Homes made from Plastic Bottles + Greenhouses, too!




plastic bottle house



plastic bottle house



plastic bottle house
Eco-Tec's Ecoparque El Zamorano, Honduras.
Ecological House: Constructed with 8,000 bottles with composting toilets and a solar water heating system. The green roof can weigh 30 tons when wet and has been supported by the walls without any extra reinforcement. It is the first house in the world made from PET bottles without using cement in the walls.



plastic bottle house
The same home seen from the inside. For design effect some bottles were left slightly exposed. Above the door the tops of the bottles face in, the bottoms face outside -- see second photo above. www.eco-tecnologia.com




plastic bottle house
Eco-Tec's Casa de la Fe.
Used vehicle wheel rims make up the foundation and some of the pillars.




plastic bottle house
Casa de la Fe (Faith House) Honduran Foundation for the Rehabilitation and Integration of the Handicapped. The texture of the outside surface depends on which way the bottles face. www.eco-tecnologia.com




plastic bottle house
Eco Tec's Sky Field House under construction.




plastic bottle house
Eco Tec's Sky Field House: The first vaulted ceiling using PET bottles.
All Eco-tec projects have a strong social focus. Most of the PET bottles used are recovered in clean-up campaigns and recycling drives. The community then fills them with sand. They train the unemployed and handicapped in their construction methods. They build water tanks, schools, community centers, urban benches as well as homes. Andreas Froese, Eco-Tec's inventor hopes to also build some PET homes in Haiti utilizing construction debris. Most of the PET bottles used are recovered in clean-up campaigns and recycling drives. www.eco-tecnologia.com




plastic bottle house
An Eco-Tec home in Bolivia. PET bottle bottoms on the left.
Wine bottle bottoms on the right.

plastic bottle house
This home in Bolivia incorporates lots of wine bottles as well as PET bottles. Here they used concrete pillars instead of PET columns. See more Eco-Tec construction photos at bottom of page.




plastic bottle house
Eco-Tec Africa - solving Nigeria's housing shortage. www.ecotec-africa.com & www.physorg.com




plastic bottle house
Eco-Tec Africa - solving Nigeria's housing shortage. www.ecotec-africa.com & www.physorg.com

plastic bottle construction
Taiwan's plastic bottle building -- EcoARK Exhibition Hall.
Not just a bottle picked off the street. Polli-Brick from Hymini is made from recycled PET bottles. The building can be disassembled and then reassembled elsewhere. Looks like that might take a bit of time though as the building is 85 meters long (279 feet).

plastic bottle construction
Polli's self interlocking plastic bricks are translucent thereby allowing the play of natural light to shine through. The manufacturers add they are good thermal and sound insulators and can withstand hurricane force winds. No BPA, but wish they could make the fireproof backing curtain for walls out of something other than PVC. Can be used for walls, greenhouses, roofs, etc... www.miniwiz.com




plastic bottle construction
Inside -- optional LED lights fit inside the bottles...Reuter's Photo, www.miniwiz.com





plastic bottle house
Ecological Bottle House, near the Iguazu Falls, Misiones, Argentina.
Alfredo Santa Cruz and his family built this house and matching play house out of used plastic bottles, Tetra Packs and CD cases. They used 1200 PET plastic bottles for the walls, 1300 milk and wine Tetra Pack boxes for the roof, 140 CD cases for the doors and windows, plus 320 PET bottles for the furniture. www.sites.google.com

plastic bottle house
200 PET bottles hold up the bed.




Photo credit: Xinhua/Martin Zabala
Love the bottle cap curtains!





plastic bottle house
The family will instruct anyone who is up for a visit, or if you pay for their travel expenses, they will come to you. www.sites.google.com





Water bottle wall in Danone office, Tokyo.

Great idea as partitions in an office!




Water bottle wall
The Morimoto Restaurant's bottle wall in NYC is composed of 17,400 half liter plastic bottles filled with mineral water and then backlit with LED lights.




Water bottle wall
The wall is two stories high.

plastic bottle greenhouse
Back outside...





Plastic bottle greenhouse on Blue Rock Station, Ohio...bluerockstation.com (info below*) This one sits on old tires and is made from 1000 2-liter plastic soft drink bottles. Flickr photo by ticticticticboom





Plastic bottle greenhouses are all the rage in Europe. Picasa-Cudlees.





