Now, I always say don’t build a free-standing exterior earthbag wall (ie. a garden wall or retaining wall), as they are so hard to plaster naturally and keep waterproof. But every now and again someone proves me wrong. Luke and Kath in New Zealand have created some mud magic here, which just goes to show, you should always take advice from experts with a pinch of salt:)

Luke and Kath have done a stellar earth plastering job here, and used multiple techniques to create a waterproof and natural finish. So yes it can be done, but it takes some know-how and patience. Happily for us they have generously shared their process and photos with me (and now you).
 
“We are in the far north of New Zealand. The climate here is not ideal for earth plaster, hot and dry for three to four months over summer and then usually a couple of months of very wet weather over winter. We are on a hill so the wind can at times be powerful and incessant,” explains Luke.
 
Yes, New Zealand certainly wouldn’t be the first place I’d be itching to stick earth plaster out in the elements. But this funky outdoor kitchen has stood three years so far. How come?

“We applied our first coats of lime/earth plaster, onto an earthbag wall, three years ago, with the help of your course. We did two coats at that time, then burnished the whole lot. It has stood the test of time well. The main issue has been a type of creeping grass which sends its tentacles out and under the earth, popping up under and through the plaster. Areas under the drip line of the roof have also weathered significantly. Portions of the sandbags had become exposed so we decided to redo the whole lot,” Luke told me.

My first comments would be that the plaster in these photos looks exactly how you would want it to if you want to stand a chance of creating a waterproof finish. There are no cracks, as the whole lot has been burnished very well (in this case with the back of a spoon). It takes a bit of practice to get this skill off to a fine art, and Kath and Luke have mastered it. One thing we will want to know of course is what was in that earth plaster mixture? The result is heart-warming because so many of the materials were foraged from the land. This was one of things I wanted to achieve with my earth plaster course. I’m not against people buying ready-made clay plasters, but it’s definitely not necessary. You can create amazing plasters using the ground under your feet, and without buying anything.

Here is how Luke and Kath made their water-resistant plaster, but be advised, don’t attempt to just copy this and think it will work. They are using their own soil and clay and sand, so it’s not a standardised commercial product.

“We used the same formula of plaster we devised from experiments before doing the initial coats. 10-15% lime, 20% clay/straw, 2-5% cow manure and the balance of sand. The clay we sourced from the stream at the base of our valley. Our soil is basically sand so once sieved is perfect. The manure is from the cows next door. We used hydrated lime (https://www.graymont.com/en-nz/products/hydrated-lime) and mixed with water first, as cheap lime putty is simply not available here. Once applied, we burnished the whole lot like the first batch, as we found that technique to be highly effective at making the plaster weather resistant.”
 
Animal dung, a bit of good quality lime* and some decent burnishing. This is why this plaster has endured.

Now Luke and Kath want to take the plastering further. This time they’re going to add some layers of linseed oil to the wall too.
 
*Luke and Kath used a high quality hydrated lime instead of lime putty. If you want to understand more about the types of limes out there, read this.

Related links
 The Perfect Earth Plaster Course
If you want to create beautiful earth plasters from the ground you stand on, you might be interested in my flagship Perfect Earth Plaster Course. It’s a multimedia course with stacks of explanatory videos, PDFs to take away, and all fully downloadable.
 
https://the-mud-home-courses.teachable.com/p/the-perfect-earth-plaster-course
 
My Free Introduction to Earth Plaster
If you just want a taster of earth plaster, sign up for my free introduction to earth plaster here: https://www.themudhome.com/earthplaster-sign-up.html
 
When is the right time for earthbag?
https://www.themudhome.com/mudbuilding/when-is-the-right-time-for-earthbag

If you value The Mud Home and benefit from the barrowloads of free information here, do consider becoming a Mud patron. All patrons have access to an archive of exclusive videos, and other posts.

There are three main ways to create a gorgeous natural home for yourself. You can either build the thing from the ground up, find an old structure and renovate it, or buy someone else’s project. I’ve now done two out of these three, and have been considering the pros and cons for a long while now. So here is the Mud Home take on the matter.

