Hobbit dugout house. DIY hobbit house

The buildings 23.06.2020
The buildings

Those who watched the film "The Lord of the Rings" remember the charming hobbit houses and, probably, everyone did not arbitrarily have a desire to live in such a place. Let not constantly, let it be for a short time, for example - on vacation or during a vacation. In this article, I would like to invite you to make a trip to Wales, to visit a family who built a dwelling very similar to a hobbit house with their own hands.

Sorry, the map is temporarily unavailable

Wales on Google maps. I did not find the exact coordinates of the house.

Meet the Simon Dale family.

Simon Dale is not a builder or a carpenter, but it was he, along with his father, who built this house with his own hands. “This house was built by me and my father. Although not without the help of our friends and acquaintances. Its construction took us three months, however, we worked tirelessly. It cost us 3,000 pounds (that's $ 5,000 or 150 thousand rubles), which, you see, is not much at all. But it turned out to be a real hobbit house. And now, having settled here, we are truly happy!” - exclaims the freshly baked "hobbit".

Only natural materials were used for the construction. And the project was completed, mind you, in just three months. This is much less than the time it takes to complete the construction of a new apartment in our modern high-rise buildings.

When building a house, there are no special secrets: they simply made the most of the available advantages of the landscape. The pit was dug just in the hill. Soil and stone from the pit were used in the construction of the foundation and supporting walls. The wood needed for the construction was taken from the forest growing in the area, and straw was used to insulate the floor, roof and walls. The tools that were used in the construction of the house are also the simplest: a chainsaw - one, a hammer - two and a chisel - three.

Those who are interested in the details can familiarize themselves with the sketch of the architectural project:

this is the foundation:

this is the frame construction:

note that the frame of the house is made of oak:

The walls of the house "breathe" as lime plaster was used.

For heating the house, a fireplace is used, the fire in which is bred, of course, with firewood. The chimney is made in such a way that, passing through a large stone, it heats it up, and then the stone heats the house for a long time, giving off heat.

There is also a natural refrigerator in the house. As you probably already guessed, it is always a cold cellar. The temperature is the same here both in winter and summer. For all the needs of the house, water is used from a nearby source. Solar panels are used for electrical appliances and for home lighting. During the daytime, light enters the house through a dome on the roof of the house, made of glass. Candles are used as alternative lighting in the evening and at night. In my opinion - and beautiful, and adds romance))).

This is the view from the second floor balcony:

And this is what the house looks like from the east:

So who wants to get into a fairy tale: "Welcome ..."

It should be noted that Simon's family uses their "hobbit house" mainly in the summer. So we go to summer cottages.

Simon claims that no one specifically sought the similarity of the house with the habitat of fantastic creatures from the film. Moreover, the fact of "similarity" was established after the house had already been "commissioned".

Thanks to the media, the fact of "similarity" received wide, I would say - world publicity))). And an inexhaustible stream of tourists reached for Simon's house. It was this that inspired him to put the construction of "hobbit dwellings" on an "industrial basis". Today, more than a dozen houses of various sizes have already been built. And those wishing to buy or live in such exotic houses turned out to be not so few. Therefore, things went uphill for Sayman. It should be noted that other "enthusiasts" of environmentally friendly life did not fail to take advantage of such popularity of "hobbit dwellings". Now in Wales there are even peculiar clubs of "builders without cement". For the sake of truth, it should be noted that all subsequent houses do not look like the house from the movie, although they have more amenities inside. By the way, you can not only live in the houses, but also take part in their construction. Simon invites everyone to participate.

This is how the entrance to another house built by Simon looks like. On the left is the greenhouse:

And this is the same house from the inside. The windows overlook the greenhouse, which saves energy.

Well, that's about all. I will only note that in our area, if you want to live in an environmentally friendly house, it does not make sense to dig a dugout. Unless you are a fan of the very process of digging))). It is enough for us to simply drive a hundred kilometers from any city - there are many empty village houses waiting for us there. The choice is great, no need to strain (((.

By the way, the “hobbit house” has a personal website (English): (install the Google toolbar to translate the site into Russian)

And finally, you can see what Simon looks like in the video. And if you know English, then listen to an interview with him.


Modern architects are transforming the homes of little Lord of the Rings characters into a themed hotel, a farm, an inflatable dome, and a toy mock-up with a map of Middle-earth, a miniature library, and beer in an authentic container. This review features ten charming underground houses that look like a hobbit mink.

