cordwood buildings

To build without making a negative impact on the environment: this is an aim for us .....but how can it be done?

A possible answer came when we discovered the American Cordwood style of buildings.

Cord wood is lengths of timber.

We have stands of trees that are in the wrong place that need to be removed so that we can create something more interesting and diverse for the environment. The timber has little value and there is only so much of it we can use or store. We also have endless sand as the land we are building on is Sherwood Forest sand.

In cordwood buildings, the lengths of sawn wood are laid with circular ends (untreated) running from outside to inside. Gaps are filled with mortar, clay or whatever is available.

There is much we need to learn about, but this picture shows that it is essentially a simple timber frame with the irregular size and shape of the timber used adding to the aesthetics.

We need to construct outbuildings and garages ourselves.

This looks to be a simple solution to our problem and one we need to find much more about.

If you know any more, let me know.