Combining the techniques of the author's previous two classic books, CORDWOOD MASONRY HOMES and EARTHWOOD, plus a decade of new information, new lessons to avoid pitfalls, and new ideas, this book offers a complete update on this dynamic housebuilding method.

All you need to create beautiful buildings from sawmill left-overs--or even driftwood!

Cordwood construction - log-ends set in insulated mortar - is a versatile, economical, low-impact, and beautiful building method. Its durability and performance has been proven in beautiful, centuries-old buildings in North America and Europe. Yet until now, there has been no trusted, practical guide to cordwood construction using the material in a wide variety of construction projects. Distilling decades of experience and best practices, Essential Cordwood Building is the first fully illustrated, step-by-step guide to cordwood building. Ideal for the DIYer and professional designer and builder alike, it covers: Wood species selection, log-end length, and seasoning Cement, lime putty, and cob mortar options Wall cavity insulation options Budgeting and estimating Highly illustrated, step-by-step building techniques Window and door frame installation Pointing and chinking, finishing, and plastering Special designs and decorative features Code references, compliance, building science, and best practices Troubleshooting and maintenance

Dreamers, owner-builders, natural and sustainable building contractors, modern homesteaders Cordwood construction - log-ends set in insulated mortar - is a versatile, economical, low-impact, and beautiful building method. And while cordwood construction’s durability and performance has been proven in beautiful, centuries-old buildings in North America and Europe, there has been no trusted, practical and comprehensive book on cordwood construction methods using cordwood in a wide variety of cordwood masonry construction projects. Distilling decades of experience, best practices, and innovations in cordwood construction, Essential Cordwood Building is the first fully illustrated, step-by-step comprehensive book on cordwood construction. Ideal for the DIYer, professional designer, and builder alike, this comprehensive book on cordwood construction covers: Wood species selection, log-end length, and seasoning New mortar options such as cement, lime putty, and cob mortar Wall cavity insulation options Budgeting and estimating for your cordwood construction Highly illustrated, step-by-step cordwood masonry construction methods and techniques Window and door frame installation Painting and chinking, finishing, and plastering your cordwood construction Special designs and decorative features Code references, code compliance, building science, and best practices for cordwood masonry construction methods Troubleshooting and maintenance. Written by the world's leading sustainable builders, designers, and engineers, these succinct, user-friendly handbooks are indispensable tools for any project where accurate and reliable information is key to success. GET THE ESSENTIALS! Rob Roy is widely recognized as a world leading authority on cordwood masonry construction methods. Rob has authored and edited 15 books including Cordwood Building and Stoneview . He lives in West Chazy, New York.

“A surprise best-seller which, apparently, has the power to turn even the most feeble of us into axe-wielding lumberjacks.” —Independent The latest Scandinavian publishing phenomenon is not a Stieg Larsson-like thriller; it’s a book about chopping, stacking, and burning wood that has sold more than 200,000 copies in Norway and Sweden and has been a fixture on the bestseller lists there for more than a year. Norwegian Wood provides useful advice on the rustic hows and whys of taking care of your heating needs, but it’s also a thoughtful attempt to understand man’s age-old predilection for stacking wood and passion for open fires. An intriguing window into the exoticism of Scandinavian culture, the book also features enough inherently interesting facts and anecdotes and inspired prose to make it universally appealing. The U.S. edition is a fully updated version of the Norwegian original, and includes an appendix of U.S.-based resources and contacts. “A how-to guide as well as a celebration of wood—its scent, its variability, and the way it can connect modern life to simpler times . . . You don’t need to have a wood-burning stove or fireplace to be captivated by the craft and lore surrounding a Stone Age method of creating heat.” —The Boston Globe “The book has spread like wildfire.” —Daily Mail “A how-to book with poetry at its heart.” —The Times Literary Supplement

All those of us without traditional skills need to know to build with timber framing Many natural building methods rely upon the use of post and beam frame structures that are then in-filled with straw, cob, cordwood, or more conventional wall materials. But traditional timber framing employs the use of finely crafted jointing and wooden pegs, requiring a high degree of craftsmanship and training, as well as much time and expense. However, there is another way... Timber Framing for the Rest of Us describes the timber framing methods used by most contractors, farmers, and owner-builders, methods that use modern metal fasteners, special screws, and common sense building principles to accomplish the same goal in much less time. And while there are many good books on traditional timber framing, this is the first to describe in depth these more common fastening methods. The book includes everything an owner-builder needs to know about building strong and beautiful structural frames from heavy timbers, including: the historical background of timber framing crucial design and structural considerations procuring timbers-including different woods, and recycled materials foundations, roofs, and in-filling consdierations the common fasteners. A detailed case study of a timber frame project from start to finish completes this practical and comprehensive guide, along with a useful appendix of span tables and a bibliography. Highly illustrated, this book enables 'the rest of us' to build like the professionals and will appeal to owner-builders, contractors and architects alike.