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Low-footprint and Low-cost Dwellings Using
“Urban” GREB Technique
The project wants to be the seed for bringing together people with a good sense of community. Also, it wants to involve the surrounding neighbours and communities in reusing and recycling, to raise awareness of the possibility of upcycling some of the materials that we usually see as waste. They will be invited to bring their cardboard, glass bottles, clean debris and old windows to re-use them. Making deals with companies producing cardboard waste, debris, ashes, refurbished windows and others would be a way to collect the materials needed. Also, recyclers will be a source of raw materials.
It is to be a project in which the bulk of the building works is done by the owners, thus, the chosen techniques and building systems should not require a high level of skills. In a 40 to 50 adults community is supposed to find a variety of skills that can be used in construction and project management. The GREB technique may be a suitable one. The GREB technique was designed to be used with strawbales, but most likely strawbales could be replaced by cardboard bales with similar results as their thermal and mechanical properties are very close.
Wherever the project needs to use concrete or mortar, fly ash can be added to reduce the use of cement. The flying ashes used in the proposed concrete or mortar are likely to contain heavy metals (chromium, nickel, copper, zinc, arsenic, selenium, cadmium, antimony or lead). They could become a hazard if disposed of in landfills as usual. If disposed of in that way, frequently, the heavy metals leach into the waters, polluting them. Using lime in the mortars and concretes will help to precipitate heavy metals fixing them into their structure and turning them into inert materials.
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