be the size home I would like to build in the near future.
I’m too busy at this time to work on free plans, but you can order it for $200. Most plans are available through Dream Green Homes: http://www.dreamgreenhomes.com/materials/earth/earthbags.htm, although this one is not listed yet. You can order direct from me at strawhouses [at] yahoo.com, or if you want to use a credit card or paypal then write Kelly at Dream Green Homes and ask to have this house added to his list.
If one can lean towards sustainability more than expedience, that upright fridge would be replaced with a front-loading washer (no dryer, driers are enviro-fail), and put a chest freezer converted with Tom Chalco’s handy device (which I have redesigned to work on 115V) where the convetional range is shown, use a small propane burner or even an alcohol soda-can ‘bum stove’ instead of a conventional range. A small under-cabinet microwave, outdoor propane (which can run unmodified on methane, homestead generated) tankless water heater for days when there is no sunlight for the solar hot water heater… Berm it a little… 1KW Inverter with ~the same in PV, LED lighting… Solar Heat boxes… A radiator bypass for the tankless, so you can heat the place with it in a pinch… This may be the perfect home for a Father and Son.
This are all good ideas. The floorplan is merely a suggested layout that provides space for cooking, appliances, etc. They can easily be altered as you’ve suggested. Same with all the other designs. For instance, I’m adapting the Two Pod house for Uganda. We’re stripping out the modern features and putting in appropriate technology (rocket stove, rootcellar, elevated cistern with gravity feed, etc.). This plan is almost finished and will be published soon.
Everywhere I look for land, so far, wants me to get ‘engineering.’ Which is better than a flat-out ‘no,’ but where do I find an engineer with a clue about earthbags?
Surely, you must be connected with a few people like this?
We know only two engineers who will do earthbag houses. One is extremely expensive; one is extremely busy. Earthbag building is a specialized type of construction. When an engineer stamps the plans, they’re guaranteeing the safety of the design and putting their career at stake. Why should engineers take on additional risk and spend lots of time learning new building techniques that are not widely popular and profitable? That’s why we post regularly about the importance of finding areas with few or no building codes. There are lots of places, you just need to be willing to move and/or look harder. Areas of high population almost always have extensive code requirements. Areas out west with sparse population are much more lenient.
Unfortunately, there is no such area. I’ve been looking for half a decade.
I’ve been looking in lots of rural areas with less than 1 person per square mile population densities, (AZ, UT, NZ, NM, etc.) but I can’t find one single county that doesn’t require an engineering stamp.
I guess the housing cartels have it all locked down pretty well. Buy their insanely overpriced junk, or be homeless.
I suppose I’ll have to leave the country just to stay alive. America is hopelessly hateful and stupid. My only other option is to build it anyway and have a showdown I’m sure to lose with the henchmen who kill to enforce hate and greed. At this point, why not? They’ve taken everything else… I have nothing left to lose, so why not?
After The First One, The Rest Are Free.
Building codes definitely contribute to the homeless problem and are frustrating to deal with. But there are ways around this problem. Some counties do little or nothing to enforce the code. So yes, the code might be adopted by the county, but not used strictly. For example, some areas do not enforce building codes except for the septic system. Others only inspect the plumbing, electric and septic. Others have a small fine if they catch you. But be careful because some will destroy illegal, non code-compliant buildings. You’ll want to travel around and find some hot spots where like-minded people are already building alternative structures. Google can help identify these areas.
Actually dryers are NOT “enviro fail” as some believe. Sun drying and even drying clothes in the shade can and does do damage to the clothes. Far more than drying in a conventional dryer does. So when the cost of buying new clothes, not to mention the energy used in manufacturing those clothes is put into the equation, drying via a dryer can be better than not.
We dry our clothes on a large rack on the back porch in the shade. I don’t see how that would hurt the clothes or be less environmentally sound than a clothes dryer. Our clothes dry for zero cost with zero energy and smell nice and fresh. How can that be a bad thing?