Sustainable Housing Series: Organic Homes

Wednesday Jan 29, 2014

What is an ‘organic home’?

Simply, it is a home built into the natural environment.

Organic architecture, where the house mirrors the surrounding environment and landscape (i.e. Frank Lloyd Wright), is only part of the organic home model. An organic home combines the look and feel of the natural environment with use of organic, local materials and low-impact energy solutions. Not only do organic homes break the boundaries of the typical single-family American home, but also surpass the ‘LEED certified’ and ‘Energy Star’ green homes we know today in terms of sustainability. Organic housing is a vision for living outside of the box of the housing market, and even the economy itself.

Bare bones of an organic home by Simon Dale

The Hobbit House

The Hobbit House is real, and a Welsh man and his family who wanted to live closer to the environment built it for less than $5,000. Not surprisingly, Simon Dale is pretty extraordinary: since 2003 he has built over 5 ‘low environmental impact’ shelters with no formal training, but a lot of love for the land.

Simon Dale’s ‘low-impact’ model focuses on basic shelter and needs and embraces the beauty of the natural environment. The design features recycled materials and nearby natural resources, making the Welsh landscape perfect for these homes.

For example, The Hobbit House includes:

mud/turf roof to absorb rainfall and provide shelter
wood burner for heat
cooling by cold underground air
straw walls, floor, and roof for insulation
solar panels for electricity (one of the few ‘modern’ technologies!)

Straw bale design

Inside the Hobbit House

What do you think?

Simon Dale’s ‘organic home’ projects show that being organic doesn’t have to be costly. The energy bills for these types of homes would be almost non-existent and most of manmade materials used would be reused or recycled. However, the energy, time, design skills, and natural environment necessary to achieve a ‘Hobbit House’ seem out of reach, especially for those living in urban areas.

With a supportive group of friends and neighbors and a passion for recycling and design, the Hobbit House could be yours. As Dale says in an interview, someone who wants to create an ‘organic home’ just needs to, “BE BOLD.”