Specifications: 565 sq. ft. interior, plus 291 sq. ft. tower (4 levels), 1 bedroom (fold-out bed), 1 bath, Footprint: 35′ x 45′
Description: This is my favorite design so far. I think it’s especially nice in elevation. (See below.)
The Native Spirit house plan blends an octagonal dwelling with a soaring tower, all built of earthbags. If one chooses, the upper half of the main house can be built with bales. (The lower half uses earthbags because it’s earth-bermed.) The first floor of the tower serves as a cool pantry that keeps food cool without electricity. Other levels can be used as office space, a second bedroom or storage. The top level is an observation deck — a truly stunning feature in such an affordable home. The hollow, central column in the main structure can be built with stone or CEBs. The stove pipe runs up through the column and the thermal mass helps stabilize indoor temperatures. Large south-facing windows create an attractive plant shelf and provide excellent solar gain. Other features include a large built-in bench, fold-out bed and home office. An airlock entry has a washer and dryer, coat closet and bench.
Great site, Owen.
Can you tell me the height of the tower in this plan? I read through your site and understand that your designs are meant as inspiration, but is there a more detailed plan of the Native Spirit?
This is almost exactly what I’ve been looking for.
I’ve been trying to decide between Earthbag and Cob and for some reason I keep getting drawn back to Earthbag.
I think in our colder northern NM climate it would be a better insulator.
The tower is 31 feet high from finished floor height in the pantry to the very top. So there’s a pantry, two more floors, plus an observation deck where the earthbags extend up 4 feet.
Yes, the plans are nearly finished, it’s mostly a matter of creating polished drawings without scribbled notes. I almost built this particular plan, so I have a roof framing plan, section view, floor plan and east elevation finished. You can email me from my About page if you have more questions.
For the difference between cob and earthbag, view this chart I put together: http://www.earthbagbuilding.com/articles/advantages.htm
Cob is great for small projects like benches, but it is extremely slow to build a house out of. If you’re not sure of this, build two small outbuildings (sheds, etc.) using both materials and compare your experiences. Earthbags should be several times faster if you’re doing things right.
Also, you can fill the bags with scoria, perlite or other insulation. This speeds construction considerably. You have scoria mines near your place in northern New Mexico, so it will be reasonably priced. Scoria will provide superinsulated walls, and will never burn, rot or attract insects or other pests. This is how Kelly Hart built his house in Colorado (see EarthbagBuilding.com).
Thanks for the reply and the info. One item you can add to the comparison list (List of Advantages: http://www.earthbagbuilding.com/articles/advantages.htm) is the ability to work with Earthbags in cold weather. I actually have tons of what looks like scoria on my property so that’s another plus. cheers
I also love this design, but the proportions bother me a little. In the elevation, the tower appears to loom ponderously over the little house… Although in the top view, the proportions are lovely, why is that?
Would it be any problem to make the tower a hexagon too? It seems like that would add harmony to the two structures.
What kind of roof is on top of the tower (the floor of the observation deck?) How do you keep it waterproof?
Not criticisms, this is really a nice design.
Earthbag walls are about 18″ thick. If you go much smaller in diameter the interior space becomes much less functional. Personally, I love how it looks in both plan and elevation.
You could build a hexagonal tower, but that wasn’t what I was after. I’m using an interplay of traditional Native American shapes — a hogan and a round tower — and I would be reluctant to change that. I’ve seen centuries-old stone towers on the way to Lake Powell and have been inside authentic hogans, and this design captures the essence of both.
If you want to alter the proportions, I suggest making the hogan larger.
Observation deck: There are commercial waterproofing materials on the market. Do a Google search for waterproof decks. There are small drains not shown on the plans.
I really like the tower, Owen — I’ve been wanting to do something like that for a while now. But I have a question about plastering. You’ve said elsewhere that earthen plasters are the way to go, but those usually need a protective overhang and have to be reapplied on a regular basis. This tower has no overhangs and replastering would be problematic on a structure that tall. So what would you use instead? Ferrocement maybe?
Earthen plaster is great if there’s an adequate roof overhang or it’s used on interior walls. For the tower, you’ll need to use lime or cement plaster. Lime plaster would be my first choice.
Another option not yet discussed is building a dome where the tower is now. A 16′ interior diameter bedroom dome might be more practical for some people than a tower. Hmm. Any comments on this?
Hi Owen,
This design is really nice. I am wondering if it would need a lot of time for you to customize your actual design in order to add something like an half second floor ( 2/3 height?) in the main room with a mezannine with stairs and make a large bedroom… and what could be the price for such adaptation to your original plan ?
Thank’s
P.S.: I am thinking a lot about buying you this plan: it’s very interresting. I live in Quebec, Canada. I am also wondering what could be the better material for a northern climate like here. From what I read, sand is not much insulating. Rice hull is not something easily available here… what would you use?
Yes, a bedroom loft as you describe could be added. It would look real nice and be very practical. I’ll email you a quote.
The most practical building method is straw bale walls on an earthbag foundation. This is fast, easy and has a high R-value for superinsulating. Use perlite or scoria in the earthbags to create an insulated foundation.
Nice,
One more little thing: since this house is to be built on a land having a rich wildlife (mooses, bears, hares, etc.), I thought about having a window on every faces, in order to be able to visually follow animals while they are passing by. Finally, maybe a couple of windows could be useful on the roof in order to have some light on this second level.
Thank’s!
François
Yes, all these things are possible. No problem. Things will naturally vary a bit as these houses get built in various climates.
Is the plan viable for strawbale building as well as earthbag building?
I mean, if its really more insulating… strawbale is something easily available here (Quebec, Canada).
