Reddit Reddit reviews EARTH SHELTERED HOUSING DESIGN: Guidelines, Examples, and References

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EARTH SHELTERED HOUSING DESIGN: Guidelines, Examples, and References
Oblong format hardcover w/dj, 318 pages.
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2 Reddit comments about EARTH SHELTERED HOUSING DESIGN: Guidelines, Examples, and References:

u/bluesimplicity · 3 pointsr/SelfSufficiency

What is your goal? Is your goal to design the cheapest home possible? Is it to get the home built as quickly as possible?

My goal is to design a home that will heat itself in the winter and cool itself in the summer and provide it's own water, electricity, and clean up the gray water.

I am looking at a passive solar home that uses the sun to heat thermal mass (think stone or brick walls and floors) in the winter to heat the home. What I love about the passive solar design is the heat is free, and there are no moving parts to break and need repairing over the lifetime of the home. However, I like the idea of redundancy for backup. I'd also like to have a solar panel attached to a radiator heated floor for heating. I'd install the solar panel on the porch under the eaves(watch from 9:55 - 11:06) because I only need to use it in the winter when the sun is low in the sky. A masonry stove could be the final fall-back plan. Regular fireplaces are horribly inefficient because much of the warm air escapes up the flu. A masonry heater prevents that.

Placement of windows and eaves to keep the sun out in the summer coupled with earth bermed on the north and west sides of the house (in the northern hemisphere) will keep the home naturally cool in the summer.

Solar panels on the south-facing roof would generate electricity. Reed beds to filter and clean the gray water. I'd use a metal roof so I could collect rainwater.

This is an example of what I described.

Some of my favorite resources have been:

The Solar House by Daniel Chiras

The Earth Sheltered Housing Design

Choosing Ecological Sewage Treatment by Nick Grant


u/ItsJustaMetaphor · 2 pointsr/Permaculture

There's an out-of-print book simply called "Passive Solar Energy." It's got lots of great information; I bet it will be just what you are looking for as far as the physics of solar energy and thermosiphoning (which is essentially "heated fluid rises because it's less dense than cooler fluid"). I'm an engineer and I really think that book gives you all you need to know to have a basic working knowledge of solar heat gain and how various systems of solar energy capture operate. Here's a list of books I have found helpful and/or interesting in regards to solar energy:



  • Passive Solar Energy - The top link is a link to pdf's of the chapters of the book.

  • The Passive Solar Energy Book - VERY in-depth on passive solar theory, design, and construction.

  • Solar Air Heating Systems - Another design and construction book, specifically about solar air heating.


  • The Solar Greenhouse Book - Name says it all. It's all about passive solar greenhouses.

  • A Golden Thread - Really interesting book about how man has worked with the sun in building design through the history of civilization.


    For earthships/earth-sheltered homes, I recommend these books:

  • Earth-Sheltered Housing Design - One of the most detailed and complete books on earth-sheltering available. Not earthships, but the same ideas apply.

  • Earth-Sheltered Houses - Another essential book for earth-sheltering houses. Author has built several of his own and remains an authority in the subject as well as cordwood building, for which he has also written books.

  • Earth-Sheltered Solar Greenhouses - Combines two subjects for a very Permaculture-appropriate building technique.

  • Earthship Vol I and II - Needs no explaining.


    From my experience in university studying fluid dynamics, I recommend not going any deeper into the subject than what you would find in the solar energy books I listed above. The subject is math-heavy, and the academic study of the topic is not going to help you with what you are interested in with permaculture. It's kind of like studying the abstract physics/math of electromagnetism when all you want to do is wire a house.

    Hope this helps!