This is really just an idea that I been beating around a while... well a few weeks, ok maybe a few days.. Anybody will do but I spect BunkerBob to jump in first... I like the EarthShip concept, old tires are everywhere and most tire shops will give you all you want to avoid paying to get rid of them... but I ain't into packing and pounding them with dirt, all well and good and very "green" but not my cuppa.. So, anybody got any idea how to figure the math on taking say a standard 15" pickup tire and filling it with concrete , like how much would it take or..how may tires would a yard of mud fill? I been thinking about a wall say stair stepping...with the bottom two rows high of tires stacked in an over lapped pattern and 3 deep then filled with concrete then two rows two deep and filled etc up to a height of say 9 ft all interlocked and filled with rebar stuffed in anyplace you can get it.. Anyway I think yawl get the picture..I was thinking that with laminated beams supported in the middle spanning across then decked over and sealed and then some concrete over that and earth covering the whole mess..with the front being tires up to about half way to the roof ... then framed... stud out the inside run some wiring as needed and good to go... Is this something that would work? I'm thinking that with tires and concrete it would be cheaper in the long run then poured walls only 8" thick... be hell for stout and no tornado will move it an inch!... cool in summer and easy to heat in winter.. anyway just an idea but I don't have the math to figure the amount of concrete it would take.... so any help?? HB
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A friend of mine has an EarthShip home built from tires packed with gravel. Took 4 years for one person to construct the walls. Nicely stucco'd over that. Large windows on southern exposure. All rooms open to main living area except bathroom. Entire southern wall where the windows are is an amazing indoor garden, over 40 feet in length and about 6 feet wide. His fuel bill for the last 9 years amounts to $800. Total. Only turns his heater, a very small propane one about the size of a Honda generator, for about 1 month out of the year in the coldest month. His main fuel use is the water heater. During the summer months, when it is 100 outside, the home stays about 76 degrees during the hottest part of the day. NO A/C. Winter home stays a pretty comfortable 70. Oh, and was recently appraised at over $420k. I would say worth the time and energy to pack those tires.....
Thanks Guys! I admit I had not thought of gravel, but I flat will not stand out there in the summer heat pounding dirt in a tire...I'm too old, too tired and for damn sure too lazy! and frankly I just don't have the will or the time to spend several years doing it... We do have books around on the Earthship idea but I've never heard of anybody pumping concrete into them... I just need to ask the Lady of the Manor where they are...lost in this place... But man would it be bullet proof!! as well as every other proof.. I can see the idea needs some heavy research .. Too bad the water table is so high here that it makes anything more then a few feet down not practical
twolilfishies has a thread on here about the EarthShip and she was talking about building one as well. I am sure that she has done a fair amount of research into it already - maybe you can send her a PM to see if she can help you a little more with your design questions.
Canada Earthship Network Canada Earthship Network Canada Earthship Network - earthship.com Canada Earthship Network - earthship.com An Earthship is a radically sustainable home made of recycled materials. The Ultimate in Green Buildings. Electricity: From the sun and wind. Water: From rain and snow melt, used four times. Sewage: Treated on site in botanical planters. Heating and Cooling: From the sun and the earth. Food: Grow inside and outside. Earthships can be built in any climate, anywhere in the world. From extreme cold close to the poles to the equator. Earthships allow you to live in harmony with the environment, with security, modern amenities, a higher return on your investment and a low risk/high value asset. ;-)
