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House built with plastic and glass bottles

last photo ←

A friend sent me these pictures about a house that was built using recycled materials.

103 comments

1-40 of 103

Mar 13, 2012. 4:24 PMLoopstyle says:

Interesting reusing of plastic/glass bottles! I have a website (www.loopstyle.se) that shares inspiration in the upcycling area! You are more then welcome to visit and post a loop at the webpage!

Thx

Mar 13, 2012. 5:27 PM

blkhawk (author) says:

Thank you for the invitation.

Jul 14, 2011. 11:52 AMonemoroni1 says:

This is an interesting recycling and re-purposing. However I don't think it would fly in California to meet building codes. Would be good for an out building.

Mar 15, 2010. 4:42 PMSuper_Geek says:

Actualy under the right condition (high heat with moisture and pressure, that can be achieved in most landfills) plastic will break down in about 50 years.

Jul 14, 2011. 10:55 AMupcycler74 says:

"It should be noted, however, that even with biodegradable plastic materials the decomposition will normally be limited because most landfills in the U.S. are not operated in a biologically active state."
From U of Michigan Engineering dept website on bioplastics UMICH

In ideal situations, yes, anaerobic degradation of plastic in landfill does occur, but as stated above, this is not neccessarily the norm. I think that a plastic bottle in an anaerobic, or a dry climate like in the pictures above, a plastic bottle will last a very, very long time.

Jul 10, 2011. 5:01 AM

cincymikeb says:

Saw this in North carolina see web site Marys gone wild. I dont know how strong it is but it sure is beautiful !

Mar 15, 2011. 4:14 AMchaguin60 says:

have anybody tried using a sealer on papercret to seal out humidity in a humid climate?

Feb 20, 2011. 2:18 AMellislake says:

a massive well done to you all.its an amazing idea.why isnt this used in all 3rd world countries where they dont have building regulations,it would improve life so much

Jan 25, 2011. 9:28 PMTheMightyBeagle says:

I love it! I've been looking for something like this for awhile. Recycled houses amaze me. I love the star patern from the end of the bottles. Simply amazing! I love it! My husband and I are going to be buying our own home soon, and while the house we're buying is constructed by 'conventional' methods I would love to do something like this for landscaping. Amazing! Love it! Keep up the good work!

Jan 17, 2010. 7:43 AMcarlo$ says:

I am not a builder, my logic tells me it is not a good idea. The glass bottles can break and injure the occupants. The plastic bottles are pretty much worthless, i would think none of them make good insulators. Why even use the bottles? Might as well make it all cement.

Mar 17, 2010. 9:34 AMAnianna says:

The bottles encase a loose medium, like dirt, construction remnants, or other material that could otherwise harm the environment. These items could not be used like a brick without some form of casement. The bottles solve this problem.

Making it all cement would be costly and you would still need a medium to act as structure for the cement. You can not simply pour cement and have it form into a wall. In the U.S., we usually use rebar and hardware cloth for this sort of application, so cement walls are somewhat expensive. The use of the bottles reduces the materials costs as well as reducing waste by reusing materials that would otherwise end up as trash.

Dec 30, 2010. 11:46 PMNarlo11 says:

This isnt all roses. Some glass materials degrade from what I have read in books regarding glass as a medium instead of rock. Papercrete is a better alternative. This is a waste of something that is normally washed and reused. Where I live recycling thrives so every bottle is a 10cent refund on our deposit.

Dec 31, 2010. 10:51 PMAnianna says:

Papercrete is great in dryer climates, but in more humid climates, it tends to be affected negatively by the weather. When the paper content becomes saturated, it expands and holds the moisture in. It also degrades to some extent.

Perhaps I misunderstand you, but are you saying that you think glass would degrade faster than papercrete? Glass is a very long lived resource and does not pose the same problems as the paper content of papercrete.

It's fantastic if glass in your area is highly recycled. Rates of recycling vary and there are no places that pay for glass around here. There are recycle bins, but with little incentive to sort garbage, a lot of glass still ends up in landfills. Regardless, a project like this recycles those bottles into something interesting and useful. Either way, the glass is being reused, right? ;)

Dec 31, 2010. 11:39 PMNarlo11 says:

ya its good to re-use it but there are certain types of glass that degrade from the alkaline in the cement. I have a concrete book that says this happens with certain types. I never did tests myself but again this is what ive read.

Feb 10, 2010. 7:27 AMandreasfroese says:

Hi
The bouttle are filled whis earth ore construction waste and have a very good isolacion betwen the bouttle we do not use cement
www.eco-tecnologia.com

Jan 28, 2010. 5:01 PMkomecake says:

Ignore your "logic" and do some research. There are ENTIRE COMMUNITIES that use plastic bottles for building. Once mud is put inside of the plastic bottles they become practically indestructable and make for great housing.

