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permaculture - [permaculture] Re: permaculture Digest, Vol 22, Issue 9

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  • From: Scott Pittman <pci@permaculture-inst.org>
  • To: permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: [permaculture] Re: permaculture Digest, Vol 22, Issue 9
  • Date: Mon, 08 Nov 2004 08:22:54 -0700

re: Hobbit hole

Back in the early 80's there was a community built underground using ferrocement, I visited it at that time. It is near Denton, Texas. It was featured in several magazines but beyond that I can't help, except to say it can and has been done. I have also seen them built with remesh attached to the walls by driving rebar into the soil to hold the remesh and then using gunnite to cover the walls, which is basic swimming pool technology.


The only real concern when building underground is ground water and expansive clays, if you don't have those impinging on the building envelope then it is just a matter of engineering. If you are using thin wall ferrocement for the walls remember that they are not load bearing capable; therefore you will have to support the roof with cement piers or some such, and those piers should be well back from the excavated edge so that they do not exert pressure on the ferrocement walls when they are loaded, probable five or six feet depending on soil type and compaction.

Scott P.

on 11/7/04 9:00 AM, permaculture-request@lists.ibiblio.org at
permaculture-request@lists.ibiblio.org wrote:


Message: 3
Date: Sat, 6 Nov 2004 18:18:01 -0800 (PST)
From: Paul Wheaton <paul@richsoil.com>
Subject: Re: [permaculture] Source for Hobbit hole construct...
To: permaculture <permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org>
Message-ID: <20041107021801.39779.qmail@web13811.mail.yahoo.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii

I thought of that, but thought it would get plenty expensive. But your site
makes a case
for something pretty thin. Hmmmmm ....

So how thin could I get away with? And, would I need to create some sort of
ridge to
support the weight of the earth above it?




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