The bedroom is part of a house which is also made of three other rooms: a kitchen, bathroom, and latrines.
The primary building structure is made up of vertical bamboo posts carrying a three-dimensional bamboo truss. Bamboo diagonals are placed between the vertical posts in order to ensure structural stability. The walls filling the space between the vertical bamboo members are non-structural and therefore are made of cob (earth + sand + straw) and ecobricks (plastic bottles filled with trash). The walls are surmounted by windows with metallic frames. The space created has an octagonal shape and an interior area of 111 sq ft.
For the building foundations, a ring of rammed earth tires is used to level the ground. Additionally, the bamboo posts sit on top of concrete plates poured on top of the tires. These plates provide a solid footing for the posts while preventing water infiltration as they are located above the finished floor level. Water infiltrations are also averted at the slab level as the 3'' thick cob slab is placed on a layer of gravel.
At the roof level, bamboo beams cut longways span between the truss members. They are covered with pine boards on which shingles made out of plastic bottles are nailed. The roof also presents a central skylight made with the same materials and is surrounded by a concrete ring with bamboo permanent formwork acting as a gutter.
The interior plasters are made of two layers: a form coat (cement + lime + coarse sand) and a final coat (cement + lime + fine sharp sand). The external side of the walls is covered with fine cob (sifted earth + sifted sand).
Bamboo and Trash Bottle House
The bedroom is part of a house which is also made of three other rooms: a kitchen, bathroom, and latrines.
The primary building structure is made up of vertical bamboo posts carrying a three-dimensional bamboo truss. Bamboo diagonals are placed between the vertical posts in order to ensure structural stability. The walls filling the space between the vertical bamboo members are non-structural and therefore are made of cob (earth + sand + straw) and ecobricks (plastic bottles filled with trash). The walls are surmounted by windows with metallic frames. The space created has an octagonal shape and an interior area of 111 sq ft.
For the building foundations, a ring of rammed earth tires is used to level the ground. Additionally, the bamboo posts sit on top of concrete plates poured on top of the tires. These plates provide a solid footing for the posts while preventing water infiltration as they are located above the finished floor level. Water infiltrations are also averted at the slab level as the 3'' thick cob slab is placed on a layer of gravel.
At the roof level, bamboo beams cut longways span between the truss members. They are covered with pine boards on which shingles made out of plastic bottles are nailed. The roof also presents a central skylight made with the same materials and is surrounded by a concrete ring with bamboo permanent formwork acting as a gutter.
The interior plasters are made of two layers: a form coat (cement + lime + coarse sand) and a final coat (cement + lime + fine sharp sand). The external side of the walls is covered with fine cob (sifted earth + sifted sand).