Plastic Bottle Greenhouse
Owlsoup Photo on Flickr




Plastic Bottle Greenhouse




Photo by bryanilona on Flickr





A Danish plastic bottle shed. Flickr photo By christof



*********************

More Eco-Tec Plastic Bottle Construction Photos...



Plastic Bottle Construction
Eco-Tec in Uganda.





Plastic Bottle Construction
Sand.



Plastic Bottle Construction
Cement.




Plastic Bottle Construction
Adobe.




Plastic Bottle Construction
Eco-Tec in Bolivia

Plastic Bottle Construction
Eco-Tec builds many cisterns/water tanks...




Plastic Bottle Construction
How to make an arch...






A painted wall.





Eco-Tec's aquaduct...

Plastic Bottle House

 

References, Further Info and How To:

• Eco-Tec's website www.eco-tecnologia.com
• Eco-Tec How to booklet: docs.google.com
  Eco-Tec Frequently Asked Questions: www.eco-tec-solutions.com
  Eco-Tec Africa: www.ecotec-africa.com
  See Eco-Tec's proposal to train Haitians to re-build their infrastructure.  www.scribd.com
  
• Hug it Forward Bottle School Wiki: bottleschools.org
  
  *Blue Rock Station in Ohio sells an illustrated booklet on
  How to Build a Plastic Bottle Greenhouse here: bluerockstation.com
  The Warmkes also give alternate building workshops on their farm in Ohio.
  
  Instructions on how to build your own greenhouse.  www.squidoo.com

A Pdf "How to Build a Plastic Bottle Greenhouse" from REAP Scotland:
www.reapscotland.org.uk

See also the Plastic Bottle Schools page for different construction methods...
www.inspirationgreen.com/plastic-bottle-schools







According to Time Magazine, the U.S. produced 28 million tons of plastic waste in 2005-- 27 million tons of which ended up in landfills. www.time.com

Nevada Division of Environmental Protection (www.nevadarecycles.gov)
gives degradation times in a landfill as follows:

Tin can 80-100 years
Aluminum can 200-500 years
Plastic 6-pack rings 450 years
Plastic jug 1 million years!
Styrofoam cup Unknown? Forever?
Glass bottle Unknown? Forever?

Of course, the figures above are not accurate as they will change upon conditions present. We (in our lifetime) will never know how long today's petroleum-based plastic bottles take to break down in the environment.


Did you know, that many new 'eco' polyester pillows are stuffed with shredded plastic bottles? keetsa.com
 
 

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Showing comments 1 to 50 of 264 | Next | Last

Caroline Abbott
Posts: 264

Bottle buildings
Reply #264 on : Wed May 08, 2013, 09:11:55

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Absolutely amazing use of a product that is treated with such disrespect!
I once went to a conference about the plastic industry, where they were discussing the masses of money, that went into the technology to make plastic bottles.

I said that sometime in the future whew will be retrieving the plastic from landfill , as it will eventually be a valuable resource, once oil reverses have run out!
Why do we leave it to the last minute to do the right things in life?

Linda Headford
Posts: 264

Recycled or new?
Reply #263 on : Sun April 28, 2013, 03:03:14

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This is a fantastic idea as long as the bottles are recycled and not new. I notice there's a classroom which says it's made from 9,000 bottles supplied by Pepsi. It doesn't say if these are recycled. If not then it sort of defeats the object of reducing waste

Helene
Posts: 264

How to Start Raw Food Diet Plan
Reply #262 on : Sat April 20, 2013, 05:40:41

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This post is absolutely amazing - I try to use plastic bottles in my garden recycling, mostly for borders, but this has given me so many more ideas - thanks!

Teresa Thorpe
Posts: 264

Re: Plastic Bottle Homes
Reply #261 on : Fri April 05, 2013, 19:16:10

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This project is totally awesome. I was just looking with my ten year old daughter of earth day project ideas that we could use recycled water bottles for. We will not be making a building but she has learned what is being done with bottles and providing housing for homeless. Kudos!!!!

vineet
Posts: 264

knowing more about these construction
Reply #260 on : Fri March 08, 2013, 19:05:41

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sir , as i have selected this as my project that is use of these solid waste in construction of houses for slum, rural , and urban areas ... can u help me in suggesting some ideas .. so that an economical .. and maximum use of solid waste can be made out ..
and one more thing double story and triple story construction is possible using these solid waste ..
it will be a pleasure for me if i get some help frm u sir ...

