Cordwood Building

Rob Roy has been building, researching and teaching about cordwood masonry for four decades. Widely recognized as a world leading authority on cordwood construction, Rob started Earthwood Building School in 1981 to train builders in the latest cordwood building methods. He has authored and edited a dozen books on alternative and natural building including the first edition of Cordwood Building, Timber Framing for the Rest of Us and Earth-Sheltered Houses. Rob has also presented four videos, including two about cordwood masonry and has taught cordwood masonry all over the world.

By far the most comprehensive book ever written on cordwood construction. Fact-filled, richly illustrated, and full of experience-based advice, this is the only book you’ll need if you are interested in this planet-friendly, simple, low cost, and artistic construction technique.—Lloyd Kahn, author of the Shelter Series of Building Books, including Shelter, Home Work, and Tiny HomesCordwood Building hits the proverbial nail on the head with its thorough investigation of this sustainable practice. Rich in hands-on practicality, replete with attractive case studies and loaded with eye-catching photos, the reader is invited inside the pages, to have a look-around. This tome should be on the must read list for anyone contemplating cordwood construction.—Richard Flatau, author, Cordwood Construction Best Practices and Director at Cordwood Construction ResourcesAs keeper of the cordwood masonry flame, Rob Roy has devoted his 40-year career to the conscientious evolution of this unique building method. Champion of the owner-builder and defender of dollar-wise construction, his careful documentation of step-by-step procedure, user-friendly formulas, and ongoing development in the field combine to make this revised and updated edition an invaluable reference for the curious and serious alike.—Richard Freudenberger, Resource Manager at Living Web Farms and former Publisher of BackHome Magazine. I wholeheartedly recommend this new edition of Rob Roy’s classic book on Cordwood Building, which I consider to be one of the foremost techniques for furthering the cause of sustainable architecture. Not only do the results look naturally gorgeous, but the walls provide good insulation and thermal mass, without the need for further treatment once they are assembled. Couple this with the fact that the building process is easily learned and utilizes marginal wood unsuitable for other construction, and you have an outstanding system that is fully explained in Rob Roy’s comprehensive book.—Kelly Hart, founder, greenhomebuilding.comIf anybody knows cordwood, it’s Rob Roy, who’s been at the center of this expanding movement for more than two decades, experimenting, innovating and living within his creations. His comprehensive, practical guide Cordwood Building explores the nitty gritty of cordwood “how to”, lessons learned, and innovations like cob mortar, paper-enhanced mortar, and bottle ends. A traditional building method for more than a millennium, modern cordwoodhomes pass building codes and introduce building science to the “hobbit way of building”, and Rob Roy’s in depth book addresses air infiltration, vapor barriers, discussions of mass and insulation, and even electrical wiring. Practical and thrifty, Cordwood Building is on the cutting edge of “mortgage free” thinking, inspiring do-it-yourself tiny homes that utilize affordable materials, and offer a beautiful aesthetic.—Catherine Wanek, author/photographer, The Hybrid House, co-editor, The Art of Natural Building, and co-founder of Builders Without Borders