Build from Scratch (Green Plots)
 
Pros:

1. You have a clean site to work from (though I hate it when people consider this to be a tabula rasa. It’s not. You’re moving into an existing ecosystem and a landscape that responds to you). But from a building site perspective it means you can plan a home from the footings up, and incorporate everything you want in your design.
2. It also means you don’t have nasty surprises rearing their potentially toxic heads.
3. You get to choose all the materials, and can opt for the best fit for both you and your landscape.

Cons:

1. If you’re going the legit route, then the bad news regarding green plots is you’ll probably have to get involved with an architect. This means you’re now dealing with officialdom, and paying an arm and a leg for that dubious pleasure.
2. Usually, though by no means always, building from scratch costs more because you literally have to bring in (or forage for) every piece of the structure.
3. Depending on how you build and your attitude towards your environment, you could either be a boon to your ecosystem (the way some people work with their landscapes is very inspiring) or a complete destroyer of habitats. This is largely dependent on how big you build and how obsessed with speed you are. Mostly, the smaller and slower the build, the happier the rest of your land’s inhabitants are.

Renovating (Brown Plots)
 
Pros:

1. I can speak from experience and tell you it gives you a very very good feeling to bring an abandoned building back to life. Renovating is arguably the most sustainable of all builds, because rather than intruding on a natural landscape, you’re breathing life back into a space that was previously developed.
2. Another amazing thing about renovating is that you will have lots and lots of materials that can be reused in creative ways. I saved an absolute fortune by upcycling old oak beams from my roof in the interior, and reusing old roof tiles to create good draining terraces, to name just two ways I reused stuff.
   
3. Depending on the state of the structure, many renovations also offer the substantial bonus of a dry place to store your stuff while you’re working, which is more important than you’ll ever realise until you start.
   
4. You contribute to a place’s heritage. If you’re a foreigner, this could win you plenty of local friends who support you, especially if you ask said locals about the history of the area.
   

Cons:

1. Of the two I think renovating is harder work and takes a lot longer. You’re going to need plenty of patience.
   
2. You spend a lot of time undoing mistakes, digging out mortar, cleaning, and repairing.
3. You also have a lot less freedom in design because the structure is already standing. I found with my stone barn, one thing that was bugging me by the end was that the whole thing was so much bigger than I really needed. Had I designed that barn from scratch, it would have been very different, but of course the thing was made for cows and straw storage, not me:)
   
4. Dealing with debris and dust was something I personally hated about renovating. Digging out concrete mortar and cleaning out dust is nasty, dirty work which can potentially cause health issues. Some stuff (asbestos for example) may even be toxic.
   

Taking on Someone Else’s Project
 
There didn’t used to be many modern natural builds to take over, but that is definitely changing as more and more people try and set up alternative lifestyles or permaculture-based homesteads. So these days you could find yourself taking on a project that someone else has half-finished, or perhaps completely finished. This method brings its own raft of considerations, bonuses and headaches.
 
Pros:

1. You almost certainly will have a fairly functioning living space, and that my friends is worth considering. One of the hardest things about the entire process of these projects is the day-to-day living while you’re building. You need a space to cook, sleep, eat, and wash. When you buy someone else’s project you probably have these already existing in some form or another.
   
2. You will have the satisfaction, a little like a renovation, of bringing a project or vision back to life. Perhaps you can sort out issues the other person couldn’t. Perhaps you bring new energy into the place.
   

Cons:

1. You have no idea what kind of cock-ups the previous owner has made. They may have been a complete amateur and bodged the whole thing up. You will undoubtedly spend a lot of time undoing and uncovering mistakes, or changing things that are not to your personal liking. These projects are very unique and no two people have the same viewpoint or needs.
   

Be Generous Folks!
On that note though, it’s such a downer when people take over someone else’s project and start blaming every failure and every problem on the previous owner. It’s just not conducive to success or happiness, and ignores how incredibly difficult those beginning couple of years are when you first start a project. The attitude of gratitude builds dreams in my opinion. It’s the make or break of a good life. See what the previous owner gave you, rather than continually moaning about their mistakes. There is probably some similarity between you and the previous owner, which is why you were drawn to the same land, and at some point you have to take responsibility for choosing to become the new guardian.
 
Extra Things to Note
Many of the pros and cons depend on the particular building regulations in your area. In Europe it is sometimes easier to get through the red tape by renovating. I said sometimes, because hey there’s enough red tape around here to encircle the planet three times over.

