Wonderful post Slurryguy. Lots of things there for me to consider.
Starting with the last point first, having something to offer
the local community is really where my "vision" if you like started.
Some wise person said once, that the trouble with being poor is not
so much that you have nothing, but that you have nothing to give.
Working on what exactly, its another idea that I have up my
sleeve....Partly I think we will be learning a lot about sustainable
building methods and then we will have some practical skills and
information to pass on. I am thinking my local council might want to
be in on the "green" aspect of this, they rather like to be seen to
be involved in such things while not necessarily doing much, heh.
My friends out there have a relationship with the local
community that currently consists of a combination of begging and/or
selling (big issue homeless magazine). It is far from ideal
obviously but I think I know how to improve on that.
It is terrible having the ideas sometimes without the means to
achieve them. Working on that problem too, haha.
Regarding the power and drainage issues, I figure there would
need to be access to some kind of community building already on this
land that I need, with toilets and a dining hall and washrooms etc.
For one thing there would need to be some residential support staff
working in different capacities, they would need rooms. Many of the
homeless already have social problems or mental health issues, and
it would make sense to have some skilled care around the place. I am
sure it will be a lot cheaper for the council to pay for this kind
of thing than to waste millions of pounds watching their housing
schemes and support systems fail, as they do all too often.
Fireproofing and waterproofing on the dwellings is a bit of a
worry. I would think that papercrete recipes have to be tailored to
suit the climate to an extent. Here we have a lot of rain. Makes the
spuds grow but then the blight comes, along with other mould spores,
so maybe I need an eco friendly fungicide? Is there such a thing?
Sure am enjoying the opportunity to tell you about all this.
I realize this project is going to be hard and I am touched that you
have spent so much time on here helping me to see a few important
issues that I might not have considered.
I hear you about the hygeine thing. It could all go pear shaped so
easily without some good rules in place. Much as I hate rules
personally, bit of an old hippy here, I see the dare-I-say-
it "beauty" of introducing a little appropriate structure of that
kind into such unstructured lives: it is a question of foundational
security.
We are going to be building from scratch in more ways than
one.
Many thanks for your time!
Love, Mary
--- In papercreters@yahoogroups.com, "slurryguy" <slurryguy@...>
wrote:
>
> Welcome to the group Mary.
>
> I'm confident that there are several people in the UK working with
> papercrete, but I haven't been able to track down any specific
> projects yet. If anyone knows of one, please let me know.
>
> Your efforts to create a better living environment for others is a
> worthy goal. Papercrete can very possibly play an important role
in
> accomplishing what you are describing. The project you are
proposing
> will not be easy.
>
> You asked for thoughts, here are a few.
>
> Flamability:
> For the project you describe, I anticipate the greatest potential
> hazard will be fire. I encourage you to consider this factor in
> every aspect of your proposed project. Improvised cooking stoves,
> heating stoves, and candles will likely be far more common than in
> more traditional structures. Proper ventilation of the structure
and
> using non-flammable materials wherever possible would make sense.
> Come up with a mix recipe that will not support smoldering. The
less
> city infrastructure there is at the building site, the more
important
> fire resistance will become. If there is limited plumbing or
water
> available to fight any potential fires, you'll need to build
> something far more fire resistant than any typical home in order
to
> be safe.
>
> Equipment:
> Building and powering a mixer may be very difficult for many
people
> in the situation you describe. Perhaps you have better
imagination
> than I do, but the only practical solution I can think of is for
> someone to provide a loaner mixer for people to use. Such a mixer
> will need to be built extremely ruggedly. It will undoubtedly
absorb
> a lot more punishment than a typical mixer. Look around at photos
on
> this site and others around the web. Almost every mixer looks
like
> it has had a hard life once it has been used a few times. Imagine
> what such a mixer might endure if it wasn't built by the
> owner/operator who is more likely to take care of it. If you
build
> yours like a tank it might last long enough to accomplish
something
> worthwhile.
>
> Legal issues:
> I have NO idea about the laws in the UK. I find it difficult to
> imagine any urban area openly embracing anything that might get
> labeled a "shanty town." Don't misunderstand, it won't be
important
> whether that accurately describes what you want to build or not,
and
> I'm not passing judgement on your project. If the authorities
think,
> or even feel, anything that THEY PERCEIVE is moving in that
> direction, you can expect strong resistance, no matter how
honorable
> your motives are. You can most assuredly expect some portion
> of "concerned citizens" or "nosey neighbors" to voice complaints
no
> matter how well designed the project is. I'm not saying this is
> right or fair. It's simple reality, and you'll need to be
prepared
> with the proper responses, in verbal form, in action form, and in
> legal form. If the papercrete process and structures "appear" to
be
> haphazardly built this will enhance complaints and other
problems.
