Day Two

October 3, 2023

i think i played a part in completing 4 tires today.

sledgehammer

from the very first minute, to the very last minute today i had a sledgehammer in my hand and i pounded tires. a LOT more work than yesterday, but still it’s a good time. as crazy as that sounds.

i’ve found myself in the company of 3-5 people who are engaging, funny, smart, and hard working. gaelan and will are on the earthship crew and are a never ending source of information. not just on the tires, but about the whole build.

the model we’re building here is called the Refuge. it’s the most basic (and least expensive) model to build, but it has all the same components that any earthship has. it’ll be 2 BR, 2 bath. it could be made bigger - 3BR, etc. - by simply adding more tires and continuing the build.

the windows will be made of PDR glass - Patio Door Replacement. so the windows will all be the size of a patio door.

the tires i’m standing on in the picture above will all be below grade. they’re packed with gravel so that any water that finds it’s way into those tires will drain out. in the upper right of that picture is a course of tires filled with dirt. that’s the first course that will be above ground.

also in that picture you can see how dirt is being pushed up behind the tires. that’s the beginning of the berm that will surround the entire back half of the structure [note added later: the berm ends up around more like 3/4 of the structure]. the berm will then be enclosed with thermal wrap (hard panels of insulation) thus creating a consistent, stable thermal mass that is the feature that makes it possible for the structure to maintain a constant temperature (around 68 degrees) year round - with no other heating/cooling system.

here is the outline of the entire structure. a bedroom will be on either side, with kitchen/dining in the center, i believe. bathrooms will be at either end in front of the bedrooms. that’ll become more apparent as we progress.