The glass bottles aren't going to magically break with mud inside of them. That doesn't even make sense. Do you windows and glass doors at home break for no reason? A glass bottle with mud inside would be much more durable than a glass window standing on its own.

Feb 9, 2010. 9:46 PMxana says:

yeah but its still a cement structure from an engineering point of view the plastic bottles filled with cement or mud cause a layer a fault between the cement and it will not bond properly. so under certain situations it is worthless. mostly because the bottles are smooth and there is nothing for the mud or cement to stick to. when you use brick the bricks are rough so there is room for it to bind in to.

Feb 10, 2010. 7:32 AMandreasfroese says:

more than 50 project and last 9 year our houses in Honduras soport
earthquake 7.1 richter tel us don belive the cement industry !!
After 16 years living in 3 world you learn other reality
Andreas
www.eco-tecnologia.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5QF5CRoPI1g

Feb 10, 2010. 10:47 AMxana says:

give me current photos.

Oct 5, 2010. 10:11 PMVillevissen says:

http://earthship.com/ check that website out, this guy Michael E Reynolds have been building houses like this for over 40+years. He has a degree in architecture and an architecture licence. This build was likely inspired from his work. He builds self supporting houses (meaning they produce the energy, water and food needed for humans to survuve) with partly recycled materials.
he also did a TED talk which can be seen here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FON-UK_1kyI

and a documentary was made about him called Garbage Warrior wich can be seen on voddler.com for free

dont be so quick to judge from ur current knowledge ;)

Jan 26, 2010. 11:58 PMpma0252 says:

Dude if you are not a builder , why do make remarks when you have no idea what you are talking about. FYI the trapped air inside the bottles make a great insulator against the elements. And building ahouse in this way will save you loads of money.

Dec 30, 2010. 11:51 PMNarlo11 says:

How are bottles a good insulator? Its the same as a window pane but only single pane. 1 Glass side and 1 bottle cap. Better off using straw or hay.

Feb 10, 2010. 7:33 AMandreasfroese says:

Right
I have done a roof using empy bouttles
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5QF5CRoPI1g
www.eco-tecnologia.com

Jan 30, 2010. 5:08 AMwww.microbike.ie says:

that is correct!

Jan 21, 2010. 2:13 AMBenji101 says:

Cement isn't really the greatest of the eco-friendly building products...

Feb 13, 2010. 10:03 AMtonia_ladd says:

Exactly!!! People who are critical of this type of construction obviously can afford to live in "modern" houses, which are very "un" eco friendly. But they are the types of people who don't care about our planet. Or decent living spaces for the disadvantaged.

Feb 10, 2010. 7:35 AMandreasfroese says:

We dont use cement in our walls the first house is soporting 30 to until 9 jears
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5QF5CRoPI1g
www.eco-tecnologia.com

Jan 21, 2010. 6:50 PM

blkhawk (author) says:

So, which one is it?

Jan 28, 2010. 4:57 PMkomecake says:

Um... mud.

Jan 31, 2010. 11:27 AM

emilygracedavis says:

They make these also with a mixture of junk-mail paper pulp and cement.

Mar 17, 2010. 9:41 AMAnianna says:

Papercrete! ^_^

Jan 20, 2010. 10:24 AMBryan Smith says:

glass bottles are no more dangerous than ceramic tile. The dead air space in the plastic bottles makes it great insulation. With the bottles, one uses less mortar and there is no need for expensive brick.

Jan 17, 2010. 2:44 PM

Broom says:

You are not a builder... so why are you making these pessimistic guesses?

This idea has been used frequently, all over the world. Glass bottles don't break, unless the owners of the houses have habits of beating their walls with hammers. Most don't.

The difference between glass bottles and cement is that cement is opaque, and doesn't let the sunlight in. Since you're not a builder, I understand why you wouldn't realize this.

Feb 9, 2010. 9:51 PMxana says:

are you a builder. if so i still say that you should not make personal attacks on people its just impolite. in reference "to You are not a builder... so why are you making these pessimistic guesses?"

Dec 18, 2010. 7:06 PMwazupwiop says:

I wonder how hard it would be to run plumbing and electricity in a structure like that.

Nov 2, 2010. 9:49 PMDIY-Guy says:

Big plastics question, two words- UV resistance?

The star shapes look so cool in the walls!

Aug 9, 2010. 9:41 AM

onrust says:

Thanks for the show! We need more of this.......... in a bad way! I like the last 2 photos best.

Apr 11, 2010. 11:44 PMsssssbooom says:

You could make a sweet shed like that! this might be a way for me to finally afford a work shop. This is really cool!

Apr 11, 2010. 3:37 PMvenchilla96 says:

i want to make my house like this now... how many bottles did they use?

Mar 15, 2010. 1:25 AMbluefly1215 says:

Awesome job. I think we all need to build more of these types of homes. Not only can we decrease the amount of plastic bottles in the landfills but we can also make homes for the less fortunate. I have seen where they have used cans and another was a straw bale walled home. Great job!

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