Making Better Concrete

Guidelines to Using Fly Ash for Higher Quality, Eco-Friendly Structures

Bruce King, P.E.

Why a book about concrete? Because we use so much of it – far more than any other building material. It seems only sensible to inquire as to how we can use this ubiquitous building material without undue damage to the life and landscapes that surround us.

You may have heard of fly ash as an eco-friendly alternative to using portland cement in concrete, but until now there has been no easy guide to how it makes superior concrete, or to how to use it.

This isn’t just for people who want to “build green”—this is for people who want to build better concrete.

“This is the best and most readable “how to” guide for using fly ash concrete—highly recommended. Using HFA is a win-win-win solution. It makes better concrete, costs less and has a greater environmental benefit than almost any other primary building material out there.”
—Scott Shell
Architect, Senior Project Manager, EHDD Architects

“Finally, a book on HFA concrete written so that we can all understand it. I will make this required reading by anyone in Tech Services, Operations and Sales.”
—Burt Lockwood
Central Concrete Supply

“This is an excellent and informative primer on high-performance fly ash concrete. This is a “win-win” use of a plentiful man-made waste product that generates benefits to clients, engineers and the global environment.”
—Mason Walters
Structural Engineer, Principal, Forell/Elsesser Engineers, Inc.

About the Author

Bruce King is a registered structural engineer in private practice in San Rafael, California. He is the author of Buildings of Earth and Straw; Structural Design for Straw Bale and Rammed Earth Architecture (1996) and Design of Straw Bale Buildings; The State of the Art (2006). He is founder and director of the nonprofit Ecological Building Network and co-founder, with his wife Sarah Weller King, of Green Building Press. He lives in San Rafael, California.