Off the Grid Sustainable Housing Options

Adobe Homes:

Adobe homes in North America began as Native American house complexes (Pueblos') used by the Indians of the Southwest. Adobe homes are made of adobe (clay and straw baked into hard bricks) or large stones cemented together with adobe.  Adobe houses are good homes to build in a warm, dry climate where adobe can be easily mixed and dried.

Adobe consists of a mixture of soil, clay, sand and water -- sometimes straw is added -- poured into a mold or hydraulically pressed into uniform bricks and air-dried. The bricks must contain from 25 to 45 percent clay, based on local building codes, to bind the ingredients together when combined with sand and water. In climates with inclement weather, it helps to add a stabilizer to keep the adobe from disintegrating.

When combined with a passive solar design, adobe homes offer an effective energy-saving solution year-round. Its high-mass earthen walls, in conjunction with proper alignment can take advantage of a southern exposure and significantly reduce energy use year-round. A small fireplace can replace the need for a formal furnace, or you can use a thermal heat pump instead.

Adobe buildings should have substantial eaves to protect the walls and foundations to keep the adobe off the ground as it will require less maintenance than if the walls are left unprotected. Some adobe buildings are plastered with Portland cement on the outside in an attempt to protect the adobe.

Adobe is a good thermal mass material, holding heat and cool well. It does not insulate very well, so walls made of adobe need some means of providing insulation to maintain comfort in the building.

Adobe bricks are typically made with a mold and making an adobe brick requires a great deal of dirt. A five-gallon bucket with a full load of dirt will make almost three "Traditional New Mexico" size bricks four inches thick, ten inches wide, and fourteen inches long (4x10x14). A brick this size will weigh about thirty pounds. One also needs adobe mortar between each brick, figured at about one-half inch thick, ten inches wide, and fourteen inches long 1.5 x10 x14 (“Desertphile.org ", nod., Making Adobe Bricks Para 1).

Bricks must meet the Uniform Building Code standards for strength and durability and cannot be damaged by rain and will withstand most stress tests.

Figure 1: http://www.motherearthnews.com/diy/build-a-home-from-mud-zmaz77sozgoe.aspx?SlideShow=3

Figure 2: https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/3c/f9/4f/3cf94f424f4dbdf864d62632be237562.jpg

Figure 3: http://inhabitat.com/santa-fe-off-grid-home-by-signer-harris-architects/west-basin-home-4/

Examples of Adobe Construction in Figures 1 and 2. An example of a newly built adobe home with off the grid technologies for energy efficiency, electrical power through solar and utilizing a gray water septic system and cistern and shallow well.