Building a Staw Bale House
(Page 8 of 10)
December/January 1995
By Athena and Bill Steen
Straw bale walls will typically use 50 percent more material when it comes to stucco or plaster and therefore it is important to use a reinforcing material capable of handling those loads, such as 17-gauge stucco wire. The wire is typically sewn to the bales with a baling needle and twine. Large, U-shape pins are also used.
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Some plasters can be applied directly to the surface of the bales without reinforcing wire, like gypsum and earth plaster. Cement and lime are highly alkaline, which can cause deterioration of natural fibers. Lime, however is compatible with earth and could be applied over a base coat of earth plaster.
Finishes need not be limited to cement, stucco and plaster, however. Several of the historic bale structures have exterior siding and interior wood paneling. Other wall finishes and coverings on recent bale buildings include wood siding, celotex, plywood, and Sheetrock. These finishes require some provision for attachment to the bale walls. In some cases vertical 1x2 furring strips have been sufficient. Many of these products have varying degrees of permeability and require sufficient thought about moisture migration patterns. For example, using an impermeable material like exteriorgrade plywood on the outside of a building in a cold climate with high heating requirements could lead to serious problems unless the interior wall has an equal or higher level of impermeability.
Getting Started
Once you are ready to venture out on your own, you will find that starting with a small structure like a play house, a shed, or an outhouse, rather than a "real" house, is much less intimidating and any mistakes will be small, inexpensive ones. Remember that although building with bales has evolved quickly, it's still very much in its infancy, with much of its potential still undiscovered. Let yourself have fun.
Attempting to secure a building permit will typically be a process involving a couple of dialogues with local building officials. Existing prescriptive standards and test results can help support that process, as can officials who have experience in dealing with straw bales. A working paper, "Straw Bale Construction and the Building Codes," by David Eisenberg (The Canelo Project), can make a good starting point.
There is a growing straw bale human resource base of individuals and organi zations now working, building, designing, and teaching throughout Canada, Europe, the United States, and other parts of the world. The best way to access this resource base, as well as the latest straw bale innovations, information, and resources, is through the newsletter, The Last Straw, published quarterly by Out On Bale (un)Ltd.
Athena and Bill Steen are the authors of The Straw Bale House, a complete guide to the design and construction of straw bale homes. Bill and Athena also run the nonprofit organization The Canelo Project, which also distributes a good selection of books, printed information, and videos on straw bale building. Their workshops, also guided by architectl builder Paul Weiner, run anywhere from four to six days, and cover every aspect of the straw bale building process. During the winter, they offer straw bale work-tours in Mexico.
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