Yes, the plans can be used for both. Same thing with most plans on this site. Earthbags and straw bales are the same size, so it’s easy to combine them. For cold climates, I recommend filling the earthbag foundation bags with scoria or perlite to create an insulated foundation that is resistant to moisture damage. With areas of lots of snow, you could build with insulated earthbags up to windowsill height and then use bales for the rest of the wall. In this case, the drifting snow will help insulate your building.
Hi Owen,
I have good luck so it’s almost done for the land where I hope to built a Native Spirit home following you advisory. I would like to have your email adress for further communications. I have some interresting pics and info to send you. 😉
I’ll buy the original plan really soon…
Cheers
François Caron
My email address is on the About page (see tab at top of web page).
Owen,
I live in Prince Edward Island, which is on the east coast of Canada and is fairly northern. I am infatuated with earthbag construction and would like to know… will it work here?
If it will, please give me details of how an earthbag structure could withstand a long, cold, snowy winter.
thanks,
Jason
Insulated earthbag construction is perfect for your climate. This is how Kelly Hart built his house in the mountains of Colorado at almost 8,000 feet above sea level, near the Continental Divide. It is very, very cold there. Here’s his Project page: http://www.earthbagbuilding.com/projects/hart.htm
I believe insulated earthbag construction has enormous untapped potential. You can fill the bags will scoria (lava rock), perlite or vermiculite to make a superinsulated home that is unaffected by insects, pests, etc. and is fire resistant, rot proof, lightweight and easy to build. It’s almost like building with bags of popcorn. Here’s an article I wrote about this building technique: http://www.earthbagbuilding.com/articles/insulated.htm
That said, the tower portion of this design is not the most practical in your climate. It’s do-able, just not the most practical. I recommend roofs with adequate overhangs for your situation.
Would a spiral staircase up the center of the tower work? then you could have windows all around the tower on each floor.
This tower is too small for a central spiral staircase, but I have a larger tower plan that would work. This is sold as part of a custom design.
Owen,
You mentioned to François Caron, and others, the use of scoria, perlite, and vermiculite for insulated foundations in cold climates. What is the compressive strength thereof, and the likelihood of the foundation caving in due to groundwater pressure. Also, how could you ensure that groundwater never penetrates the earthbag wall? Also, I am working on putting together an online magazine, tentatively titled “Survive”, that will feature a wide range of clever ideas, like yours. I want to write an article about you and your site here, and your designs. Are you game? I have a tentative start date of July.
Frank
The use of scoria in foundations and walls is well documented. No problems with bearing capacity. This is how Kelly Hart built his house in Colorado: http://www.earthbagbuilding.com/projects/hart.htm
Using perlite and vermiculite is experimental and requires more testing. It largely hinges on the total weight of the structure. For instance, lightweight walls of insulated material will behave much differently than soil-filled bags.
Also factor in what type of building you want. You can afford more risk with a $2,000 cabin than an expensive home. Most of my work is looking for dirty cheap alternatives with low environmental impact.
As far as doing an article, sure. My email is strawhouses AT yahoo.com
Hi Owen. I wrote you last month re the canada blooms show in which we were planning to build an earthbag and cob structure. It is done. We had some issues during our four day building but it all came together and we won the first ever environmental award from the Evergreen Brickwooks foundation. They would like us to now build the same building at their site in toronto.
The response was overwhelming. Most people in Ontario do not know of cob or earthbag construction. We feel privileged to have had the opportunity to introduce them to it.
We will have pics on our web site in the next two weeks and links to videos on you tube.
thanks for you help and advice. Next step it to figure out the required foundation that will be needed in our cold and frost prone region. I am currently considering urbanite.
thoughts?
anna
Great to hear of your project. Be sure to send the link when the pics are posted so we can share with others.
Here’s an article about earthbag foundations in Ontario: http://www.earthbagbuilding.com/projects/mpac.htm
I would consider using scoria or pumice in the bags to add more insulation. The ground level is where frost penetrates and so you want this area well insulated.
here is the link to our set up for canada blooms show.
earthbag and cob structure.
Thanks for sharing. We’ve added it to our Videos page where you can watch all the best earthbag videos in one place: http://www.earthbagbuilding.com/videos.htm
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i so love this.
Hi Owen,
This is my first time in your website. Congratulations for the amazing work!
As I was scrolling down the different models, I came across the “native spirit”. It is similar to what I have been thinking of building. I would like to see if you would be interested in helping me to develop my idea and making the plan for the house I want to build.
First of all, I have a few questions about the tower. It is really doable with earthbags to make such a high structure? I am in Florida (Jax area), so it would have to stand hurricane winds. In my case, I would build an external wooden staircase, instead of having it inside the structure. For the other part of the house, the octagonal (or a round) structure, what kind of support would we need in order to have a flat green roof of top of it? My lot is quite small, so I would like to be able to have a garden on the roof. I would be open to build part of the house with poured concrete, if necessary for more sturdiness.
Since it is one of your oldest models, I would be interested in learning about any improvement you would have for its design.
This was the house I was going to build for myself at one point. It’s still one of my personal favorites.
Quick answers to your questions:
– I suggest ordering the CAD files and modifying the plans with a local designer, as I’m getting busier all the time. http://www.dreamgreenhomes.com/materials/earth/earthbags.htm
– Florida has very restrictive building codes, so research this thoroughly before ordering. Codes will jack up the costs considerably.
– Structure1.com can provide stamped plans to meet code. They give free quotes.
– Earthbag towers like this are certainly possible. You’d want careful workmanship to accurately maintain the shape and a strong foundation (rubble trench). Rebar either through the bags or on both sides tied together through the wall would make it stronger.
– You can add a flat roof if you design and build it correctly. Flat, living roofs are very heavy and will require strong beams and intermediate supports.