Uncle Mud (aka Chris McClellan) raises free-range, organic children in suburban Ohio. He uses natural building as his soapbox to preach self-reliance and community empowerment. He can be found anywhere there is mud to play in.
Uncle will be speaking at the Pennsylvania, Kansas, Texas, North Carolina, Maryland, Oregon FairsWorkshops
Check It Out!
The No-Mortgage Natural Cottage
Before the Industrial Revolution our ancestors generally lived in small houses they built for themselves from local earth, stone, straw, and wood, mainly because the materials were cheap or free and didn't require a great deal of specialized skill. Today's houses might be bigger and more comfortable, but they're also often toxic and expensive. For all sorts of good reasons, basic DIY shelter is making a comeback. With a little guidance, almost anyone can still build their own home with low-cost natural and scrounged materials for less than $10,000 and opt out of the industrial building and mortgage rat race.
Green Building
Available In:
Pennsylvania, Sunday 3:30-4:30 p.m., Building and Energy Stage
Maryland, Saturday 3:30-4:30 p.m., Natural Building Demonstrations
Oregon, Sunday 3:30-4:30 p.m., Natural Building Demonstrations
The $25 Humanure Composting Toilet System
Almost half the water you use in your house gets flushed down the toilet, wasting water, energy, and valuable nutrients that could be going back into your garden. Uncle Mud shows how to build the safe, low-cost, and effective composting system laid out in Joe Jenkins' best-seller The Humanure Handbook. The same system has served Uncle Mud's household of seven for more than seven years. It's a good full-time solution, works great for cabins and camping, or can just be used in cases of emergency.
Green Building Renewable Energy
Available In:
Texas, Saturday 3:30-4:30 p.m., Natural Building Demonstrations
Making Cob: How to build with mud
Learn how the dirt under your backyard can be turned into beautiful buildings, benches, pizza ovens, and much more ... the possibilities are limited only by one's imagination! Be prepared to get muddy.
Modern Homesteading Green Building
Available In:
Pennsylvania, Friday 2:00-3:00 p.m., Building and Energy Stage
Kansas, Saturday 10:00-11:00 a.m., Building and Energy Stage
Texas, Saturday 10:00-11:00 a.m., Natural Building Demonstrations
North Carolina, Saturday 10:00-11:00 a.m., Natural Building Demonstrations
Maryland, Saturday 10:00-11:00 a.m., Natural Building Demonstrations
Oregon, Saturday 10:00-11:00 a.m., Natural Building Demonstrations
Kids Can Build with Sticks and Mud
Play in the mud with Uncle Mud and friends. Use clay, straw, and sticks to build little houses and sculpt beautiful objects from your wild imagination. This is a "hands in" workshop: hands and feet squishing and mixing and making a big mess. Talk about how we can use these same materials to build benches, ovens, and even houses. You can use the water at this workshop to wash off with, but be prepared to get dirty and have fun.
Kids Programming Green Building
Available In:
Pennsylvania, Saturday 2:00-3:00 p.m., Building and Energy Stage
Kansas, Saturday 11:30-12:30 p.m., Building and Energy Stage
Kids Can Build with Sticks and Mud
Play in the mud with Uncle Mud and friends. Use clay, straw, and sticks to build little houses and sculpt beautiful objects from your wild imagination. This is a "Hands In" workshop: hands and feet squishing and mixing and making a big mess. Talk about how we can use these same materials to build benches, ovens, and even houses. You can use the water at this workshop to wash off with, but be prepared to get dirty and have fun.
Kids Programming Green Building
Available In:
North Carolina, Sunday 1:00-1:30 p.m., Natural Building Demonstrations
Maryland, Saturday 11:30-12:30 p.m., Kids Treehouse Stage
Kids Can Build with Sticks and Mud
Play in the mud with Uncle Mud and friends. Use clay, straw, and sticks to build little houses and sculpt beautiful objects from your wild imagination. This is a "Hands In" workshop: hands and feet squishing and mixing and making a big mess. Talk about how we can use these same materials to build benches, ovens, and even houses. You can use the water at this workshop to wash off with, but be prepared to get dirty and have fun.
