Understanding CA Building Codes in Relation to Building with Natural Materials
What are my options for rebuilding with natural building methods?
This is the question my inbox is flooded with right now. I am also hearing a lot of people saying that rebuilding with Natural Building methods is illegal in LA. This is not true! Is it easy or accessible? Unfortunately not (YET).
I am going to try to give a breakdown of the current state of the codes and how one would go about rebuilding in LA with natural materials. I don’t claim to be an expert on this, but don’t see anyone else compiling this information, so I’ll give it a try and do my best. Please reach out if you find errors or have anything to add, and I will update it.
What is Natural Building?
Natural Building involves a range of building systems and techniques that prioritize the use of minimally processed, locally available, abundant and renewable materials. Natural building walls systems are going to look different depending on where you are in the world, who is building the structure, and what the needs are of the building once it is done.