The Beauty of Bales

Article Tools

Image Gallery

Print

E-mail

Comments

RSS

Today, when a variety of roofing materials is available, as well as different designs to address local climates and conditions, it is best to have the tops of walls completely covered by the roof, with further protection provided by generous overhangs.

The Martin/Monhart House

Built in 1925 in Arthur, Nebraska, this simple building exemplifies the classic "Nebraska Loadbearing Style." The small size of the house, combined with the modest number of window and door openings, make its design ideal for load-bearing walls. The hip roof distributes weight around the walls of the building and keeps a low profile. An interesting note: the house was covered with earthen plaster until receiving a coat of cement stucco in 1930. It remains a family museum and is open to the public.

Laurie Roberts and Lane McClelland's Studio

This cozy studio in San Diego County creatively draws upon Lane's woodworking skills and Laurie's talent for metalworking. The studio has loadbearing walls and a central pole in the middle of the building to support the plywood decking, which is covered with felt. Thatch laid around the edges of the roofline adds a decorative and organic touch. The cement stucco on the outside of the building is richly colored with ferric nitrate. The studio is 450 square feet, and was built for a total of $3,400, or $7.50 per square foo t. Since Lane and Laurie did all the work themselves - except for one wall-raising workshop, which generated net proceeds of $2,000 - the studio cost the owners $1,400 in out-of-pocket expenses.

The studio's ceiling is made with willow branches with their leaves left on, sprayed with linseed oil as a sealant. The floor is soil cement, colored with a diluted wash of ferric nitrate. Door and willow furniture is made by Lane. An accidental addition of an extra partial course of bales during the wall raising created the fortuitous rise over the door.

HOW MUCH DOES A STRAW BALE HOUSE COST?

This is one of the questions that we are most frequently asked. We typically respond, "It depends." We have built 300-square-foot homes in Mexico for $2 per square foot, we know that Steve and Nena MacDonald built their 800-square-foot house for $7.50 per square foot, and we've seen houses that cost as much as $385 per square foot. Why such a range? The variables are many, including the size and complexity of the building, location, architectural fees, types of materials, and who does the work.

In our experience, size - of all factors - has the greatest impact on cost. Most people want the biggest house they can get for the cheapest price per square foot. However, using cost per square foot as a measure can be very misleading. A well-built small house will cost far less per square foot than a mediocre big one. Moreover, 6,000 square feet at $100 per square foot ($600,000) represents much more money than 900 square feet at $200 per square foot ($180,000).

RSS | Comments | E-mail | Print