Bamboo the evergreen potential
As a young carpenter from Switzerland Marcel Morokutti never imagined he would be building houses out of bamboo in Australia.
Fast forward thirty years later and Marcel is not only building bamboo houses, but he can also build one in five weeks.
Marcel is the E-Adobe founder and director and has created MOROBLOCK, designed and engineered using interlocking bamboo blocks to build a new era of homes.
Now you might be thinking how can you build a house out of bamboo? The process of how you connect the MOROBLOCK is a bit like that other Scandi standout: Lego.
Each piece locks into place without the use of nails or screws, just a little bit of glue.
Marcel has often used bamboo in and around his own home, from swinging bridges joining lofts, to guttering. This was all sourced from large clumping species growing near his home in Seaforth.
It was a trip to Vanuatu in 2014, that further inspired Marcel to examine the product as a construction material.
Within a month of returning from Vanuatu, Marcel had the idea of constructing a ‘bamboo block’ using bamboo planks and began experimenting using plywood initially. He then purchased four packets of bamboo flooring planks from the local hardware store and began testing his product with weight, including driving over a set of bamboo blocks with his Skid Steer Loader. To his surprise, they didn’t break.
“The lightbulb moment was about seven years ago - I just had a brain fart and it started from there,” he joked.
“When I started, I used old joinery methods, such as dovetail and tongue and groove. I knew bamboo was strong, but I didn’t know how strong. I wanted to have a product that was sustainable, fast growing and very strong and hard and I went to bamboo, and it worked perfectly.
Marcel said it took him two years to make his idea a reality, then visiting China to source material as per his specifications.
“I got the product laminated a certain way and I got a pallet, came back to Australia, I made my test walls, and got them tested at the Cyclone Testing Station at James Cook University. It took some time to get everything approved and engineered, then after that, it all came together really quick.”
He said the Cyclone Testing Station, tested two MOROBLOCK walls, and the results surpassed all expectations, including over and above category five[KP1] cyclone rating.
Part of Marcel’s motivation is to create a product that is sustainable and environmentally friendly.
“I am about creating something better for the environment and something that will be better for our kids and their kids.
“Yes, I did have some moments where I was frustrated but it was more about the politics and getting things approved.
“With some people you have to show them really, really what thinking out of the square looks like and how things can be done differently. That was not very easy.”
At present Marcel is in the process of building a few tiny homes, or cabins as he likes to call them across the region.
He has found more people are looking at alternative ways to build their homes and are making the decision to choose smaller homes.
“You don’t need a big mansion to be happy - with bamboo it is more affordable to build and environmentally friendly. But, if you want a big bamboo home, you can have that too.”
“My 10-year vision for E-Adobe is that there will be more homes built out of bamboo and we will have more products available. I have a great vision for the future.”
He said learning to have more patience has been his biggest learning curves as an early adopter.
“What I have learned is it is not always an easy way to come up with something new. I have had a lot of hurdles, you invest a lot of money, and you never will know if it will pay off. Keep on going and be consistent.
“Be patient and stick to it, don’t give up. It can and will happen. Find another way, sleep on it and you will find a way,” Marcel said.
To find out more about MOROBLOCK visit: https://e-abode.com/moroblock/
Bamboo fast facts
There are over 1,200 species of bamboo
This amazing plant can grow anywhere from the Himalaya’s to the desert, but it grows best in tropical and temperate environments and is very hardy, not needing pesticides or herbicides to grow well
It is a type of grass and is related to sugar cane
For every bamboo pole harvested, two or three new shoots are already growing
Most species maturing in 4-6 years
Can be harvested every year for 80 to 120 years
Bamboo is often labelled ‘the world’s most renewable material’ and is the fastest growing woody plant in the world
It can grow up to one metre in one day, and absorbs 35 times more carbon dioxide than trees as it grows 78 times faster
It produces 38% more oxygen than the same area planted with trees
It LOCKS UP carbon
It is an excellent repairer of damaged, poisoned or eroded soil