"Sustainable Autonomy for Everyone - S.A.F.E."

I bought Mike Reynold's book with the idea of building myself an Earthship.  I must say that such an endeavor is very labor-intensive and you really need a crew of people to help.

Additionally, in the U.S. building codes and zoning laws restrict where and how Earthships can be built.  Mike Reynold's Earthship community in New Mexico was closed down by the government and he spent 4 years challenging the decision in court before a compromise was reached.

But Earthships are a great idea.  No need to heat or cool them and you can grow your own food year-round indoors.  I'd like to see the day when such homes become popular.

  has gone through the wringer with the development of these homes. In fact, most of the work was done through experimentation, not just in his community,,,,which is about 8 miles from the north end of Taos,,,but all over Taos. They are up in the mountains, all over that area, and out on the mesa. There are many that weren't built right, which helped make the next ones better. I have stayed in some good ones, and a couple of bad ones. The tire idea came up against alot of flak, as people claimed the gases from the tires were leeching into the home,,,which didn't surprise me. That problem is easily solved by lining the inside perimeter, but it is another step. His idea was to address the problem of tire landfills, and it is a good idea....

   But, personally, I would save the tires for terracing hillsides,as retaining walls, as he has also done in Central america...I would blow a one piece shell, above ground, or in a hillside,,,,like a monolithic dome. Their technique can be used to build anything, and anything built in one piece is much simpler, stronger, and  saves materials. Standard homes are so complicated, and are pieced together in so many steps, it is no wonder that they disintegrate in extreme weather,,,it's pitiful...

  A one piece shell is impervious to weather of all kinds, and domes don't require wind insurance, or fire insurance in most cases, which saves you alot of money, if you are mortgaging the build, as you have to have those coverages to get the loan. Domes can be built in a good part of america now, especially across the tornado belt, where they have proved themselves untouchable by direct hits of f3's...Personally, I want to build one above ground, line it, then bury it in 2 feet of Earth ,above ground, planting around it. I actually prefer the quonset shape, and the dome company will blow that shape no problem.....But, if you need to do it cheap !,,,just buy a quonset hut,,,without the metal end walls,,,,build timber and strawbale end walls for high r factor,,,and blow in 5 inches of dense foam into the inner frame. then lathe and plaster, or tongue and groove the inside,building  storage in those dead areas. You can also blow the foam on the outside, then plaster the outside,,,making it much prettier to look at. If you buy extra ribs for it, you can also line it, and bury it above ground too, eliminating most of the microwaves from the inside of your home. the radius walls on two sides give you the efficiency of a dome, and these companies will sell you a dormer, so you don't have to enter it on the end, freeing up the layout design inside, so you don't need the shotgun layout. I priced a 1200 sq. ft. quonset, when I was in Taos, and could of had it shipped across the country , and dropped in my yard, for 7000 dollars.I designed one, and submitted it to the big google contest several years back, but didn't get a response.A bedroom on each end,with a private porch for each room, and a big centralized living area/kitchen, two bathrooms,,,,and very high efficiency,,all the tricks....The low cost, and high durability of the shell, makes it possible to spend a little money on good glass, on demand hot water that will run off of solar  or wind power,  and the inside is very comfortable, using old style, speed controlled ceiling fans for circulation....to me, it makes more sense than an earthship.....

   But , if you want to build from earth, there are people building great houses from sandbags as well,eliminating the tires. You can plaster just about anything and make it look good,ha!

  One of the problems they had with the Earthships was the roof/water catchment. They were using 40 mil pond liner, which is the thickest liner readily available,,,but it isn't very uv resistant, especially in the desert. When Mike Reynolds returned from indonesia, after the tsunami,he had put together a documentary about what they did there, which was great. There was a screening of it in Taos,at the local thetre, and he was there. I approached him with a much better material for the roof that I was using for ponds,that the stores don't sell, and gave him a sample, and the contact info of the company in Oregon, but I don't know if he took my advice. It is far superior, and the same price as standard pond liner, 5000 psi, and uv resistant..If you want to build yourself, above ground, but bury the shell, this is the stuff to line the shell with. The company will custom make it for you,and ship it in one piece.The flat roof of most of the earthships is definitely the weak point,and to me, having a "roof" at all, something that isn't part of the shell, is the weak point of all traditional housing...