Randy Eggert

Rapidobe is a technique developed by Vela Creations. Posts are set where you want your wall and connected with a beam on top. If it were a free-standing wall, there would be two parallel lines of posts, which are tied together at the top to keep them from being stretched apart by the infilled earth. Since mine is a retaining wall, the posts tops are tied to the base of the outside wall with steel cables. A mesh to hold the plaster is run along the interior of the wall (I use chicken wire) and then a strong tarp is run inside the mesh (I use a recycled billboard sheet). The tarp must cover the bottom and run part way up the other side; when the earth infill is added, the weight keeps the tarp from slipping out. Four or five inches of damp earth is poured into the wall and tamped well. This continues until you reach the top. The tarp bulges out between posts, but this is part of the effect. Finally, the outside is plastered.