In A Simple Roundhouse Manual, author Tony Wrench gives readers a thorough 'How To' manual for building a roundhouse. Covering everything you need to know from beginning to end including: Site, Design and Planning, Drainage and Stem Wall, the Henge, the Reciprocal Frame roof, Walls, and Roof covering. From the words, diagrams and over one hundred color photographs found in this book, you’ll be able to design and build your own simple roundhouse. If you’re thinking of building your own, and are looking for tips on doing it simply, cheaply, and quickly, this manual should definitely be a part of your toolkit.

Owner built homes, Sustainable architecture, Green construction, Sustainable design, Khan buildings, Building green, Lloyd Khan

A complete guide to building a wilderness retreat, from buying land and getting services, through developing plans and construction methods. All aspects of construction are clearly illustrated and various designs are explored.

Essential Building Science provides a highly visual and accessible introduction to the fundamentals of building science for residential construction.

Part one covers the rationale behind high-performance design and the fundamentals of building physics, including thermal dynamics, moisture transfer, and hygro-thermal dynamics such as vapor drive and condensation.

Part two teaches the vital critical thinking skills needed to consider buildings as whole systems and to develop thermal and moisture control strategies regardless of the specifics of the design. Case studies and examples from across North American climatic zones illuminate real-life problems and offer builders, designers, and DIYers the insights and tools required for creating better new buildings and dramatically improving old ones.

Hempcrete is a versatile, energy-efficient natural insulation material, useful for walls, roofs and floors. Made from the inner stem of the hemp plant mixed with a lime-based binder, it is a very strong, lightweight and breathable alternative to manufactured insulations. Essential Hempcrete Construction is a fully illustrated practical guide to this affordable, renewable method, from procurement to finishing.

Going well beyond the scope of many natural building books, this indispensable manual includes a complete introduction to hempcrete, packed with all the information you need to determine whether it's the right choice for your project.

Natural plasters made of clay, lime, and other materials mixed with sand are beautiful building finishes. Fun to work with, low-impact, and allowing infinite creativity, they are high performance and provide proven, centuries-long durability.

Yet until now there's been no resource that has pulled together the best North American plaster recipes and how-to into one place. Essential Natural Plasters covers everything you need to know!

Prefabricated straw bale wall panels combine the performance and low environmental impact of traditional straw bale with reduced labor and more consistent results. Going well beyond the scope of many natural building books, this indispensable manual includes a complete introduction to the use of prefabricated bale walls, packed with all the information you need to determine whether they are the right choice for your project.Written by the world's leading sustainable builders, designers, and engineers, these succinct, user-friendly handbooks are indispensable tools for any project where accurate and reliable information are key to success.