[msdrby]

This site has an article of a man who built his basement using ICFs.
http://www.taunton.com/finehomebuilding/pages/h00031.asp

This site has information regarding another option dependign on the building code and what you want to do. Straw Bale construction.

http://www.eere.energy.gov/EE/strawhouse/house-of-straw.html


I don't really have a clue what PE might advise, but I can say that we have talked about eventually buying some land and using strawbale construction to make a sorta hobbithole of our own.

[Lil'freeper]

Kindred spirit!! My dream in life is to (get rich enough to) build a completely off-the-grid place in WY. Big'ol is slowly coming around to the idea of being a hermit. But my fantasy house is partially earth-sheltered with the balance being some kind of 'alternative' material: straw bales, tires, something. Then, (if I get really rich) I'll build a winter home in AZ of rammed earth.

I had to teach a year of environmental science and made a lesson out of alternative building materials, passive solar, etc. That's what started the rumors on campus that I was totally nuts.... came in handy when I later had to teach them chemistry.

[SuziQ]

We have a subscription to Fine Homebuilding, and we read that article. It wasn't until SSQ learned about ICF's hat he made the decision that we would do the majority of the work ourselves. The pouring of the basement walls the regular way was the only thing that was daunting to him. He's done it before when he worked for his Daddy many years ago, so he knew he didn't want to do it again! ;o)