Jami CruzApril 13, 2020Last updated: Sept. 11, 2020
Very interested in your prefabs on slab. We would prefer to be off grid as the cost of grid power on our site is expensive. We also need a water collection system as our water is not good for consumption. I was looking at the earthship model, however, I was never sold on the heating concept for our northern climate (your article made my suspicions concrete). Is a prefab from ecohome even a reasonable thought when we are so far away? Sincerely; Jami
We are glad to hear you read the article 'Do Earthships work in cold climates?' before building one. there is no real 'heating concept' for Earthships in Canada, the Earthship organization, as near as we can tell, still clings to the delusion that an Eartship stays warm in all climates, which is patently false.
As for the water collection design of an Earthship, it is not a system that makes financial or ecological sense in areas with accessible ground water, but if you don't have that, then by all means investigate the Earthship rainwater collection and purification system. We would not recommend following it to the word as they have a pattern of glossing over deficiencies in their design, so do other research as well, but there may be something of value in their water system but we would recommend omitting anything in terms building an attached greenhouse and using the water there.
Our prefab kit homes are not yet available out west unfortunately, but if you sign up as an Ecohome member (which is free and we don't spam endlessly or share addresses), you will get notice as soon as they are available in your region.
Thank you for the reply. The more I research the more I realize the Earthship Concept is not for us.
In researching passive housing the concept of positioning a house to optimize the winter sun for heat just makes sense, especially, when we have lots of land to choose from.
Does eco home have an architect to develop plans for a passive, off the grid home? I am interested in the style of the Edelweiss House. We could follow the plans to build as the general contractor. Thanks again for your time.
We don't have in-house architects unfortunately that would be able to do this for you. If you like the shape and general layout of the Edelweiss House, I would suggest you seek out a few local architects that may have some high-end sustainable and resilient homes under their belts and use the Edelweiss House as an example of what you are looking for in terms of design. Just a tip as well - if you already have a good idea of what you 'e looking for, you may want to look for architectural technologists, they can draw up building plans for you (most I think will provide design advice as well) but that will be a lot more affordable.
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We are glad to hear you read the article 'Do Earthships work in cold climates?' before building one. there is no real 'heating concept' for Earthships in Canada, the Earthship organization, as near as we can tell, still clings to the delusion that an Eartship stays warm in all climates, which is patently false.
As for the water collection design of an Earthship, it is not a system that makes financial or ecological sense in areas with accessible ground water, but if you don't have that, then by all means investigate the Earthship rainwater collection and purification system. We would not recommend following it to the word as they have a pattern of glossing over deficiencies in their design, so do other research as well, but there may be something of value in their water system but we would recommend omitting anything in terms building an attached greenhouse and using the water there.
Our prefab kit homes are not yet available out west unfortunately, but if you sign up as an Ecohome member (which is free and we don't spam endlessly or share addresses), you will get notice as soon as they are available in your region.
Thank you for the reply. The more I research the more I realize the Earthship Concept is not for us.
In researching passive housing the concept of positioning a house to optimize the winter sun for heat just makes sense, especially, when we have lots of land to choose from.
Does eco home have an architect to develop plans for a passive, off the grid home? I am interested in the style of the Edelweiss House. We could follow the plans to build as the general contractor. Thanks again for your time.
Jami
We don't have in-house architects unfortunately that would be able to do this for you. If you like the shape and general layout of the Edelweiss House, I would suggest you seek out a few local architects that may have some high-end sustainable and resilient homes under their belts and use the Edelweiss House as an example of what you are looking for in terms of design. Just a tip as well - if you already have a good idea of what you 'e looking for, you may want to look for architectural technologists, they can draw up building plans for you (most I think will provide design advice as well) but that will be a lot more affordable.