> If you can make your papercrete efforts blend in with the
surrounding
> architecture, you'll have better relations with the surrounding
> population.
>
> Services:
> Where will residents get food, water, power, and other services?
> Will they be able to call for emergency police or medical
assistance?
> Have you considered waste removal? I can almost guarantee you
that a
> clean site will be embraced by your city and surrounding community
> far more easily than a trashfilled one. Don't dare allow a passer
by
> to smell anything bad even one time. The gossip and word on the
> street will brand the project instantly.
>
> Community:
> I encourage you to think beyond simple shelter and more about
> building a community. Having a place to sleep is important, but
it's
> not enough. If the community can serve an important function in
the
> community beyond taking people off the street it will stand far
> better chances for success. If all citizens can view the new
> community as something that provides a valuable service to the
city
> and not as a drain on society it will help everyone, especially
the
> residents. If they see themselves making a contribution it
> undoubtedly will improve their own outlook as well.
>
> I'm sure there are many other issues to consider than what I have
> mentioned, but perhaps this will give you a little more food for
> thought.
>
> I wish you well.
>
> --- In papercreters@yahoogroups.com, Mary Lloyd <mary@> wrote:
> >
> > Hello, "slurryguy", pleased to meet you, I gather you started
the
> group.
> > I was hoping someone might acknowledge my post or welcome
me
> or
> > something. I usually do that on my own groups so that people
feel
> > relaxed enough to share.
> > Anyway, the reason I am getting interested in papercrete
> and
> > other sustainable building stuff is because I have a larger
project
> at
> > the back of my mind that at some point will need to be started.
> > I have for some years worked with the homeless here in
the
> UK. It
> > is clear to me that there is no point shoving homeless people
into
> a
> > flat and expecting them to "do normal": hold down a job, pay the
> bills,
> > feed themselves, get along with neighbours etc.....when they
have
> lived
> > "off grid" for so long. It just doesn't work and is a waste of
> money and
> > resources that could be better spent elsewhere.
> > Now my idea is to persuade the government to give me some
> land
> > and a minimum allowance, so that I could get a few of my
homeless
> > friends to build their own small dwellings and live there, as a
> stepping
> > stone back into normal productive life. Obviously not all of
them
> could
> > cope with even that, but from what I know of the street, there
are
> > enough people who would recognize this as a sensible solution
their
> own
> > problem that they would be willing and skilled enough to give it
a
> go.
> > The sculpture in my garden will teach me a few things
about
> > building in a way that doesn't impact the surroundings except
> > aesthetically: if we put up horrible little hovels and live like
> tramps,
> > obviously we are asking for trouble. But if what we build is
> pleasing to
> > the eye and contributes to the look of the environment, while at
> the
> > same time providing the basis for the caring community that my
> friends
> > out there so badly need, we are on a winner. We would grow our
own
> food too.
> > On the subject of papercrete, I have a lot of paper and
> access to
> > more which I am shredding and using in my experiments. I have a
> lovely
> > area under a tree and surrounded by shrubs, which has a natural
> dome
> > overhead. The reason I wanted flexible papercrete is to sculpt a
> roof
> > shape without having to break even a twig, so that the roof
> undulates
> > naturally, and can be camouflaged or decorated suitably. I
thought
> I
> > would try lightly mixing paper with enough cement and fine
> aggregate to
> > give some strength, but also with some waste paint to give
> flexibility
> > and waterproofing. I want to set it in sheets and cut it to
size.
> Once
> > it is up, I will plaster the inside with a more suitable
product,
> > haven't even thought of that yet, some kind of earth plaster.
> > I was mixing some shredded paper with barbecue ash and
it
> > makes a lovely "mud" that I might use in the walls. It needs
some
> > additives obviously or it will fall apart as soon as the rain
> starts. I
> > am resisting the idea of permanence because these dwellings will
> not be
> > that: when they have achieved their objective they can be
> dismantled
> > leaving no permanent scar. But they do need to be warm,
waterproof
> and
> > safe enough to be lived in through such extremes as we
experience
> in our
> > British climate.
> > If anyone has any thoughts that might help me, please
> pass em on!
> > Blessings
> > Mary Lloyd
>
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