Natural Building: Learning the Hard Way About Level and Plumb

There are those who want to cut corners in natural building by ignoring level and plumb.  Is it that they feel level and plumb are rules, and natural building is supposed to be fluid and unrestricted?  Well, gravity is a pretty unforgiving force and it never ceases trying to make things right, no matter what your building is made of.

Design Details of My Strawbale Tiny House: Beauty and Function

In this video I take you through some of the design features of my strawbale tiny house and explain how designing a house to be efficient, sustainable, and functional can result in a byproduct of beauty.  Tiny house builders and owners know how important it is to conserve space in their homes.  Mine is no different. See how I make use of the space under my stairway.  A walk-in closet on the second floor provides a handy place to store and hide all my stuff. See how using natural finishes to the house add functionality and beauty.

My house’s passive solar design also reduces the amount of fuel I need to heat my home in winter.  I’ll show you how it heats up throughout a chilly day using only the sun’s energy.

My Passive Solar Tiny House

This video is an introduction to the passive solar design features of my strawbale tiny house. This 450 sq ft house uses south facing windows to heat itself during winter, supplementing heat provided by a wood stove. Roman-style thermal curtains on all windows help to conserve heat. A cantilevered second floor and overhangs keep the sun out during warmer times of the year.  Continue reading