China Mike
Posts: 264

want to make one too!
Reply #259 on : Sun February 24, 2013, 21:17:04

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buying some property up in Colorado in another year. Going to build me a bottle house, green house, maybe a big cisturn too. With the thick walls, it will insulate against the cold snow and winter in Colorado I think. Especially if I build it down a few feet into the ground.

rhoda
Posts: 264

good ideas
Reply #258 on : Sun February 24, 2013, 07:05:53

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Thanks for this inspirational website. I`m living in town , but I like all the ideas.

Keiren
Posts: 264

To Rosario
Reply #257 on : Thu February 21, 2013, 08:12:20

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Hi Rosario,

Nice that you and your students are so eager to help the planet.

I must admit it is very hard to help when I cannot see (nor experience) your environment. But I guess you are asking about a base for the plastic bottles. Yes, cement would be good.

Here are four helpful sites:

http://bottleschools.org/wiki/Main_Page
http://www.peacecorps.gov/resources/media/medstories/1572/
Eco-Tec How to booklet: docs.google.com
Eco-Tec Frequently Asked Questions: www.eco-tec-solutions.com

I hope that helps and you find enough info on these pages to get you going.

Rosario Vásquez
Posts: 264

Help
Reply #256 on : Wed February 20, 2013, 15:53:16

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I am very motivated in building a place to plant herbs and vegetables with my students of high-school, actually they are very happy, and they have lots of fun working together to save our planet. But I'm not an expert, I need help. I do not know how to start, because I'm using the school terrace which obviously is made of cement. I think to use cement and sand to make the base. What do you think? Please reply.

Ian Chalmers
Posts: 264

Greenbuild
Reply #255 on : Tue February 19, 2013, 15:54:09

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Could you send some designs ? Great Eco tech luv it

Maya
Posts: 264

About plastic bottle
Reply #254 on : Mon February 18, 2013, 20:53:37

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The idea of using plastic bottle to build house is great we need to put more effort on it so that our people and the world as a whole can benefit from it thank you

Kath Johnston
Posts: 264

empty drink bottles
Reply #253 on : Sun February 10, 2013, 21:06:00

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What an awesome site. I have sat looking through this with great excitement. Bottled water is such a neccessary commodity in some of these countries, and to see the empty bottles put to such worthwhile use, is amazing. I am thinking of ways to use them in my garden as small features, or wind breaks, or shade areas. I could go on and on. This is amazing. Thank you for sharing.

Pauline Cory
Posts: 264

Inspirational
Reply #252 on : Thu February 07, 2013, 13:13:24

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Thanks for this inspirational website. My friend Nicola Peel has helped lots of communities build bottle buildings by filling the empty plastic bottles with rubbish - uses up bottles and gets rid of the rubbish (which also creates greater thermal mass) which otherwise just pollutes the countryside. I will send her a link to you, in case she hasn't seen your wonderful photos.

Razi
Posts: 264

Great work
Reply #251 on : Thu February 07, 2013, 05:37:52

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Good on you for coming up with so much diversity in using recycle materials. Hard work but definitely worth the effort especially in these hard economic times.
Well done and keep up the good work.

Manjunatha Reddy
Posts: 264

Great Idea
Reply #250 on : Wed February 06, 2013, 00:27:29

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Its a very great idea

Saalik
Posts: 264

Force Change
Reply #249 on : Tue February 05, 2013, 18:09:34

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What a great idea. I wish local authorities could be forced to allow this style of construction instead of all their caveats on colours, style, materials etc. These authorities need a good kick in the backside to look into this use of plentiful 'rubbish'.
Love it...

Marc
Posts: 264

question about building process
Reply #248 on : Mon January 21, 2013, 15:20:52

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I had a question I hope you could help me with, actually 2 questions please. 1.) what is used to pack in the gaps after the wall is built? is it mortar or cement? Also can trash bottle bricks also be used or is there a reason they have to be filled with sand? I am going to build a shed using this method for a first project and any advice would be great. Thanks for your time, Marc.

Keiren
Posts: 264

The foundation
Reply #247 on : Wed January 16, 2013, 09:43:13

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I personally just put together blog posts and do not build these buildings, so I am not an expert.

But do check out Eco-tec's How to Booklet, link above.

Also look here: http://bottleschools.org/wiki/Main_Page - see foundations.

