New Southern Illinois Cordwood build!

Heya folks!  

After years of agonizing over what type of place to build, it seems that cordwood building suits the location, the yearly temp changes and available materials better than anything else.  We've got 50 acres in Southern Illinois and have started the process!

It's going to be a long haul, but we're getting as much of the family involved as possible to get us all a sense of accomplishment and togetherness. Here are some photos of us starting with the first few trees...

Ill be posting plans other info as we get it together.   Please feel free to ask questions or give us some advice. We're new to home building but are very adept at picking this type of stuff up.

The area will have south facing roof with a cliff line to the north and east.   It's an amazing piece of property that I feel grateful to have gotten.

I had a short-term job working on a place made that way when I was around the age that most of the people in the pics look to be.  Unfortunately, this house was somewhat distant from where I was living, so I did not get to know the owners very well — and I lost track of the place after my job ended and before the roof was finished.  But I enjoyed the work.

I've got a real good story to tell, as well.  We know a couple in their mid 80s who built a cordwood place in their very early 40s, with nice layout & architecture.  They lived in it until last year when some physical challenges in their lives forced them to put their beautiful place with beautiful productive gardens up for sale, and they've moved into the nearby town.  They found the cordwood place easy to heat and fairly easy to maintain.  I used to love visiting them there.

More power to ya. 👍

So as a byproduct of our business we have TONS of hdpe plastic shavings.  They’re light and fluffy.
Could they be used as the insulation instead of sawdust/lime?