An "Earthship" is a building make out of recycled and natural material, which is designed to "sustain" a person without external sources of electricity, water, or even food. There are variations that are made to accomodate climates from -25 degrees Fahrenheit o +95 degrees Fahrenheit (without air conditioning or heating) and different levels of self-sufficiency, but in general they use a few similar engineering principles: Insulate with thermal mass, use air pockets, and use sunlight.
Recently I had the opportunity to visit the Earthship community in Taos, New Mexico. This is the Phoenix Earthship. It looks isolated, but it is actually in a community of 20 or so of these earthships, and there are other communities in the area as well as other earthships in the US and around the world.
And some other types of models:
The buildings were made mostly out of rubber tired packed with dirt, dirt, cement, and bottles/cans. The cans were mostly filler.
This is the visitor center:
Here you can see how the water is collected from the roof and spills into a cistern.
One of 3 sleeping areas in the Phoenix. The door in the back is actually to a back hallway that is built against a hill. The door is opened and closed to manage cold air coming into the house.It was a bit strange to sleep there at first with all the plants and the sounds of birds in the greenhouse, but by the second night it was nice. In fact by day two, I started getting into the rhythm of the house and the things that lived around me and I found myself quickly attached to the ecosystem. Things felt very balanced, the bugs and animals were in the green house and had their own place, the living space felt alive and luxurious, there was a feeling of being part of something that nourishes and is nourished. I would go so far as to call it symbiotic.
One of two bathrooms. Here you can see the direct sunlight from the front hall, the walls decorated with glass bottles, and the rope that opens a hatch for ventilation. The water that is collected from the roof and used first in the sink, then it goes through a bio-filtration system and gets pumped into the gray water tank for the toilet. The sink water is also re-used to water the plants throughout the house. This means, no one has to really water the plants very much. I was asking about maintenance, and there seems to be minimal ongoing maintenance outside of cleaning and managing any house after the plants become established.
Phoenix from the front. Mostly you see the greenhouse here. The back is built into a hill, so the entire back wall and part of the roof is under ground like a hobbit house. Many of the structures looked like they were modeled after pueblos even.
Outdoor chicken coop with similar insulated dirt walls.
Pretty happy seeming chickens.
The Green house with everything from vegetables to banana trees. It felt like being in a rain forest. It was very strange to go outside and remember... oh yah- i'm still in a desert. The air in the green house was warm and humid. It was teeming with life.
A pond with goldfish and tilapia, turtles, etc.
This is a view out of the kitchen and towards the living room. The glass separates the living area from the green house. Although, as you can see there are still lots of plants in the living room as well.
The other side of the living room with fireplace and tv.
There are other areas of the house including two large bedrooms, another bathroom, a walk in closet, and a dining room that I didn't post. It's a large house that could easily sleep 8 people.Overall, I was super-impressed with both the simplicity and elegance of the building. It was very peaceful. I also felt an immense sense of wealth due to all the life-supporting components of the structure. It was reassuring and alive. I missed it as soon as I left.
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