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First, we have to be honest that when it comes to the roof of a home, it’s hard to create a totally natural and fully waterproof canopy without some kind of vapour barrier. The roof is the most important part of a house. I’d argue it’s more important than foundations. Case in point: my barn has no foundations to speak of and it’s been standing 200 years. But as any local here will tell you, if the roof on the barn goes, the barn has no more than a few years left before it collapses.
 
Upshot: If the roof is secure and functioning properly as a rain shelter, you’re good. If not...agh. So, many times it's going to be hard to get away with making a watertight roof without a vapour barrer.
 
What did they do in times of old then?
Well before the modern age and vapour barriers, people still made weather-resistant roofs. But...here’s the painful truth of the matter, they often needed quite a lot of maintenance and repair. Residents were also used to sporadic leaking, and roofs had to be retiled, re-thatched, or re-mortared from time to time. That was just how it was. Not that modern roofs are maintenance-free either of course, but there is one crucial difference: most people in olden days weren’t building alone. They worked as communities. Re-tiling a roof is pretty easy when there’s a crowd of you, but doing it single-handed, or even as a couple, is a lot slower and more tedious.
 
Anyway, here are your six beautiful natural roofing options, plus whether or not you can get away without a vapour barrier.

1. Living Roof
In my opinion the sturdiest of the lot. I love a living roof. I have two articles on making living roofs. Here’s how I made mine and here’s how Cath Coffee in London made hers.
 
Pros: If made properly they don’t leak, can’t crack, animals can wander all over them without breaking them, they’re hurricane proof, soundproof, and possibly help retard a fire too. Basically no maintenance required once it’s built.
 
Cons: These are heavy, so you need a decent roof structure to support the weight, which could end up being the equivalent of a couple of elephants (albeit spread more thinly). You’ll need some plastic, which is of course the devil these days. Also, a living roof really needs a damp climate to actually be ‘living’.
 
Vapour barrier? Definitely. You’ll need two in fact, to be sure of success. Something like an EPDM or bitumen will go over the roofing boards, then you’ll need a couple of sheets of plastic as a root barrier.

2. Tiles
Tiles are of course some of the oldest and most widely used natural roofing options in the world. For centuries at least, people have been firing clay and turning it into pots, amphoras, and roofing tiles. I confess tiles aren’t my favourite because they’re so frickin’ fragile, though on the plus side, they can look beautiful, and you might also get away without a vapour barrier with them. But tiling is definitely a two-person job unless you want to get rather tired.
 
Pros: You can use them to catch rainwater (big plus), beauty, simplicity. Possibly no need for a vapour barrier.
 
Cons: Fragile, can’t handle much falling on them without cracking, prone to get ripped off in gales, repairing tile roofs is annoying.
 
Vapour barrier? This really depends on which tiles you’re using, and how desperate you are to stay perfectly dry. For the more modern, interlocking roof tiles, if it’s an exterior roof, say a porch or a shed or something, you can easily get away with no barrier. But for a house, and for the old school Mediterranean curved tiles, a breathable roofing membrane under the tiles is usually recommended.

3. Slate
 
If you live anywhere with slate (such as Galicia, Spain) slate slabs make amazing roof tiles. They’re more forgiving to lay, and a bit less likely to get ripped off in the wind than traditional terracotta tiles, because they’re flat.
 
Pros: Sleek, easier to lay than terracotta (in my opinion). Good for rain harvesting.
 
Cons: You really need to be in a slate area to make a slate roof feasible and sustainable. Like other tiles they are potentially a bit leaky. And you have the issue of repair when the slate slabs crack (because a tree branch fell on them or something). Slate tiles are also fairly heavy.
 
Vapour barrier? See my comments on terracotta tiles above.

4. Thatch
 
Oh, who wouldn’t want a thatch roof? Romantic, completely natural, and super snug too. Thatch roofs are usually made from reeds, but people do also use grasses (though grass will last far less time). If thatch is made professionally it is nice and weatherproof too. So what do you need to consider?
 
Pros: Insulating as heck. And of course thatch is so beautiful.
 
Cons: Fire risk.  Thatch needs decent maintenance.
 
Vapour barrier? Ah well, according to the experts this all depends on if it’s a cold or a warm thatch roof. Here’s a good article explaining when and when not to use a vapour barrier with thatch.

