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2004 Alternative Building Tour
About the Tour. On our house tour we visited four structures that emphasize sustainable principals and were built using alternative, environmentally friendly materials. These buildings and landscapes are truly inspirational for anyone interested in alternative, healthy, low cost building. We learned from the experts in the field and heard their stories first-hand. Here is what the tour included: 1. A monolithic earthen structure built with minimal tools used as a garden shed. 2. A creative owner-built earthbag home on Pack Creek. This home has natural adobe and lime plasters on the exterior and adobe plaster with lime wash on the interior. The floors are all unstabalized adobe sealed with linseed oil and finished with natural resins. All paint colors and finishes in the house are natural, many of them made by the owner with local clays. All doors and windows are recycled and the kitchen is fitted with energy-efficient appliances. The house is heated with radiant floor heating with a woodstove backup. This open simple home truly reflects the personality of the builder and is an artistic feast for the eyes! 3. A passive solar strawbale house w/adobe floors designed for indoor/outdoor living using organic shapes and sustainable principals. Included in the design are outdoor gardens (that will be in bloom!) and patios as well as an independent studio. 4. A 12-foot interior diameter earthbag dome used as a drafting studio. All earthen materials utilized are natural, nontoxic, locally available plasters and paints.
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Click pictures for large view. Thanks to Lucy Pedersen and Craig Hibberd for the photos! |