Or write to eco-tec themselves, as they have built hundreds of these buildings.

I would think the foundation would be dependent on what you have available in your local. Stones, cement, tires or digging down and using the bottles and mortar.

Hopefully you will find an answer. Best, Keiren

Shweta C Shah
Posts: 264

Plastic bottle House
Reply #246 on : Tue January 15, 2013, 04:30:52

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Mail Me Detail for Foundation And More details for it.

Shweta Chandrashekar Shah
Posts: 264

Bottle House
Reply #245 on : Sat January 12, 2013, 06:43:04

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Please Mail Me Detail Information About Foundation For Same structure and More detail of it . Please
Can we build Ground + more floors with this type of structure?

shweta shah
Posts: 264

Bottel structure
Reply #244 on : Mon January 07, 2013, 07:26:27

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please give us detail information about foundation for same structure. and any special details for it.

Dr. Feroz Faruque
Posts: 264

Plastic Bottle Building Construction
Reply #243 on : Wed January 02, 2013, 02:31:49

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How many storied building can be made by plastic bottles?

Kyleene
Posts: 264

green house
Reply #242 on : Sun December 30, 2012, 10:06:44

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would like to see a tutorial on how to build the green house and where to collect bottles for the project. I live in north central Florida and this would be grate for this area.

Rebecca Fornell
Posts: 264

pop bottles
Reply #241 on : Sat December 29, 2012, 22:43:37

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I love the idea of recycling anything. This idea is fabulous plus it has a cool look to it. On the opposite end I say STOP drinking the stuff that comes in the 2LT bottle as it is very bad for you.

Penny Freeman
Posts: 264

Wow!
Reply #240 on : Sat December 22, 2012, 12:22:02

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Wow! Wow! Wow! Very inspirational. I'm going to make the bottletop 'bead' curtains rather than throw them in the recycling.

John Vert
Posts: 264

Re: Plastic Bottle Homes
Reply #239 on : Fri December 14, 2012, 08:46:44

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I love this sooo much

Patricia Hoffman
Posts: 264

Re: Plastic Bottle Homes
Reply #238 on : Wed December 12, 2012, 20:49:27

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Very inspirational! Thank you for making a difference!

BC
Posts: 264

Re: Plastic Bottle Homes
Reply #237 on : Tue December 11, 2012, 18:32:56

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wow! cool!

abbas khan
Posts: 264

regarding house
Reply #236 on : Sun December 09, 2012, 02:23:19

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dear sir if this bottle full by water so this is
working we wank strong room made by bottle
& looking nice like fancy room.

mrudula
Posts: 264

Re: Plastic Bottle Homes
Reply #235 on : Sat December 08, 2012, 04:42:26

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it's awesome,amazing,lovly..etc..,

christina aarts
Posts: 264

Towards a green Lamu Island
Reply #234 on : Sat November 24, 2012, 04:30:50

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Very inspirational! We will build our next shamba house of bottles for sure. And the pools - seem amazingly smart.

Keiren
Posts: 264

To Steve
Reply #233 on : Wed November 21, 2012, 12:39:32

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I think you might have to fill them with some type of mud cement. If you filled them with sand they would not support weight and cave in here and there. Same as to the foundation you embed them in, some type of earthen cement....

Good luck! Hope it comes out fantastic!

steve bentall
Posts: 264

Milk Bottles
Reply #232 on : Thu November 15, 2012, 10:49:23

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I live in the UK and an trying to think of a way to recycle the plastic milk bottles as a floor in the shed I am wanting to make out of pallets.
I an wondering what to fill them with, needs to be free or very cheap.
The plan is to stand them upside down, not sure what I am doing after that. Hoping it will provide some insulation.
Any thoughts and ideas would be great.

Daisy
Posts: 264

advice please
Reply #231 on : Fri October 26, 2012, 16:20:22

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Hi, i have been trying to help a family in Sierra Leone build a sustainable house and garden, i have persuaded them that a bottle house is the way to go but could use a little help with some questions that have come up... like, how do you make the foundations? do you have to use cement, or can you use mud? and if you use a wood frame how is this made stable is it cemented in the ground or fixed down to cement footings? Any help would be gratefully received. Thanks Daisy

sanjeewa padmal holoday blog author
Posts: 264

save nature
Reply #230 on : Mon October 22, 2012, 13:06:01

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Excellent creative ideas to save the nature

Ken Lewis
Posts: 264

EpilepsyKorps would like to introduce site
Reply #229 on : Wed October 17, 2012, 09:14:07

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I'm putting together a book called Epilepsy Korps and I'm
organizing people with Epilepsy globally to introduce new green technologies. I'd like to use your website for one to visit in my book. Please email me with your response.

