Timothy Loraditch

I just happened upon this design recently on Permies.com and have just started reading about it.  I have already heard comments about arid climates being easier. One major issue I see is the lack of wood posts in Tucson AZ.  Trees do grow tall in Tucson.  I would need an alternate building material.  Also, the termites would eat up the posts before you would finish construction. Does anyone have any experience with these in the Sound West? Rammed earth wall are popular here.  Would they be a good alternative?

Additionally, sourcing recycled materials often results in a bit of a hodge podge design that may have strong environmental esthetics but low curb appeal.  I realize curb appeal is the not high on the goals of this design, but for this type of building construction to gain wider acceptance it needs to appeal to a larger audience.  

Thanks for the direction.  I started reading THE BOOK and understand a little bit more the issue.  The batch system might be a little more my speed.  I have a wood frame house that will need additional support.  Also on the Permie/Bezos scale, I am more of a moderate leaning to permie so I need something a little more formal looking.  I understand many of the designs I saw are test versions but to get this in the door I will need to work on aesthetics to fit in the more suburban southern New Hampshire style.  It's not just an aesthetic issue but a real estate resale issue as well. Are there any New Hampshire members out here with an RMH I can visit?  I did not see a way to search for that.

Is that Permie/Bezos scale really a thing?  If not it should be.

Thomas, you are correct in your understanding of my question.  Stepping back just a bit I spent the winter as I often do, staring at my wood stove and thinking about the heat going out the chimney.  I kept thinking about how to recover some of that heat before it leaves.  The addition of an additional compartment between the stove and the flue seemed like it would help.  I am not trying to create a rocket stove heater, just make what I have more efficient. Since I don't consider myself the sharpest knife in the drawer, I guessed someone here has already had the idea and tried it.

If that second chamber had more baffles and mass will that help?

I currently have an older but efficient wood stove to supplement our natural gas heat stove and electric baseboard heat systems. We are not ready for a Rocket mass heater right now.  However; has anyone experimented with adding the barrel burn chamber on top of an existing wood stove?  The idea would be to use the wood stove as is but increase burning efficiency using the same flue, making it a low impact rocket stove heater.  Currently, the flue exits the ceiling via a metal-bestos chimney.