The Clancy Cardboard House

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The waxed produce boxes were turned into "siding" by opening each container, slitting it down its taped seam with a razor or sheetrock knife, and then cutting it along the creases to remove its flaps. The resulting 11 X 76-inch strip of waterproofed cardboard was stacked with the others and pressed with heavy weights until all its former corners had been flattened. The pieces of siding were then nailed with 1 X 2's in horizontal rows—from the bottom up—to the sides of the house. All corners were sealed with special "caps" cut from the produce boxes.

The Clancy cabin's roofing "shingles" were made much like its siding ... except that the flaps were cut from only one side of the waxed cartons. The remaining flaps were then folded under the lower edge of the cardboard shingles as they were stapled to the roof so that a fold, rather than a cut edge, would be exposed to the weather. Slots and joints were covered—as were the slots and joints on the walls—with strips of 15-pound tar paper that were glued in place with asphalt mastic. (Note: The steeper the pitch of the roof, the better it'll shed water and the longer it'll last.)

The roof of the Cardboard Cabin was sealed and waterproofed with two coats of asphalt roofing paint. A large brush was used and the first coating was liberally daubed into all cracks. A week later, when it had dried thoroughly, the second coat was applied in the same way. "If your roof is unshaded or you live in an area that has a long wet season," Dan says, "you might want to glue aluminum foil over the cardboard shingles with mastic. The foil will reflect heat and provide additional waterproofing."

A good quality oil-base sealer was used to seal the siding on the Clancy cabin ... followed by two coats of latex exterior paint. "If you're worried about the flammability of cardboard and you build a house like this," notes Dan, "you can spray the interior of the building with a fire retardant. A simple borax solution works well. Call your local fire district officials for recommendations."

All in all, the Clancy Cardboard Cabin cost only $62 . . . or 61¢ a square foot. Not bad for a pasteboard palace that has already withstood a full winter of California rain "without dripping a single drop".

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