Rammed Tire Foundation Piers

[mdcrinos]

Well as the title says lol... Does anyone have experience using filled tires as foundation post? I have seen some awesome strawbale homes built on a solid tire base and have long admired the earthships I've seen built mostly with a tire structure.

I am in what my ex called the "pondering stage" of a small shed project, 12x20 or smaller and am thinking of replacing the traditional cinder block post with a stone and gravel rammed tire post. Seems more stable with the additional width on both the ground and structure.

[offtheradar]

Basically there's nothing wrong with using the tires as a form for the rammed earth design. I would mix something in the soil as a dry mix before putting into the tire. One concern I would have is how high you would go with the tire foundation. You would need something to resist racking of the load. This could be in the form of a 4x4 pt post sunk into the ground and connected to the structure. The weight of the structure would rest on the tires but the 4x's would resist movement to the side (wind load, etc.). The higher you go the more resistance to racking you will need.

[Txanne]

Originally Posted by mdcrinos

Well as the title says lol... Does anyone have experience using filled tires as foundation post? I have seen some awesome strawbale homes built on a solid tire base and have long admired the earthships I've seen built mostly with a tire structure.

I am in what my ex called the "pondering stage" of a small shed project, 12x20 or smaller and am thinking of replacing the traditional cinder block post with a stone and gravel rammed tire post. Seems more stable with the additional width on both the ground and structure.

Sounds like an excellent idea--BUT---check codes.
We had a long time poster here that did that and built his round house on them---it cost him jail time and all he had while he fought the county powers that be.
He had to move out of state---part of a court decision.

Just saying---it was something about leaching tires into the soil and other silly things.
He also had used them to terrace his hilly property.

Makes sense to use up and re purpose tires but you never know how the powers that be will treat you or let you.

[Bearfootfarm]

a small shed project, 12x20 or smaller

For a buildng that small you don't really need much of a foundation.

Straw bale structures are staked to the ground with rebar.

I assume you're planning a wood framed shed, in which case I'd use a concrete footing and cinderblocks for a foundation, or if your goal is simply to raise it above grade, pour concrete piers instead of a full foundation

Then attach the framework with anchor bolts

[ArmySGT.]

Originally Posted by mdcrinos

Well as the title says lol... Does anyone have experience using filled tires as foundation post? I have seen some awesome strawbale homes built on a solid tire base and have long admired the earthships I've seen built mostly with a tire structure.

I am in what my ex called the "pondering stage" of a small shed project, 12x20 or smaller and am thinking of replacing the traditional cinder block post with a stone and gravel rammed tire post. Seems more stable with the additional width on both the ground and structure.

Tires work because these are interlocked with one another as stacked bricks with the earthen hillside behind. That stabilizes the rammed earth tire on three sides. Assuming you are drawing this idea from Earthships.

As a pier, the tires would be one a top another without the earth to brace. The tires would have nothing to bind them together except the earth inside, making them probably exceptional at a compression load and dangerously unstable to any side loads.

You would need a post or something inside anyway.

Concrete form tubes and sackrete are cheap and much less labor than rammed earth tires.

[Tim Horton]

I have seen, helped build, maintain stacked and filled tire side berms between shooting lanes at several shooting ranges...

I'm sure you could use a structure like that to support a shed above ground level...

I'm not sure how you would do stable posts/pillars above ground without concrete foundations and concrete posts involved...

Good luck

[offgridbob]

Two words , Labor intensive

[mdcrinos]

Originally Posted by offgridbob

Two words , Labor intensive

That is going to be as much a factor as anything lol

I have found a donor/stash of cinder blocks which stacks much easier