Futuristic eco apartments Binishells- project Nika Bini (Nick Bini). The designer borrowed the construction technology of the “mink” from his architect father. Dante Bini (Dante Bini) has developed a dome-shaped structure that can literally be inflated to the desired size (maximum diameter is 36.5 m). The base is built from alternating cement and polymeric materials, after which the voids between the layers are pumped with air. You can learn more about the hobbit mink from the future on the company's website. Binishells.


"Dug" inside the hill dune house from William Morgan (William Morgan) is a real underground townhouse, decorated in the Art Nouveau style and at the same time in the spirit of The Lord of the Rings. The modern "mink" duplex is located in Atlantic Beach (Florida, USA). “When I open the door, I want to see the ocean, not the neighbor’s house,” said William in an interview for Wall Street Journal.


Most can be seen in the village of Lammas ECO (West Wells). Simon(Simon) and Jasmine Dale (Jasmine Dale) built the house on their own, spending 4 months and $4425.


The property is much larger than it appears from the outside. In addition to the minimum "kitchen-bedroom-hall", the layout includes an extensive pantry, two guest rooms and a study.


An entire hobbit-style eco-village has been created in Switzerland. AT swiss cluster there are both very small and spacious seven-room “minks”. From a distance, these nine houses look like ordinary hills.


Another Swiss hobbit house designed by SeARCH and Christian Muller Architects, with all the desire you can’t call it a “mink”. After all, a full-sized two-story cottage with all modern amenities is equipped on a hill.


Located on the territory Alexander Family Farm. Merino sheep now live here, who do not mind the lack of furniture and other amenities.


Hobbit Minks from The Lord of the Rings

But in mini Hobbit Home from Maddie Chambers (Maddie Chambers) the situation corresponds to that shown in the film. It took the miniaturist 720 hours to design, "build" and decorate the toy house. A long-time fan of the epic saga, Maddie took the trouble to sew tiny clothes, draw a map of Middle-earth, make a copy of Frodo's notes, recreate Bilbo's library and even the exact label on a bottle of hobbit beer.


The guests of New Zealand still have the opportunity to "be hobbits". waiting for tourists woodlyn park(Severny Island). Fortunately for people who are far from being a meter tall, the height of the ceiling in the rooms here allows you to walk without bending over three deaths.


Modern variation of the hobbit dwelling is presented in the conceptual design "Stay Separate" (stay grounded). The authors of the idea are Italian creatives from Materica Studio. The supposed address of the semi-underground village is Ferrera, Italy. The advantages of houses of this type, in addition to environmental friendliness, the architects include the closeness of personal space emphasized in the name - the absence of windows in the elevated wall of the housing and the courtyard protected from prying eyes.


And hermits heading to Scotland have a chance to rent a cottage that fits into the landscape of this hilly region in every sense. A modernized secluded hobbit house is located on the island of South Uist.


The Hobbit House Bilbo Begins

The home of the Hobbit can always be recognized from afar due to the large round door. By the way, you can buy a metal door with installation. This strange and very nice structure is more like a beaver hole than a human house.
But not that hole, where the abundance of worms and the roots of neighboring trees stick out, but quite a comfortable, cozy hole with all amenities.

The Hobbit House: From fairy tale to reality

Almost 80 years have passed since the first memories of the dwelling of "Bilbo Begins" appeared in the manuscripts of the English inventor J. R. R. Tolkien.
Contrary to the nihilism of architects and art historians, the professor's bizarre buildings not only took root in world literature, but several decades later began to appear in our environment.
Attractiveness is the first thing that catches the eye of people who are tired of city bustle and exhaust gases.
Reminiscent of respect for nature, modern Hobbit homes are environmentally friendly and very comfortable. They have everything - heating, electricity, communications, bathrooms and even a security system, and their construction requires very little investment.
Tolkien fans have done everything to turn the fabulous "burrows" into luxurious apartments.

How is the Hobbit house different?

Over the past 10 years, most of the British and Americans have begun to build such structures for their children, as playgrounds.
Indeed, what could be better than a fairy tale in reality?

One of the first people who had the idea to build a Hobbit house was (designer) Ashley Yates from the UK in 2003.

According to Ashley, after the project was completed and it began to write about it in the newspapers, in just one week, more than 30 tourists called the editorial office willing to pay hundreds of dollars to spend the night in the green Burrow.

