FINDING A SITE

Land

It is best if land is flat and elevated, but measures can be taken to build practically anywhere. Consult with local engineers, architects and masons about drainage requirements, retaining walls or other site- specific building needs.
Potential complications for a particular building site may not be easily apparent due to seasonal or annual differences in weather patterns, and other factors. Local people know the lay of the land and the impact that the seasons have on construction in their specific area; rely on their input.

Title

In order to avoid future complications, make sure that the construction site is not privately owned. It is best if the land is community-owned or owned by the school. Talk with the community leaders and school directors to find out the

appropriate arrangements for your region.

Take this as a general recommendation; there may be other arrangements that could work in your community. The most important thing is that you talk extensively with the community and local authorities to gauge the long-term security of the land. Take your time to be 100% sure that there could be no disputes over the land or any potential future issues.

Construction Plans

Make sure that the construction plans are drawn up by a qualified architect, in consultation with a structural engineer. It’s important that you don’t just re-use the plans from a cinder-block building. We highly recommend that you don’t rely solely on an architect, but that you get a structural engineer to rigorously test the proposed construction plans to make sure that the bottle school will be sufficiently strong and durable. Do not skimp on this step – the safety of your bottle school is the most important thing.