5. Madras Roof (Brick and Lime Mortar)
 
One of India’s traditional roofing techniques is a method called the Madras roof. Bricks are laid at a 45-degree angle over the rafters and mortared using a special lime application. Karen Shetty explained how that was done here.

Pros: Beautiful, inexpensive, perfectly natural, honouring tradition.
 
Cons: Fairly heavy, so decent supporting rafters are required. Like thatch, if you are dead-set on an optimum job, get a professional to lay this kind of roof.
 
Vapour barrier? Normally vapour barriers are not used in India with these roofs.

6. Bamboo Roof
Ooh if I lived in a climate with bamboo… Bamboo is nice and sustainable, doesn’t weigh too much, and is a material geared to creating gorgeous roofing structures. There are two ways to use bamboo in roofing. Usually you see the bamboo used for the frame and then some sort of thatch/reed roof over the top. But you can also use bamboo cut in half to form a kind of crenellated roof which would be excellent for rain harvesting.
 
How to make a simple bamboo roof: 
​https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZnMWDI6soo
 
Pros: Inexpensive (if you are in the bamboo zone), sustainable, lightweight, cool.
 
Cons: Bamboo can go mouldy if not treated properly.
 
Vapour barrier? Because bamboo roofs are usually found in warm humid climates, and because bamboo is pretty efficient at channeling away water, I’d say it would be a bad idea to stick a vapour barrier underneath due to the risk of mold.

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(And when isn’t)
 
I’m fond of earthbag building for a number of reasons. In terms of cheap, sustainable disaster-proof structures, I think it’s hard to beat. Not many other building methods can compete in terms of price and sheer indestructibility. But that doesn’t mean it’s the most appropriate method for everyone in every situation, by a long shot.
 
One issue with earthbag is of course the polypropylene bags. If you substitute the PP with hemp or jute, things are improving (see my post on the sacks here). But in some (or even many) cases, none of this is even necessary. Let’s start with what earthbag is good at.

When is the right time for earthbag?
 
1. Flood plains. Cob or adobe cannot stand flooding. Earthbag can. So if you live somewhere that could potentially be flooded, and want to build with mud, earthbag gives a lot more peace of mind.
 
2. Earthquake zones. It is more than a little annoying when the natural building snobs sitting comfortably on solid ground in central or western Europe sniff at earthbag. For anyone who’s lived on an earthquake fault, whether your house is going to collapse on you or not is the main thing on your mind when you build. Nothing else matters. Sorry. It is true that straw bale copes pretty well with earthquakes too (not as well as earthbag, but good enough), but that won’t help if you, like many of the world’s poorer people, live in an earthquake zone also prone to flooding, or you face landslides. Having lived in Turkey twenty years, and seen near on 100,000 people die in one earthquake, I’m in love with earthbag. While living in my house I experienced five quakes that were over 6 on the Richter scale, and have never felt so safe.
 
But...what about those incredible Japanese temples? Yes, buildings like Horyuji temple in Japan with its unique joinery are testimony to the ingenuity of the human spirit. But you need to be pretty well-heeled or a very competent carpentry specialist to build such a structure. It’s simply out of reach for most of the world’s population.
 
3. Crazy weather. If you live in a place with tornadoes or hurricanes, earthbag buildings are basically invincible.

4. War zones or trigger-happy nutcase zones. Bulletproof walls may not be the first thing on your mind if you live in some places. In that case, lucky you. In other places it matters.
 
In short, earthbag is a life-saving, game-changing building method for disaster areas and economically challenged communities. It’s cheap, needs very few resources, it’s low-impact, and if there are a gang of you, a structure can be built quite fast. It requires little technical know-how, and you don’t need to be a professional or an engineer. That’s the good news. But there are other situations when earthbag building isn’t the smartest thing to do.
 
When is the wrong time for earthbag?
 
1.Retaining walls
Because of its tensile strength, a lot of people not unreasonably assume that earthbag would be a great idea for retaining walls. I’m not a fan of this, and have seen one or two collapse when water backs up behind the wall. You’d need plenty of drainage pipes running through it to solve the problem. Then there’s the issue of plastering the thing. If it’s out in the open with no covering, neither lime nor earth plaster are durable enough. So whaddya know? Concrete gets spread all over the wall, which begs the question as to what was the point of the earthbag in the first place.
 
