How they met?
In the late seventies Wim and Manfred where working for the N.S.W. Government in Sydney. Wim was the Catering Manager at the State Office Block and Manfred’s boss. Manfred was working in the store and as a waiter. Because they where “Europeans” amongst all of those Aussies they held straight away together. Although, they where not always liked, Wim because he tried to bring some new ideas that his boss didn’t like and Manfred because he didn’t give the chief-cook enough wine every day.
Out of this working relation, a friendship after work was build between them. And they found out that they have almost the same world-view. This view also shared Wim`s wife Sonja.
They were interested in alternative ways to live.

How it started?
Wim had bought some land in the area from Campbelltown. Wedderburn.
And the seed was laid, to build a house completely from resources found on this land.
There was:
A lot of wood, by a little forest on the land
Lot of open space
And the most of all a dam or pond with water and the bank over all the years was build clay.
Spiders and Snakes
A lot of sun
There was not:
Enough rain
A shelter
Soil or ground were you can “grow” something
Electricity and water
Wim and Sonja had contacted an architect they knew (Ry) to talk with him, if that project is possible or not and to get a building permission.
Everything at that time was going really fast. Ry liked the idea and made a plan. He wanted for fees the same amount per hour what Wim gets per hour work.
The plan to build was accepted from the council and we were ready to build.
And we had found out about other things:
Sod-roofs
Perma culture
Wind energy
All about water
And and and…….
We were seeing other places were people live alternatively.

It became seriously
First we three had to get somewhere to live. At first we thought about getting an old double Decker-bus. In our heads was already a beautiful old bus with sleeping upstairs and café-bar downstairs. Manfred to live there permanent. But the reality was different. A Double- Decker bus was too expensive and there were very little to buy. So, we have had decided to buy a caravan.
We bought that caravan from a Swedish guy in Sydney.
Then we placed it near the place were we would build the mud brick house.
The place was already surveyed through Ry.
That was the last thing we saw of him.

The start
Then we started. Wim brought his old  run-out VW 1500 Fliessheck to the land with a trailer on the back so we could transport things from A. to B. The ways on the land were too long to carry by hand.
A friend welded us two forms out of sheet-metal were we could form the mud-bricks.
We bought a wheelbarrow; gum Boots; shovels; plastic sheets;
Anyhow, we worked like he haven’t had done anything else before. It was hard work and we got easily tired. Manfred used to sleep in the wheelbarrow. No one of us was working heavy physically at work. Wim had a new important job building up a new food-school in Ryde, Sonja was working for the immigration department and Manfred at the Royal North Shore Hospital.  We came only over the weekend to make mud bricks and slept in the caravan. We counted the mud-bricks we made while making a stroke for each one on the caravans wall. Sometimes Wim and Manfred drove the way within the week to “turn” the stones especially before it rained.
We all moved together in Wim and Sonja’s flat in Artarmon.
Because we liked the work in the mud we called each other “the Mudpigs”.

How to make the mud bricks?
The clay was dug up from the sides of the dam.
The mud was mixed with our feed on a part especially laid out with a plastic sheet.
After it had a smooth consistency it was mixed with a little straw.
It was filled in the forms. One form was for the cornerstones the other for the bricks, we needed more bricks.
For the foundation, some bricks had to be enriched with cement, because it needed a bit more stability, and we had to proof the consistent of the bricks
 The brick were lying on plastic sheets; because we found out they were easier to turn over when they were tried from the sun and the heat.
Usually it took 4 weeks to get them try.
We stapled them near the building site and covered them with plastic sheet.

It was a great time!
The house was build. After almost 2 years of preparing it. The mud brick were laid one on top of each other and the house grew, a water tank was build and the house was used as a kitchen.
The Roof became a sod roof. Wim tried to grow plants on it. That was it!
But how it is in reality: it does not always stay the same. Everything is changing. Sometimes people make the wrong decision. And you try to go your own way, but after a time you realise you took the wrong turn.
Manfred was doing some studies in Sydney and he met that girl. But this girl didn’t fit the group. She had other ideas. Although we were all tolerant and everything, it just didn’t work out. The group split. Later on Wim and Sonja parted.
But we all have had a great intensive time, nobody will ever miss. It was an important part of our life, a highlight.
Now you should hear Wims story how it went on with the house.
After all these years Manfred and Wim (both back in Europe) met again.
Let’s see what happens

 

14.11.2005 Wim added
After Manfred and Sonja left the team I was left with a partially completed house and I was faced with a point of no return.
I had met a local artist painter named Fred who did build his own alternative unique style of house in the bush as well.
Fred did have a lot of knowledge of building construction and proofed to be invaluable in assisting and advising me at various stages in the building project
Fred also was a part- time art teacher and was therefore in contact with Art students who on the whole were very interested in alternative building
Methods.
At various stages during the construction period of the project, he asked the students to join us for a working session, it was for them a
Challenge an interesting experience to be able to see that you can construct a house which looks interesting and does not cost a fortune by
Simply using earth as a main component to build with!   In other words (dirt cheap!!)
Besides mud bricks we did also use rocks or stone which was laying on the land, this was used for building some walls inside and outside, if you use
Solid stone walls (meaning 1 stone which is the front and back of the wall) all stone need to be of the same thickness must have at least
Two straight sides in order to build a strong wall!
One side of the octagon construction was fitted with enormous glass sheets which were salvaged from a building demolition side!  The glass
Was 10 mm thick    1800mm in height and 2500 mm long, it made an interesting feature to the octagon construction!
Floors were covered with slate from India and terra cotta tiles in various areas.
The octagon floor was covered with cypress pine flooring boards tong and groove. Cypress pine was used because they are white ant resistant! An
Important detail for that part of the world!
Talking about white ants when I was laying paves around the house.  I left accidentally a piece of timber lying in the sand.
When I returned after about 10 days the white ants had already gutted out tunnels throughout the entire piece! If I had left there for another three
Weeks or so, the piece would have been consumed by the ants.