Kids Programming Green Building
Available In:
Pennsylvania, Friday 3:30-4:30 p.m., Building and Energy Stage
Kansas, Sunday 3:30-4:30 p.m., Building and Energy Stage
Earthen Plasters You Can Make at Home
Earthen artists and natural builders of Uncle Mud & Family teach how to make gorgeous colored earth plasters and sculpted elements and apply them to your walls.
Green Building
Available In:
Texas, Sunday 3:30-4:30 p.m., Natural Building Demonstrations
Maryland, Sunday 3:30-4:30 p.m., Natural Building Demonstrations
DIY Composting Toilet and Bin
Almost half the water you use in your house gets flushed down the toilet, wasting water, energy, and valuable nutrients that could be going back into your garden. To be truly sustainable, we need to recycle everything. We also need to compost all organic materials, such as food scraps and yard waste, returning the nutrients to the Earth. That includes humanure, the nutrient-rich excretions human societies produce in massive quantities each and every day. Dan Chiras and Chris "Uncle Mud" McClellan show how to build a safe, low-cost, odor-free, and highly effective humanure composting system, consisting of a sawdust toilet and compost bin. This system works well in homes, cabins, cottages, and even camping spots. It can also be used in emergencies. (For extra insight, be sure to catch Chiras’ "The Scoop on Poop" workshop Sunday morning.)
Modern Homesteading Green Building
Available In:
Pennsylvania, Sunday 11:30-12:30 p.m., Building and Energy Stage
Kansas, Sunday 11:30-12:30 p.m., Building and Energy Stage
North Carolina, Sunday 2:00-3:00 p.m., Natural Building Demonstrations
Maryland, Sunday 11:30-12:30 p.m., Natural Building Demonstrations
Oregon, Sunday 11:30-12:30 p.m., Natural Building Demonstrations
Cheap Sturdy Buildings from Straw, Clay, and Pallets
Come see how straw, an agricultural waste product, gets and wood pallets can be turned into a low cost, beautiful, eco-friendly, highly insulated wall that keeps your house comfy winter and summer.
Green Building
Available In:
Kansas, Saturday 2:00-3:00 p.m., Building and Energy Stage
Texas, Sunday 11:30-12:30 p.m., Natural Building Demonstrations
Cheap Sturdy Buildings from Straw and Clay
See how straw, an agricultural waste product, and sandy clay soil can be turned into a low-cost, beautiful, eco-friendly, highly insulated wall that keeps your house comfy winter and summer.
Modern Homesteading Green Building
Available In:
Pennsylvania, Saturday 10:00-11:00 a.m., Building and Energy Stage
Building with Straw Bales
Get muddy and see how straw bales can be used for a low-cost, beautiful, eco-friendly, highly insulated construction.
Green Building
Available In:
Texas, Saturday 11:30-12:30 p.m., Natural Building Demonstrations
Maryland, Saturday 2:00-3:00 p.m., Natural Building Demonstrations
Oregon, Saturday 11:30-12:30 p.m., Natural Building Demonstrations
Build Your Own Wood-Fired Pizza Oven from Dirt
Help turn a pile of mud into a wood-fired pizza oven! See how easy it is to do this in your own backyard. Be prepared to get muddy.
Real Foods Green Building
Available In:
Pennsylvania, Friday 5:00-6:00 p.m., Building and Energy Stage
Kansas, Saturday 5:00-6:00 p.m., Building and Energy Stage
Texas, Saturday 5:00-6:00 p.m., Natural Building Demonstrations
North Carolina, Saturday 5:00-6:00 p.m., Natural Building Demonstrations
Maryland, Saturday 5:00-6:00 p.m., Natural Building Demonstrations
Oregon, Saturday 5:00-6:00 p.m., Natural Building Demonstrations
Build a Rocket Mass Heater
See how you can turn a pile of old bricks and mud into a super-efficient woodburning heater for your house or cabin.
Green Building Renewable Energy
Available In:
Pennsylvania, Saturday 5:00-6:00 p.m., Building and Energy Stage
Kansas, Sunday 2:00-3:00 p.m., Building and Energy Stage
Texas, Sunday 10:00-11:00 a.m., Natural Building Demonstrations
North Carolina, Sunday 11:30-12:30 p.m., Natural Building Demonstrations
Maryland, Sunday 2:00-3:00 p.m., Natural Building Demonstrations
Oregon, Sunday 2:00-3:00 p.m., Natural Building Demonstrations