A few years later, Hobbit houses for children actively spread throughout the world.
We will now tell you about how to quickly bring to life one of the most fabulous projects of our time.

Do-it-yourself Hobbit house (in the country)

Due to the fact that do-it-yourself hobbit house it should turn out to be round, it is best to take a metal or concrete pipe as a basis, the cost of the latter is much more expensive, so the conclusions are obvious.
It's good when the metal pipe is corrugated.
The preferred length is 2 - 3 m.
Diameter 4.5 - 5 m.

To install the pipe, you need to clear a potential site for the house, and dig a small pit to a depth of 0.5 - 1 m. Install the pipe using a crane. Thus, the main part of the construction of the house can be said to be completed.

The next step is the embankment

Hobbit House (in the country)

The issue needs to be resolved at the expense of the earth dug under the foundation pit.
A rented mini-excavator will easily and quickly cope with the task in 30 - 60 minutes.
The surface of the pipe will eventually be completely dug into the ground, and the slide will get a rounded shape.
By the way, during the embankment (on both sides of the “entrance”), it is necessary to install temporary OSB walls so that the earth does not get inside the pipe.

Now Foundation

On both sides of the pipe, dig small recesses up to 0.5 - 0.6 m to install a strong concrete foundation.

To form the future entrance to the fabulous house, cut out the entrance form from the OSB plate and install it close to the pipe.

The porch is best made of cinder blocks, beams for the entrance itself are securely installed in them.

The seams between the OSB and the pipe are sealed with a building mixture, as a result we get a strong and stable structure.

And then the floor

The main installation work is completed, so the next stage of work is the finishing of the floor, walls, windows and doors. (fascinating, right?)
To fix the base of the floor to the pipe - use cement and a pair of cinder blocks (see photo).
Next, fix the beams, and slopes (slopes are attached diagonally, so as to prepare a flat and stable surface for the floor).
As a floor, it is best to use OSB boards. (Fix the plates with self-tapping screws and a screwdriver).

Lighting "Nora"

Candles and other stand-alone lighting systems are pointless and safe. Therefore, for maximum comfort of children, it is best to conduct an electrician in the Hobbit's house.

By the way, electricity can be brought from the house using a cable channel installed and buried in the ground.

The roof remains

Be sure to install a small decorated canopy over the porch to drain moisture during rains. It will help to waterproof the entrance to the "Nora" and get rid of the problems associated with dampness.

The most important thing is the door.

Door in do-it-yourself hobbit house, must be round.
The material is definitely wood.
The color is predominantly green.
We recommend using water-repellent paint for door painting.
You need to fasten the door to long forged curtains. Be sure to install a beautiful round handle. A small diamond-shaped window can also be provided in the door.

Interior decoration of the house

Divide the “Nora” space into 2 parts, you can even into 3 if it’s not a burden for you to work, and you would like to make a corridor and a cozy kitchenette near the door.
Sheathe the walls and ceiling with flexible wood panels, you can still glue the wallpaper.
On the back wall (on the other side of the pipe), pour the foundation, install cinder blocks and fix the OSB board. Here you need to install a beautiful window. As well as the door, it is best to order it from an experienced craftsman.
When the window is installed - securely seal all seams.

Only the hill remains

If you decide to take on this project, be sure to decorate the artificial hill outside. Otherwise, a better title than a dugout, do-it-yourself hobbit house will not wear.
To take root in the lawn - open the entire embankment with good fertile soil, and sow the grass.
If this seems too time-consuming and time-consuming process, we recommend laying out dug turf instead of grass. (The first time, be sure to water it with water, so it will quickly take root, and the natural bright result will come much faster).

By the way, inside do-it-yourself hobbit house it is always warm and cozy (you can spend the night even in cold autumn and spring), and in winter the slope can serve as an ideal slide for sledding.

Yes, yes, furniture

Wicker chairs, a table, a sofa, anything are perfect. For communication, the child can use a laptop (electricity is still present).
DIY Hobbit house and will justify any hopes and will last a long time.
As a child, a child will be able to play in it, as a teenager, go about their business, invite friends to visit and relax, and as an adult, there will be something to remember and praise their parents for.

How much will the hobbit house cost

Let's calculate how much it will cost do-it-yourself hobbit house, in Russia.
After all, if you have a suburban area, it will be very difficult to refuse this idea, just let the children know.

