Earthbag Building: The Tools, Tricks and Techniques

Over 70 percent of Americans cannot afford to own a code-enforced, contractor-built home. This has led to widespread interest in using natural materials—straw, cob, and earth—for building homes and other buildings that are inexpensive, and that rely largely on labor rather than expensive and often environmentally-damaging outsourced materials.

Earthbag Building is the first comprehensive guide to all the tools, tricks, and techniques for building with bags filled with earth—or earthbags. Having been introduced to sandbag construction by the renowned Nader Khalili in 1993, the authors developed this "Flexible Form Rammed Earth Technique" over the last decade. A reliable method for constructing homes, outbuildings, garden walls and much more, this enduring, tree-free architecture can also be used to create arched and domed structures of great beauty—in any region, and at home, in developing countries, or in emergency relief work.

This profusely illustrated guide first discusses the many merits of earthbag construction, and then leads the reader through the key elements of an earthbag building:
Special design considerations Foundations, walls and floors Electrical, plumbing and shelving Lintels, windows and door installations Roofs, arches and domes Exterior and interior plasters.

With dedicated sections on costs, making your own specialized tools, and building code considerations, as well as a complete resources guide, Earthbag Building is the long-awaited, definitive guide to this uniquely pleasing construction style.

Kaki Hunter and Donald Kiffmeyer have been involved in the construction industry for the last 20 years, specializing in affordable, low-tech, low-impact building methods that are as natural as possible. They developed the "Flexible Form Rammed Earth Technique" of building affordably with earthbags and have taught the subject and contributed their expertise to several books and journals on natural building.

The only comprehensive, illustrated, step-by-step guide to building with earthbags.

Library Journal

Who says playing with dirt is not for grownups? Hunter and Kiffmeyer, both heavily involved in the natural building movement, here demonstrate how to build not only walls and arches with dirt but an entire home. Building this way quite literally means filling bags with dirt and arranging them in whatever shapes one desires. The result is an affordable, environmentally friendly, and original home. The book is a bit of a let-down in terms of visuals-especially considering the price-but there is certainly no lack of ideas. Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

Kaki Hunter is an award-winning actress who has been involved in the construction industry for the last 20 years, specializing in affordable, low-tech, low-impact building methods that are as natural as possible. Together with her partner Doni Kiffmeyer, she co-developed over the last nine years the "Flexible Form Rammed Earth Technique" of building affordably with earthbags and has taught the subject and contributed her expertise to several books on natural building. Donald Kiffmeyer is a trained fireman who has been involved in the construction industry for the last 20 years, specializing in affordable, low-tech, low-impact building methods that are as natural as possible. Together with his partner Kaki Hunter, he co-developed over the last nine years the "Flexible Form Rammed Earth Technique" of building affordably with earthbags and has taught the subject and contributed his expertise to several books on natural building.