Cool Rammed Earth House Wins Design Contest

A long while back, when natural homes first sparked my interest, one genre in particular that I was fascinated with was rammed earth. I spent a lot of time searching for articles on builder David Easton and the elegant earthen houses constructed by his firm, Rammed Earth Works. As far as sustainable and natural building methods go, I still find rammed earth highly appealing. If you live in an hot, arid climate I cannot really think of any better construction method. Unfortunately, though I've always wanted to live somewhere like that, I don't - I live in Michigan. Rammed earth isn't quite right for our wet and cold winters (though some form of earth construction could be), so I had filed rammed earth away for that "someday maybe" scenario.

Not too long ago, however, my interest in earth building was renewed when I came across a great blog called Earth Architecture. Dedicated to earthen construction, the site's title block proclaims "One half of the world's population, approximately three billion people on six continents, lives or works in buildings constructed of earth." It's a great blog, well done and packed with interesting examples of earth buildings of all types.

A recent post on Earth Architecture highlights a housing competition won by UNC Charlotte students who utilized rammed earth construction, solar panels, and great outdoor living spaces all wrapped up in a very elegant modern design. I really like the house. Definitely check out the original post on Earth Architecture for more details and links to the competition's site and info on UNCC's entry.

Here's the UNCC entry board:




My love of rammed earth construction is renewed!


Image credit - Casas del Quinto Sol competition site