Rural Crafts/Homes

When carpenter Spike Carlsen and his wife set out with their recently blended family of five kids to build a cabin on the north shore of Lake Superior, they quickly realized that painting, parenting, and putting up drywall all come with both frustrations and unexpected rewards. Part building guide and part memoir, Cabin Lessons tells the wryly funny, heartwarming story of their eventful journey -- from buying an unforgiving plot of land on an eroding cliff to (finally) enjoying the lakeside hideaway of their dreams.

The only how-to manual on the subject directed to mainstream owner-builders

An earth-sheltered, earth-roofed home has the least impact upon the land of all housing styles, leaving almost zero footprint on the planet.

Earth-Sheltered Houses is a practical guide for those who want to build their own underground home at moderate cost. It describes the benefits of sheltering a home with earth, including the added comfort and energy efficiency from the moderating influence of the earth on the home's temperature-keeping it warm in the winter and cool in the summer-low maintenance, and the protection against fire, sound, earthquake and storm afforded by the earth. Extra benefits from adding an earth or other living roof option include greater longevity of the roof substrate, fine aesthetics, and environmental harmony.

The book covers all of the various construction techniques involved including details on planning, excavation, footings, floor, walls, framing, roofing, waterproofing, insulation and drainage. Specific methods appropriate for the inexperienced owner-builder are a particular focus and include:

The time-tested, easy-to-learn construction techniques described in Earth-Sheltered Houses will enable readers to embark upon their own building projects with confidence, backed up by a comprehensive resources section that lists all the latest products such as waterproofing membranes, types of rigid insulation and drainage products that will protect the building against water damage and heat loss.

Ignorance is bliss only until reality barges in!

Real disasters - floods, fires, tornadoes, hurricanes, chemical spills - occur every year. Prepper's Guide to Natural Disasters skips the hype and hysteria of less likely, apocalyptic scenarios and helps you understand, prepare for, and survive real threats to your family and home - events that affect hundreds of thousands of people every year.

The Prepper's Guide to Natural Disasters helps you assess the real threats in your part of the country, then provides clear, detailed solutions to help you prepare for, survive and recover from the most common natural disasters, including floods, earthquakes, chemical releases, wildfires, winter storms, tornadoes, tech failures, economic collapse/civil unrest, terrorism, nuclear disasters, and pandemics.