And so, the Corrugated pipe, the average cost of 1 m, in Russia is 1500 rubles. That is, if a luxurious fabulous room can occupy (3 - 4 m), at a price it will cost 45,000 - 60,000 rubles.
Truck crane services (up to 14 tons), cost about 1000 rubles per hour.
Soil with delivery (needed for embankment), 1 tone - 150 rubles.
10 sheets of OSB, 1 sheet - 500 rubles, respectively 5000 rubles.
1 kb / m of concrete will cost 3000 rubles.
Window and door under the order (approximately), from 6,000 to 10,000 rubles.

Furniture, beams, boards and artificial turf, in fact, are interchangeable things, not expensive and can be found in everyone who has a dacha. That is, the final cost of a solid house will cost about 80,000 Russian rubles (900 dollars). Plus or minus, own or hired labor.
That is, compared with modern prices for simple plastic houses, this is quite adequate money for a high-quality, reliable, and, most importantly, a cozy room.

On December 1, the premiere of The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies took place, completing the trilogy about the adventures of Bilbo Baggins and the 13 Dwarfs. On the screens of Russian cinemas, the picture will be released on December 11 this year. For fans of fantasy and adventure, we decided to make a selection of amazing buildings inspired by the works of John Tolkien.

The Hobbit Village scenes were filmed in the Matanama Hills in New Zealand. Today, these little houses have become a tourist attraction, as well as shelter for sheep from a nearby farm. The interiors were filmed in a film studio, so you are unlikely to find anything interesting inside the premises, but there is something to do in this place - you can go to the sheep farm and pet the lambs.






Briton Ollie Wotherspoon built a “hobbit hole” behind the family home in the garden for his children. The creation of housing based on the book of John Tolkien took 2 weeks and 4 thousand pounds. A wood-burning fireplace, carved furniture and a secret tunnel are dug into the ground by about 1.2 m. The height of the ceilings inside the hobbit house is almost 2 m.







Simon Dale from Wales erected a house that looked like a hobbit hole. The work cost only 3 thousand pounds and took about four months. The self-taught builder used only local natural materials, and also made some of the furniture with his own hands. The hobbit house is equipped with a stove, cellar and solar panels.









Steve Michaels created the Hobbit House Hotel in Montana. The author spent 410 thousand dollars on the construction of the hotel. The main house of 93 square meters is hidden in a hill at a depth of 9 meters. In addition, 8 hectares of property are equipped with a troll house, several small holes, as well as many sculptures and products.













Bilbo Baggins' home in the hobbit village is charmingly cozy, but unsuitable for adults. But the children will have a place to frolic and feel like in a magical world.

Architect Peter Archer designed a holiday home in Chester County, near Philadelphia, USA. A team of artisans have built a magical home inspired by The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit.







Specialists from Christian Muller Architects and SeARCH have created an unusual “hobbit house” with all the comforts of a modern home. In addition to the recreation area and the guest room, there is an underground tunnel in the room.





We can't deny that Hobbit houses are quite attractive - they look comfortable, compact. It has everything that brings a feeling of comfort and warmth. If you want to have something like this that reflects your childhood impressions and dreams of a fairytale house, but you feel it is impossible to realize this for a number of reasons, then look at houses that prove otherwise. And if you're ready to take action, then look what people have done to build their dream home! At the bottom of the article, watch a video about the real embodiment of such a fabulous home with your own hands.

Hobbit houses are environmentally friendly. You may not know, but they are built with sustainable building materials, which makes them exclusive and environmentally friendly. Stone and wood are the main raw materials used to build a solid foundation, to install a green roof, which creates a favorable environment in the house for both you and the ecosystem.

The construction of such a house is profitable

If one of the reasons not to decide on a Hobbit house is money, then you need to know that it is actually much cheaper to build than you think. Such a dwelling by enthusiast Simon Dale cost about $ 5,000 - a very reasonable cost compared to building a conventional house.

This allows you to have freedom in the design of each room. Like any other thing that you can invent for yourself, your project can be completely realized from your model.

Naturally, you will need to see a specialist to make sure the building is safe for you and your family, but that will be the only thing that can limit you in this way. They will offer you both a beautiful interior and a charming exterior. Unlike most buildings in Russia, the Hobbit House will allow you to make the exterior of your home as pleasing to the eye as the interior.

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