Just finished adding a few pictures to the Ecopath web page.
Guess i'll call it complete for now. It still needs links to
other web pages, but i have some other projects which need
attention first (spring is planting time).
The appended comments on building are from Mark Piepkorn who
may join this list. He is currently on the building list i
mentioned earlier. (this was posted with his permission).
The letters "SB" mean "Straw Bale".
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Jeff Owens ([EMAIL PROTECTED]) Zone 7, http://www.teleport.com/~kowens
Underground house, solar energy, reduced consumption, no TV
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It's my understanding that SB is good for the
chemically-sensitive... if built properly. (Cedar once told me
that one of the most toxic houses she was ever in was SB -
tarpaper, offgassing sealants, etc.) An earthen stucco can be used,
with or without an alis finish, or with or without a lime finish.
Alis is a gorgeous clay-based slip, and the antiseptic qualities of
lime are renowned. (Which I guess is a little irrelevant in the
discussion of chemical sensitivities... but lime is a natural and,
as far as I know, nontoxic material.)
The lack-of-foundation difficulty could probably be solved with a
rubble trench, or by building up a gravel plinth that the building
sits on. (Think about highways and railroads for the reasoning
behind the suggestion, which will combat both frost heave and
capillary action if properly implemented.)
Another option is putting the structure on gabions, which are
basically wire-mesh boxes of rocks used for retaining walls and
erosion control. With the gabion scheme, the structure would
probably need to be built on a wooden deck that 'floats' on the
gabions. (Don't forget to tie it down or the wind could blow it
over!)
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Freewheeling autonomous speculation - Think!
I'm off the clock and on my own time, dig?
Mark Piepkorn (f.k.a. M J Epko)
Kingston, New Mexico
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Man has such a predilection for systems and
abstract deductions that he is ready to
distort the truth intentionally, he is
ready to deny the evidence of his senses
only to justify his logic.
- Dostoyevsky
