"Another type of building is emerging: one that actually heals the scars of its own construction. It conserves rainwater and fuel and it provides a habitat for creatures other than the human one. Maybe it will catch on, maybe it won't. We'll see." - Malcolm Wells, 2002.
The earth sheltered house uses the ground as insulating blanket which effectively protects it from temperature extremes, wind, rain and extreme weather events. An earth sheltered home is energy-efficient, quiet, freeze-proof and low maintenance. Aesthetically an earth sheltered home blends in with the natural environment, leaving more yard space and more space for wildlife.
Fifteen feet below ground the soil maintains a fairly constant temperature equal to the annual average temperature of the area's surface air. If the average temperature in your area is 55, that means the soil temperature at 15 feet is 55 degrees and in the winter you will only have to bring the temperature inside your earth sheltered home up thirteen degrees, to bring it up to a comfortable 68 degrees. Versus bringing up the inside temperature 68 degrees, if your home is above ground and the outside windchill is 0. In the summer, that 55 degree soil will also keep your home much cooler than an above ground home. Many earth homes incorporate passive solar designs lessening even further the need for fuel for heating or cooling.
There are two types of earth sheltered building. Earth Sheltered - where dirt covers three exterior sides and the roof (the walls are most often concrete). And Earth Bermed - where dirt is pushed up against the exterior walls only, and not onto the roof, yet the roof is usually super insulated.
'The first “modern” earth-sheltered house in Britain and the home of its architect Arthur Quarmby, a pioneer of earth-sheltered buildings. The house features earth embankments, turf roof, lots of insulation and a visual impact that not even the pickiest of neighbors could fault.' martinbondphotos.co.uk
urbanwren.wordpress.com
minimalisthomedezine.blogspot.com
A quiet, light filled office beneath a meadow that physically impacts its immediate environment as little as possible, yet is adjacent to a six lane highway. malcolmwells.com
Photo by: John Leather, flickr.com
Dutch Mountain House, Huizen, Netherlands by denieuwegeneratie. archdaily.com
Jean-Pierre Cavelan. picasaweb.google.com
These earth covered houses are centered around a small artificial lake with the entrances well hidden and integrated into the sides of the settlement. The residential settlement consists of nine houses, one a 7 bedroom home! The daytime areas are situated towards the south, the night time areas towards the north. In the middle, you find the bathrooms and the connecting stairs to the basement. All the bathrooms get natural light through rooftop windows. www.erdhaus.ch
Resources:
Earth Sheltered Dome Houses:
1) The Terra-Dome building system is a forming system that helps create a concrete steel reinforced structure in modular form of 24' x 24' or 28' x 28' (inside measurement). These modules are poured on location and can be arranged in a multitude of configurations. The Terra-Dome module is used for earth-sheltered structures in most cases. www.terra-dome.com
2) Concrete Earth Sheltered Homes: earthshelteredhome.com
3) Polarwall, UK: .polarwall.co.uk
4) Monolithic Dome Homes: monolithic.com
5) Bill Lishman's unique underground house was the culmination of years of research and countless hours of design. www.williamlishman.com
6) Earth-Sheltered Home Kits for Owner-Builders: motherearthnews.com/green-homes
7) PBS: earthshelter.com
Plans:
1) Malcolm Wells Designs: malcolmwells.com/designs
2) Plans for an Earthbag-Earth Shelter: earthbagbuilding.com
3) Earth Sheltered Tech, Lots!: www.earthshelteredtech.com
4) Plans for a rammed tire home: groundhouse.co
5) Earth Style Home Plans: www.coolhouseplans.com
6) Atrium style: dreamgreenhomes.com
7) SolArc earth sheltered: archy-nova.de
8) Earth Berm: solaripedia.com
Books:
1) The Fifty Dollar and Up Underground House Book by Mike Oehler.
2) The Earth Sheltered Solar Greenhouse Book by Mike Oehler.
3) Earth-Sheltered Houses: How to Build an Affordable... By Rob Roy: amazon.com
4) Building Underground: The Design and Construction Handbook for Earth-Sheltered Houses by Herbert Wade, 1983. goodreads.com
5) The Earth-Sheltered House: An Architect's Sketchbook: malcolmwells.com
6) How to Build an Underground House: malcolmwells.com
7) Underground Plans Book: malcolmwells.com
8) Book Download by Jeremy Harrall - Search Architects: ukearthshelteredbuildingphd.co.uk
9) Solar-Heating a Subterranean House: www.motherearthnews.com
10) Earth Sheltered Housing Design: Guidelines, Examples, and References,
11) Minnesota Underground Space Center, 1979. amazon.com
12) Breathing Walls A Biological Approach to
13) Healthy Building Envelope Design and Construction, 2008: breathingwalls.com
Articles:
1) "Efficient Earth shelter homes." U.S. Department of Energy. 2012. eere.energy.gov
2) "Digging for the green: Underground architecture and sustainable design." Hall, Loretta. subsurfacebuildings.com
3) ACU professor Ronnie McQueen teaches benefits of earth house: texnews.com
4) "Underground urban farm." Trends in Japan. March 17, 2005. web-japan.org
5) Cooled soil as a cooling source for buildings: www.sciencedirect.com