Best option? Dry stone is hard to beat for retaining walls, because the gaps in the rocks act as a sieve and allow plenty of drainage. Dry stone walls are even used on a massive scale for highways here in Spain, because hey, it works.

2. Domes in wet climates
I’ve covered the whole dome issue here, but unless you are in a very dry climate a dome is often not the smartest idea. Again there are some workarounds, but creating a breathable waterproof plaster for such a building is a real challenge.
 
3. You’re not in a disaster zone with floods, earthquakes, or hurricanes.
If you’re lucky enough to live in a place without crazy skies or earth, then why bother with earthbag? Just build using wattle and daub, cob, or adobe instead. It’s less labour-intensive, and you don’t need the PP sacks.
 
4. Lone builders or couples
Earthbag is best for team builds. It’s labour intensive and lends itself to a gang of four or more. If not, it’s going to move very, very slowly, and you risk burnout. Again, wattle and daub is my method of choice for lone builders.

The arguable time for earthbag
I think there is another place for earthbag, and that is arty architecture. There is far too much emphasis on numbers and carbon footprints in the current environmental discussion, and far too little emphasis on balance, beauty, and peace. Who cares if we reduce our carbon output to zero if our world is so desperately ugly, bare, and noisy that we don’t want to exist anyway?
 
So I get it completely when an architect wants to create something amazing with earthbag. The technique gives rise to some very unusual and aesthetic designs. Despite the PP sacks, earthbag is still way more sustainable than many high-end so-called “eco” houses built out of concrete, or posh natural homes that squander precious natural resources (old growth trees, for example).
 
The upshot is, even when not used strictly in the right place and despite the PP sacks, earthbag is still an incredibly low-impact, accessible, and durable building technique.

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I’ve used the word “quit” provocatively of course. Way better to have tried your dream out for size and decided “no thanks,” than to spend your whole life just imagining. But it is true to say that some people give up and never complete their projects, while others live in a perpetual state of building chaos for years and years sometimes with  partnerships breaking up under the strain. On the other hand, other people get through the sticky moments and complete their home. You see the end of that process a few years later in a gorgeous social media post. But that result didn’t just appear out of the ether. There’s a bit of a knack.

What people think is hard about building (but mostly isn’t)
 
It’s often the people we least expect that succeed in this game. That’s because there are some massive misconceptions about what it really takes to start, and more importantly, finish your own home.
 
The technical/engineering aspect of building for the most part is not freakin’ rocket science. And for the most part it’s also not why people fail. For the most part you don’t need to have some sort of qualification to build a house. Of course some smart aleck will no doubt point to an example of someone somewhere whose house collapsed. True, it happens. But it’s not the reason the majority of owner-builders end up quitting. Most lay people who start building focus an awful lot on technical and structural elements of the build (as they should), but sometimes it’s to the detriment of other aspects. Knowing how to do something isn’t the same as actually getting it done.

Reasons It All Goes Pear-shaped:
 
1. Disorganisation
Honestly, this is probably the single most common reason I see that people come unstuck. You need to work in an appropriate order and stay vaguely on track. It sounds straight forward. It’s not. There is a lot to think about when you start building and it’s easy to get completely lost. I’m an Earth whispering hippy that talks to trees every day and likes to sculpt flowers out of mud, but even I have a game plan and a to-do list. Some sort of structured approach is essential. Prioritising correctly is a life-saver.
 
In the same vein, you need to avoid getting distracted as far as is humanly possible. The more you can stay on task and keep some forward momentum doing the right tasks at the right time, the easier it all is.
 
For an example see Dianne and Bismil’s monster renovation in Spain. I’ve learned a lot from Dianne because she’s super organised, and moves cleanly and clearly through the build.

2. Refusing to get in professional help when necessary
I doubt many Lone Rangers will to listen to my take on it, but hey, since when has that stopped me:)) Let’s face it though, it does look a bit like some of us think help is akin to failure. So we carry on doing a sub-par job, wasting masses of time and energy on parts of the build which are neither our speciality nor enthusiasm. Basic plumbing is left unattended. Taps don’t work. Solar power systems function poorly and everyone is using a torch to read their books. Floors are not laid. Kitchens and bathrooms don’t work properly. Everything is a bit of a mess. Finally, family members lose patience and skedaddle out of there. At the end of this sorry state of affairs, said builder blames said everyone else for the failure. Yeeees, seen it too many times to mention.
 
