So, suppose you find yourself wanting to build an off-grid homestead.

Someplace to raise your family and live self-sufficiently as possible.
You have six kids, the eldest is 13, the youngest is still in diapers. For the first time in your life, you finally got a job that pays decent money ( much of it cash under the table ) and you have flexible hours.

You have tried for over a year to find a suitable house to buy and get out of the tiny apartment y'all have been living in, but have given up in despair, and have pretty much come to the conclusion that the only way you'll get your homestead is to build your own...Just like your brother in law, EtdBob did!

This is not a hypothetical question, but is indeed the situation one of my brothers in law finds himself in.
Which should we build? The prime contenders is a load bearing straw house, constructed in an "L" shape of two 30 x 20 rectangles ( double my cottage )
Or go underground and build using the PSP system invented by Mike Oehler.

Ever read Mike Oehler's $50 & Up Underground House Book?
http://www.undergroundhousing.com/index.html
Why not? It's a great book, full of good info and an amusing read all on it's own, even if your not interested in using his methods.

Sadly, I cannot post a link to a similarly simple and direct guide to straw bale building, because the best work on the topic "Build it with Bales," is long out of print.
However, this is a pretty popular way to build now, and I'm sure your all familiar with it.

Which would you build? Why?

All things being equal, underground is the way to go. Superior shelter from storms and man-made catastrophes (read "nuclear weapons"), excellent insulation value, etc.

If your soil is easy to work in, definitely underground.

My area is too rocky to even think of doing that unless I want to spend a fortune on blasting. I envy you guys that can build underground. Straw bale is what I'm looking at.

Underground is the way to go if you have the geography for it.

I'm at work right now, and don't have access to my library until tomorrow night, but I've got some GREAT old 70's literature that show different methods of doing this, including one that uses 'trash' metal to strengthen concrete. I'll post the resources as soon as I get them.

Our eventual goal is to build an underground (actually, into the side of a mountain) home that is beautiful, practical, and hidden.

If you're not going to go underground, straw bale is not your only option.

Cordwood building

I would definitely go underground, if the soil allows for it. You'll get a stronger shelter, lots of light and air, better insulation (cooler in the summer, warmer in the winter) and the materials should be fairly easy to work with, especially in the right soil.

I'm considering this method myself.

I'm quite fond of cordwood construction and have some experience with it. In fact, I was going to build my cottage that way until I learned about straw bale.

I think straw bale is much less work and much faster for the size building my brother in laws family will be needing though.

Digging a big enough U-house would also be a pain without a backhoe.

Anyone here familiar with Mike Oehlers PSP method of building? It uses posts, shoring of wood, and a layer of polyethylene. That's it, no concrete at all.

His "Uphill patio" concept takes the thrust of the hillside off of the structure and makes the use of logs cut on site possible, instead of massive amounts of concrete which most U-houses rely upon.
I reckon cordwood, straw bale or a PSP structure are about all that this family can afford. We're talking a building budget of about 10 grand for a home for a pretty big family.

Well, I imagine well be looking for land as soon as the snow melts this spring.
This winter we get to brainstorm and design the house.

Sheesh! Like I really need another project of this size!
Yet I just cannot help but get involved, building homesteads is so much fun!

It'll be interesting to see how it all works out. I'll keep ya all posted!

Have you looked at the pre-fabbed Steel structures you put together yourself? I think the smaller ones are very reasonably priced.

No, I haven't.
I imagine they would need to be built on a concrete pad or foundation - And then take considerable finishing work to turn it into a habitation, and finally, building inspectors would be all over it because it is a conventional structure.
I can't imagine the condensation in a steel structure in our cold enviorment.

Dig a hole in the ground and line it with polyetheline and wood, or pile up some straw bales, and the inspectors just get real real confused.

I reckon Cordwood, Strawbale or an underground PSP structure are top contenders.

A traditional log structure is a possibility, but would require a good deal of high quality timber.

Don't forget rammed earth for places that dont have the option of wood sources.

Ok! Now remember that this guy that Bob is talking about does not have a lot of time or very good skills in construction. He most likely will not have help from his family either. This needs to be a lone man job with occational help by friends or relitives. Something he can start in the spring and have it liveably by fall. Also remember that there are two adalts and seven children.

Bob and I have done the straw bale, pole building, and cord wood. I can't imagin nine people living in our little house, the cord wood took us two years to compleate, and the pole building is the barn still under construction after two years of work.

I have done strawbale construction and find it to be a nice alternative to conventional practices. Have been planning another addition for quite a while and have been looking at underground construction or at least a heck of a basement built into the hillside above my home. I guess basically I am concerned about natural and man made disasters which has hastened my efforts to build something practical that could survive most calamities. I have seen rammed earth constructions but was not impressed--I think I need to look at better models to see the possibilities. I am thinking along the lines of rasta block or some type of insulated concrete type building/basement. Oh well, gotta start acquiring the materials, my neighbor has a back hoe and crawler and I think I need a summer project.

I would love to make myself an underground place. In a few years I plan to dig out my hillside a bit and construct a small, half underground greenhouse. I have a very small dozer that might be able to do the job.

Brick back with a plastic see-through roof and as much glass as we can scrounge up. We have a place all picked out and everything.