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That is one of the coolest things I've ever seen! I wonder what the overall cost of the construction of one of those houses is. And especially for Taos, NM...they can grow their veggies indoors! Very cool, radioguy...thanks for that.
Carrie
"The opportunities to reach into the lives of others in an inspiring way arise in countless ways every single day..." Dr. Wayne W. Dyer
http://www.cafepress.com/dreamhawaii
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I'm with you Carrie these are very cool places I wonder though, they seem very appropriate for the areas they have been built in, but Puna? maybe....Great website though, especially the audio/photo highlights. I don't know about empolying tires though within any part of a living space they really smell!
HADave
Aloha HADave & Mz P
Hawaiian Acres
The best things in life are free.... or have no interest or payments for one full year.
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Yeah- but if you stucco or plaster over them you would never know it!
Carrie
"The opportunities to reach into the lives of others in an inspiring way arise in countless ways every single day..." Dr. Wayne W. Dyer
http://www.cafepress.com/dreamhawaii
http://www.hellophoenix.com/art
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Having visited one of these structures in New Mexico, I can agree that they are marvels of ingenious recycling of materials and energy efficiency. They provide a remarkably low-cost option for materials and have a very low long-term environmental impact compared to a standard home. These are more labor intensive to build, but the one I saw was mostly put together by the owners and their friends, with contractors only called in for some specialty work.
Just two concerns, though. First, the differential of sunny days between New Mexico and Mountain View could make the solar components dicey. Of course, the inhabitants of such a home could well be of a mindset to get by on far less electricity than average. Second, the heavy rainfall could cause dampness issues if the embanked portion is not very tightly sealed. That said, I applaud whoever had the courage to try something that is new to Hawaii and has so much potential.
Aloha,
Jerry
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aloha all,
good topic and input. i'm all for the alternative energies, and putting the "control," back into the individual's hands.
i think Hawai'i is in a unique and favorable position, in that it is surrounded by water. what about energy from wave action, desalinization, solar and so on? i know these still have hurdles to overcome, but the push for cleaner energy is really still in it's infancy. unfortunately in america, we rarely do anything until it's too late. i've often thought Hawai'i should be at the forefront of green energy. why not require all rental cars to be ethanol based or hybrid? would promote green energy and possibly generate income for cane farmers. (look at Brazil. i believe they're somewhere around 75% fuel self-sufficient from cane-based ethanol, driving around GM cars!).
i liken the never-ending consumption in america to the fall of the roman empire. it's just a matter of time. people have survived on this earth for thousands of years with far less than we do now (god forbid there isn't a starbucks on every corner, or you can't get cell phone reception). we've gotten kinda soft in this country...
i recently went to china on business, and i'll tell you what, when they figure it out, we won't be number one. they're tough! i witnessed 90 year old ladies pullling around 500 pounds of rice on carts, and most people rode bikes, walked or took mass transit. unfortunately, i also noticed that in having outsourced our manufacturing to china, all we've done is sent our pollution overseas, where it isn't regulated as stringently as we do here. but what goes around comes around...
i think the answers will be found in Hawai'ians discussing, demanding and changing the laws and their own habits. it all starts with us....keep up the dialogue, and make the changes in your life that you can, for the aina....
malama pono,
:?)
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The UK also figured out that they are a group of islands, and have been experimenting with wave power. It's been on a bunch of the geek tv that I watch.
Here's one company that has a couple of different wave power generators:
http://www.wavegen.co.uk/index.html
And here is a really neat company that has small hydroponic, aquaculture, and even a home-sized aquaponic system:
http://www.cropking.com/aquaponics.shtml
And Rob's reference to "the numbers" earlier was chilling. It was almost word for word what my national security professor said back in school.
Edited by - scuba_man7 on 06/15/2007 05:44:46
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We have a solar hotwaterheating company in town that is getting a lot of press. The cost of the new unit without any subsities is about $2000.00 and can be installed by a home owner in a weekend.
http://www.fafco.com/
Keith
Keith
