Finally, 10 years after I’ve developed an interest in Earthships and almost two years after applying, I have managed to find the time to join the April Earthship academy session. So far, the training has met my expectations of tamping tires, plastering walls, pouring buttresses, and framing ceilings. In addition to that, we have detailed technical sessions about the systems that make Earthships function as autonomous energy-producing and water recycling houses. Below are some photos of the work we did this week at the academy.
As a part of our first week’s education, we also visited multiple inhabited Earthships in the Taos regions. Below are some photos of an Earthship built in the 80s.
Over the years, the design, heating and cooling, among other factors, have been improved, as demonstrated by the photos below from an Earthship built in 2004.
This house shows how attention to detail can make a house built out of recycled materials look aesthetically better than designs featured in Architectural magazines.
Being here has also allowed me to live in one of the earliest houses to be built by Mike Reynolds on the development path towards Earthships. Below are some photos of my current residence, “The Castle.” Although the building is old and in need of some repair, it manages to stay warm even in freezing temperatures, recycles all of its water, and supplies enough solar energy to meet the needs of my five current housemates and me.
