Unconventionally Amazing!

Hundreds in Nigeria are traveling from afar to check out the new type of walls being built in and around the village of Yelwa. So far more than 20 homes are sprouting out with a clever and inexpensive construction material; Recycled Plastic Bottles!

Stronger than you think

plastic bottle housing

Cost effective + eco-friendly

Each plastic bottle is filled with dry soil and is later compacted with a stick to form a sort of ‘brick’ that can be laid side by side and on top of each other.

This “bottle brick” technology started nine years ago in India, South and Central America, providing a cost-effective, environmentally-friendly alternative to conventional building bricks.

The “bottle bricks” are also bullet-proof

The beauty of this unconventional construction is that of it’s surprisingly good insulation. The scorching heat from the sun is a constant problem with existing structures but all the sand inside these bottles provide very ideal insulation for its occupants.

Soon for rent

These houses which will soon be available to rent, are being built on an estate with land donated by a Greek businessman and environmentalist.It takes approximately 7,800 plastic bottles to create a 3 room structure that includes one bedroom, a living room, bathroom, toilet and kitchen.

“In Nigeria millions of plastic bottles are dumped into waterways and landfill each year causing pollution, erosion, irrigation blockages, and health problems. Bottle houses take this dangerous waste out of the environment and make it useful,” the environmental blog Eco Nigeria wrote earlier this year as the construction was in progress.

Next up: A 220,000-bottle school.