Non-toxic, no-VOC paint for any wall (+ finishing plasters) by Kirsten Dirksen on December 7, 2010 Michael G. Smith has spent the past couple of decades using natural materials to build all parts of a home, …
A no-VOC earth plaster for a breathable, bioclimatic home by Kirsten Dirksen on November 29, 2010 Modern homes are often built so air-tight to provide good insulation that they don’t allow for fresh air to enter. …
Natural building: water-resistant earthen floors don’t off-gas by Kirsten Dirksen on November 3, 2010 Earthen floors are growing in popularity not simply because they forgo non-renewable resources, but because they have an aesthetic appeal …
Earth-built passive solar home: cob (south), strawbale (north) by Kirsten Dirksen on October 18, 2010 Passive solar design dates back over 2 and a half millennia to the ancient Greeks and Chinese; it not only …
Natural buildings don’t melt, no matter how rainy it gets by Kirsten Dirksen on October 14, 2010 With all the videos I’ve done on earth buildings (like the tiny cob cottage in North Carolina or the mudbrick …
Natural building codes: some straw bale, but little for cob by Kirsten Dirksen on October 5, 2010 There’s plenty of historical evidence that natural buildings hold up to time- witness the adobe California Missions or the 13th-century …
How to build a straw bale wall: natural building expert tips by Kirsten Dirksen on September 30, 2010 Bales of straw may seem a bit simple, but they’re very effective for building a home. “Walls go up very …
Building your own bioclimatic home from earth and straw by Kirsten Dirksen on September 27, 2010 With very little instruction, anyone can build their own home, or so argues natural building expert Michael G. Smith. Since …
Natural building vindication: climate, comfort, health, budget by Kirsten Dirksen on September 25, 2010 Until relatively recently we all built our homes from local, unprocessed materials (i.e. stone, wood, straw, earth). Then came the …
Brewing beer with sun, wind and a bit of cogeneration by Kirsten Dirksen on May 27, 2009 Given the energy and water used to create beer, brewers are continually looking for new ways to lower their footprint. …
