Earthship construction: Day 4
Each day a few of the Carizal kids from the surrounding community eagerly wait at the river crossing for the construction crew to arrive holding a small collection of bottles and cans. A good portion of the crew enjoyed the local night life the night before, so morning arrived quickly for some. By 7:00 am we were all on-site and busy at work.
The crew broke up into their specialties; Seth and Phil started carpentry on the hub for the inner dome structure, while Demien and Ted (and Brooke) started construction of the rebar outer dome. Rory cut rebar stakes and drove them into the top course of tires and began to lay out the bond beam for-work.
The primary focus for the day was on getting the inner dome structure and outer dome framework erected so that plastering can begin on Monday. Justin and the Nicaraguans worked on finishing the last few courses of tires, while Mike Reynolds worked closely with two locals on the art of bottle laying in cement mortar, then grooming them with plaster to give them a finished appearance and bottle detail. The colored bottles are artfully organized among the windows and archways allowing for entry of natural light and a stained-glass like finish.
The day cruised right along, and lunchtime each day seems to come at the perfect time. There was a momentary scare that a load of lumber may not be arriving on time but in true Nicaraguan time it arrived.
More bottle bricks were made today by three adults and 8 Nica kids were excited to help with the unusual activity. The tire work is nearly done on all areas of the main house and we are prepped with enough cans and bottles for the following days work on the bond beam.
After months of collecting used tires and bottles, the house is finally taking shape and the excitement among the community is growing. More volunteers showed up today, one from Florida and two from Alaska. It is an amazing experience to demonstrate to new people the process of Earthship construction and for them to share their backgrounds and knowledge.
The crew will get the weekend off and there has been discussion of a friendly sports competition. The Nica’s want to challenge the Americans. Since baseball is the most popular sport here in Nicaragua, we may have to take them up on a game this weekend.
