Customer Reviews

The Tire House Book

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Not as helpful or informative as I had expected and hoped for. It could have done with more detail on the actual construction of a tire house.

I have been fortunate enough to meet Ed Paschich and hear how passionate he is about protecting the planet and building with a focus on cost, aesthetics, and ecological responsibility. In my opinion, he is a builder and designer before his time that has an understanding of the long-term needs of our ecosystems that deserves far more exploration and respect.

This book and his one on straw bale design are well written and intelligently conceived. The images are beautiful and the words inspirational. I would recommend this to anyone with an eye to sustainability and habitat-preservation, even if they are not yet considering building their own home.

Good general reference on building a house from tires. Well organized, concise. A "work in progress" and seems to get better with each adition.

Consider this book just a bare-bones introduction to making a house out of tires. It's very spare in the information it gives. There's practically nothing on how to roof such a structure (and secure the roof to the tires) or place and secure windows and doors. If you're not a builder or a carpenter you'd be well-advised to seek professional help.

The book also, as do so many alternative home construction manuals, covers building only in the American Southwest. Nothing wrong with that, except most people don't live there. I wondered if my local soil (a heavy loam) is suitable for compacting tires and what an alternative to the book's adobe covering of the tires would be. Humidity and vicious cold might not mix well with adobe.

Since there's no follow-up book or other serious source I could find on tire houses, and the [...] site apparently has nothing on the subject other than what's in this book, I have to wonder just how successful this whole tire approach is. The idea appears to have been abandoned.

That's the bad part. The good is that this book will give you some idea of how to pack the dirt into the tires, modify the tires themselves for easier compacting, anchor them with rebar if you wish, and place lintels above the doors and windows. It delves a little into how sturdy and long-lasting a tire house could be and relates the homeowners' satisfaction with those thick, sound-deadening walls. The idea itself still appeals: warm, massive houses built of tires otherwise destined for landfills. I bought the book to see if building a chicken coop of tires was practicable. We'll see.

This is a great eye opener into the world of tire homes. It will inspire you to do more research into living off the grid.