Maurilio Rico
Posts: 264

College Student
Reply #228 on : Fri October 12, 2012, 19:02:19

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Hello,
My name is Maurilio Rico and I first want to say that this is an amazing idea to create architecture. But I also want to say if you create a structure with only water bottles exposed to sunlight do you think it's going to be really hot inside of the structure? I'm saying this because I also want to create something similar to this for a competition.
Thank you.

cécile
Posts: 264

eco building plstk bottles
Reply #227 on : Mon October 01, 2012, 17:38:12

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i love the pics of eco tek plastic buildings and other bottle ideas...the cisterne is great!
how beautiful the results can be!
Thank you!

Suzy
Posts: 264

Re: Plastic Bottle Homes
Reply #226 on : Fri September 21, 2012, 09:04:31

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I think this is absolutely inspiring.. #Thanks.. I'm going to experiment.
Question.. wouldnt the plastic degrade and crack when put under such pressure or in concrete??

rodd
Posts: 264

Guatemala plastic bottle construction
Reply #225 on : Sat September 01, 2012, 20:14:43

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greetings. 2 yrs ago, in a small village on Lago (Lake) Atilan in the western highlands, I met a young American couple volunteering for an organization erecting buildings (houses, schools) from plastic bottles. I don't have the info, (the name of the organization with me at this time) but it was very interesting.

jackie blue
Posts: 264

Walls from bottles
Reply #224 on : Wed August 29, 2012, 18:45:12

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I think it's absolutely the best creative idea i've seen in a long time, great job i just love the pictures…….

Anonymous
Posts: 264

@ Jenny
Reply #223 on : Fri July 27, 2012, 11:25:27

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Hi Jenny, I suppose it depends on what the use of the structure will be. In certain U.S. states it would be very difficult to acquire a building permit for a home for this type of structure. But for a shed or greenhouse you do not need a permit, unless you live in a neighborhood with specific covenants against them. Kudos to you as to being involved with Habitat, it such a great organization. I hope you get to build something!

Jenny
Posts: 264

Re: Plastic Bottle Homes
Reply #222 on : Wed July 25, 2012, 08:39:44

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Is this project possible in New England? I'm a college student, president of Habitat for Humanity on our campus, and I would like to build a small structure using these techniques on our campus.

Wietze
Posts: 264

huisje....
Reply #221 on : Mon July 16, 2012, 12:21:21

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Zou dit een oplossing zijn voor onze grootste wens??? XXX

Ninajb
Posts: 264

out gassing?
Reply #220 on : Wed June 27, 2012, 08:19:00

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What about out gassing (of BPA)? Has that been considered and how have you dealt with it? I love your work, just want to know if/how you've handled this problem- thx

irene
Posts: 264

Recycling plastic/glass bottles
Reply #219 on : Wed June 27, 2012, 00:55:22

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Brilliant & impressive ideas/projects!

Anonymous
Posts: 264

Re: Plastic Bottle Homes
Reply #218 on : Tue June 26, 2012, 20:56:03

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Wonderul!

dianna
Posts: 264

bottle; green house
Reply #217 on : Tue June 26, 2012, 18:05:33

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i think this is a great idea. i would like to make 1 for my patio. i'm 58 and having trouble moving around and i so miss having a garden. this is going to make my life a lot easier. how would i start my my mini green house. i don't own so i would like to take it with me.? t/u

Portia Manlapaz Mendez
Posts: 264

Very Productive
Reply #216 on : Tue June 12, 2012, 17:56:00

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This is cool, I enjoyed looking at these beautiful structures made of bottles which we usually not paying attention at all. I thank God for inspiring the people who started doing this great ideas. God bless you all.

Nathan momin
Posts: 264

Great concept
Reply #215 on : Fri June 01, 2012, 03:13:45

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I like this idea.It's terrific to see how people in different regions are using waste materails.and thereby turning it to a more eco friendly use.Love the houses.I am very interested in the concept.Garbage is aplenty,it is how you incorporate it into ur/our lives.Good work to those people.Genius.

Showing comments 1 to 50 of 264 | Next | Last