Earthbag shed project

ch750536

I started a thread about this in October but it seems to have vanished.

Anyway, I've started to youtube the construction vids.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzMzzZGBJqY

Foundations

I'll update with more later this week.

ch750536

Filling the bags was a massive task, basically 60% of the man hours for the construction so if you can find some way of making it more efficient it makes sense to do so.
More details on the blog

We found a great way for gravel that was no good for wet soil. Adapt, change, invent. Brilliant.

Chisler2

ch750536 wrote: »

I started a thread about this in October but it seems to have vanished.

Anyway, I've started to youtube the construction vids.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzMzzZGBJqY

Foundations

I'll update with more later this week.

I am interested and watched your videos but as you say, the thread on this is no longer available - and difficult to discern from the video what is in the various sacks and what and how it is going into the ground. Is use of this technique limited by the size of the project (I note you are building a one-story shed). What are the advantages? Drawbacks?..........in your experience. Could you post references so I may read more about it. Thanks.

ch750536

Chisler2 wrote: »

What are the advantages? Drawbacks?..........in your experience. Could you post references so I may read more about it. Thanks.

Where I live we are limited by bogland. Although we obtained permission to build land on both sides have failed perculation tests. Building without concrete \ cement etc is classed as a temporary strucure so permission is not needed (I believe).
This means I can use the land on both sides to build some eco homes for holiday lets for example.
Nothing as grand as some of the places here but something unique and interesting.

So my own project is a tester to learn about the pitfalls before we try to do something a little more serious. Other than the awful weather for the last month it has gone well & is far more advanced than the latest video.

Chisler2 wrote: »

what is in the various sacks

The first 2 levels are just gravel, standard stuff. This stops any upward soakage.
The rest is just the earth around us, below the bog layer. Its around 25% clay so quite dense.

Chisler2 wrote: »

how it is going into the ground

It's not, it goes on the ground.

Chisler2

.........so the walls, when raised, will be layers of filled sacks laid like brick or block? Is there a template/books/tutorials on this technique? The video shows a trench for foundation. Is the foundation is also filled stacked bags? Any background info would be welcome and I look forward to seeing how your shed evolves. Interesting that the status is "temporary structure" if no cast concrete or cement is used in the build. Do you know if there is a maximum size limit to this status?

Chisler2

Thank you for the link.

ch750536

Chisler2 wrote: »

.........so the walls, when raised, will be layers of filled sacks laid like brick or block? Is there a template/books/tutorials on this technique?

Great site here

Chisler2 wrote: »

The video shows a trench for foundation. Is the foundation is also filled stacked bags?

No, one of the videos shows the filling of the foundation, large rocks, small rocks, pencil all on clay.

Chisler2 wrote: »

Interesting that the status is "temporary structure" if no cast concrete or cement is used in the build. Do you know if there is a maximum size limit to this status?

This is still to be clarified, I'm not thinking of anything too grand, something more pod like anyway.

ch750536

Blog

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V6RIfraXJ9Q

Basically starting from a corner lay the first level of gravel bags with the following technique.

• Slap the bag about a bit.
• Lay the bag in position, tucking the tied end under itself firmly.
• Add another 2 bags, in the same direction.
• Tamp the 3 bags down.
• Repeat.

ch750536

Just to add - there will be a delay as there is no chance of doing anything this week with the weather we will be having.

BryanF

ch750536 wrote: »

Great site here


No, one of the videos shows the filling of the foundation, large rocks, small rocks, pencil all on clay.


This is still to be clarified, I'm not thinking of anything too grand, somethsing more pod like anyway.

Who is clarifying the planning ? Is it less than 25m2?

ch750536

BryanF wrote: »

Who is clarifying the planning ? Is it less than 25m2?

This is just a shed so yes, the planning issue is for the proposed 'holiday pods' which would be around 80sq m.

BryanF

ch750536 wrote: »

This is just a shed so yes, the planning issue is for the proposed 'holiday pods' which would be around 80sq m.

Planning, parking, landscaping and waste water treatment will be required.

Metric Tensor

And compliance with the building regulations

ch750536

Understood. For this project they are not needed, the proposed pods will be the same lime & hemp finish & angular design but with a more traditional roof perhaps, possibly allowing permission under 'something different'.
Waste water would be a reed bed or similar, car park not needed.

BryanF

ch750536 wrote: »

Understood. For this project they are not needed, the proposed pods will be the same lime & hemp finish & angular design but with a more traditional roof perhaps, possibly allowing permission under 'something different'.
Waste water would be a reed bed or similar, car park not needed.

Best of luck with it

ch750536

Weather has been a complete pain in the ass. When the bags are wet you can only add 1 row a day so in the rain (as I have time constraints) I have added 3 rows this week. Windows have been made from the only non eco friendly part, polycarbonate sheets for the two 3*2 windows. Just need two building days together.

crabbypaddy

ch750536 wrote: »

Weather has been a complete pain in the ass. When the bags are wet you can only add 1 row a day so in the rain (as I have time constraints) I have added 3 rows this week. Windows have been made from the only non eco friendly part, polycarbonate sheets for the two 3*2 windows. Just need two building days together.

Any progress on this?

ch750536

We abandoned due to the weather, 100 days of rain started on week 2 of the project.

Working with soil bags in the rain is difficult and no fun at all.

Secondly, we learnt a lot from what we have done so we were restaring from scratch anyway. One of those things, takes a job to learn a job.

I'm completing another job over the next 2 weeks or so and then we can restart this. Good news is we have 600 bags filled, which was the hard part.

crabbypaddy

ch750536 wrote: »

Good news is we have 600 bags filled, which was the hard part.

:eek: nice one, Looking forward to it.