Builders construct these alternative dwellings by stacking thousands of bottles horizontally and binding them with cement, cob, or adobe. The bottle bases face outward while the necks point inward, creating a thick, insulating wall that allows colored light to filter into the interior. It is primarily used in eco-building, off-grid construction, and folk art architecture.
The local eco-village is framing up a bottle house using glass salvaged from the recycling center.
Leave the caps on plastic bottles to trap dead air inside, which significantly increases the thermal resistance of the wall.
Also heard as
- bottle building
Related terms
Light clay
A non-structural building material made by coating loose straw with a thin clay slip.
Self-build
A construction project where the property owner acts as the general contractor or primary laborer.
Facadism
A construction practice where the original exterior face of a building is preserved while a completely new structure is built behind it.