Earthbag Building Materials and Prices
The cost of building with earthbags varies. Here is a “middle of the road” cost estimate that assumes you’ll buy the major items but also take time to shop around.
Material | Quantity | Cost (US$) |
Polypropylene bags | 500 | $75 |
Road base | 45 cubic yds. | $75 |
Gravel | 3 tons | $15 |
Four-point barbed wire | 400 feet | $25 |
Plaster mesh | 17 sq. yds. | $10 |
Lime plaster/sand | 7 bags | $35 |
Door, frame and hardware | 1 | $35 |
Nails | 2 lbs. | $5 |
6 mil plastic 2 – 12-by-32 ft. | 768 sq. ft. | $20 |
Bitumen sealer | 1 quart | $5 |
Total | | $300 |
(Backfill material not shown, because site conditions will vary.)
Read more about earthbag building and learn how to build your own earthbag structure in Low-cost Multipurpose Minibuilding Made with Earthbags.