I won’t lie, I hobble under the Lone Ranger fallacy as much as the next independence-lover. I also know it’s not easy, and the criticisms of onlookers can be hard to stand at times. But I can face the truth when I see I’m not doing a good job, and will get in a pro if I have to. Come on folks, get real! Even professional builders work in teams, and hire plumbers, electricians, and carpenters.
 
For an example of what I mean, take a look at Nad Kad’s amazing strawbale house. Yes he built a lot of it alone, and is a genius at clay plaster, but he never fails to mention that Jim Schalles was the pro behind the gorgeous (and well-functioning) rocket stove.
 
3. Unrealistic goals and biting off more than you can chew.
Most of us make this mistake somewhere along the line, but some folk catastrophically misjudge the effort involved in building. Ianto Evans said something along the lines of, "Remember everything takes twice as long as you think and costs three times as much." I must admit, personally I come in not too far over budget, but things definitely always move far slower than I want or expect.

So before you buy that ancient castle in Scotland, or decide to construct the world's first multi-storey earthbag mansion, take a long step back. Try a small build first and get a feel for what's involved. Unless your house is a very teeny tiny cottage (think 15m2) your total build is probably going to take at least two years. Even if you have ten people helping, (and take it from me, half of those ten probably won’t be much help) it will still take that time. Don’t believe me? Just take a look at this article by the very professional building team at Koluba, who know exactly what they’re doing and have stacks of volunteers. That house isn’t huge at all. It still took the best part of two years.

Yeees. If you think you’ll finish your home in a summer, you’re probably new to the game.
 
But what about my earthbag house in Turkey? It is true that by sheer will and good fortune we erected the structure of (a small) earthbag house up in six weeks. But it took me another eighteen months to complete the interior. That house is just 6m diameter.

4. Poor management skills
People think management is bossing people around or being in charge. In truth, ninety percent of management is people skills. And the biggest management crime I see is lack of acknowledgement for everyone in the team. It is lovely to do things yourself and create your own home, but only a fool thinks anything is built single-handedly. And only a very ungrateful and arrogant fool dismisses the vital assistance and contribution of everyone on their team, including and especially those in the background cooking, cleaning or washing. At. Your. Peril. Even a lone hag like me who loves to work in solitude, who has no one cooking for me or washing my clothes, acknowledges the help of my team. Without my good neighbours, my dad, my friends, my Patreon crowd, and the sporadic but oh so needed help of Jose Manuel, I would have been snookered many times.
 
For an example see Kay La Bella’s project. She has such a wonderful way with people that makes everyone want to help, and the energy of the project simply shines.
 
Ways to win in management:
Say thank you often. Point out the fab things people have contributed. Listen to other people’s ideas, and incorporate some of them. Include everyone, exclude no one. But the most important words to overuse are “thank you”.

5. Running out of money
I have to admit, I’d never quit because of this. Never. I mean you can always scrape a bit together somehow, can’t you? I think if you use mud, lime, and listen to your land, you can pretty much always keep building. Creativity and willpower trump money any day. Use second-hand stuff, use your wits, use the abundant resources of your land, and don’t buy into all this expensive Grand Designs lark. Stop competing with the Joneses, they’re idiots anyway. The irony is, when much of your house is homemade, it becomes more attractive.
 
My current build is quite elaborate for me, but my budget is tiny. I just move slower and make (sometimes hard) choices. Nevertheless, I see that money is an ostensible reason people give up.
 
Some ways to mitigate financial ruin:

1. Stop buying stuff! Use what you have to hand unless a purchase is absolutely necessary.
   
2. Move through your project bit by bit. Don’t get scattered, and keep it small at the outset. Complete one structure or one room or one part of the build first. Complete it well enough that you can live comfortably in that bit while you find money for the rest.
   
3. Find some way of earning money while you build. There’s always a way. It also gives you a break from building, so it’s a win-win.
   
4. Be frugal and modest, but don’t fall into scarcity mode. When you slide into that mindset it all gets a bit grim. Been there, done that.
   

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