By Cedar Rose Guelberth and Dan Chiras
Gracious, comfortable and ecologically-benign homes are being built all across America. You may be intrigued by solar techniques and natural materials, yet lack an overview introducing the basic choices now available, along with the pros and cons of various building options. The Natural House addresses that interest with style and substance.
This exciting new book, written by a veteran author who himself lives in a straw-bale and rammed-tire home, takes the reader on a tour of fourteen natural building methods, including straw bale, rammed earth, cordwood, adobe, earthbags, papercrete, Earthships and more. You'll learn how these homes are built, how much they cost, and the pros and cons of each. A resource guide at the end of every chapter offers a wealth of information.
This comprehensive sourcebook offers in-depth information that will guide your search for the perfect sustainable dream home. It’s a must for builders, contractors, architects and do-it-yourselfers.
With a writing style that is clear, understandable, at times humorous, and fun to read, the author shows how we can gain energy independence and dramatically reduce our environmental impact through passive heating and cooling techniques, solar electricity, wind power and micro-hydropower. Chiras also explains safe, economical ways of acquiring clean drinking water and treating wastewater, and discusses affordable green building products.
While Chiras is a strong advocate of natural building, he takes care not to romanticize natural building techniques. He alerts readers to avoidable pitfalls, offering detailed practical advice that could save you tens of thousands of dollars, whether you're buying a natural home, building one yourself or renovating an existing structure or considering hiring a contractor to build for you.
468 pages, 2000
Table of Contents
Introduction
Part I: The Sustainable Imperative
Striking Out in a New Direction
Part II: Choices
Rammed Earth Homes
Straw Bale Homes
Earthships and Beyond
Adobe Homes
Cob Homes
Cordwood Homes
Log Homes
Stone Homes
Emerging Natural Building Techniques
Part III: Sustainable Systems
Energy Independence: Passive Solar Heating and Cooling
Energy Independence: Generating Electricity from Sun, Wind, and Water
Environmentally Sustainable Water Systems
Green Building Materials: Creating the Ultimate Environmentally Friendly Home
Site Considerations: Choosing a Site, Protecting it During Construction, and Restoring the Land
Building an Alternative Home: What You Need to Know to Get Your Home Built
RESOURCES
INDEX
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