Strawbale VS log home.

[pietru]

About the cost, Bales seem a lot cheaper then logs (assuming they come from a logger). You must finish the walls with limestone, no idea how expensive this is.

Ease of construction? Compared to block and tackle, bales looks easy and fast.

Insulation? as good or better then log homes.

Green? Straw grows a lot faster then trees.

Strawbale homes seems like a good alternative to log homes to get mortgage free. Maybe I am completely off tough.

I prefer the log home look by far but still, I can't deny my interest in straw bale homes.

what say you?

[adubar]

One of the complaints I've heard of more than any others with Strawbale construction is moisture in the walls. When it gets in, it takes radical surgery to fix the problem. This, I assume, would have to do more with the competency of the construction and the climate the home was in. Siesmic considerations would be something I would be interested to learn about that method of construction. I have not heard of the same problem with Cobb homes, as I've been told they can mitigate moisture.

I know that here in the PNW, B&P log home construciton has proved itself in some pretty heavy quakes.
The ubundance of logs make it more practical too.

-A

[rreidnauer]

In the right environment, I believe a properly planned and built strawbale home is an excellent choice. I've been trying to convince a friend in TX who's been looking for land in the Western part of the state, to seriously consider strawbale. (sadly, I don't think he wants to be bothered, and will likely end up with a manufactured home)

[Timberwolf]

But like with anything, proper design need apply. There are SB homes even on the wet west coast. Proper sheltering and overhangs are key (hmmm, like a proper log home) as well as a proper mortar mix (the best ones seem to be almost like the LHBA recommended chinking mix). Most new SB houses being built are hybrids, that is Post and Beam framing is used with the bales as infill. That way the roof is up before the bales are stacked. If they are kept dry during contruction until the mortar is up, there shouldn't be any problems.

I looked long and hard at this method of building. I just can't deny my log roots and must build B&P.

Hmmm... maybe a garage....

[pietru]

Hey Jason, Im thinking the same, maybe a garage or chicken coop.... If using timber framing , im not sure sure about my ease of construction comment. When you think about complexity, what is easier then stacking logs? Straw baling would be easier if the walls are load bearing. There is one strawbale home near me and the walls are load bearing, I would really love to talk to the owners and see how the process went.

[Timberwolf]

modern strawbale building. Lemme know if you ever want to borrow them.

[pietru]

Thank you for the offer, are they from Andrew Morrison?

[Timberwolf]

that!

[ecky]

Adubar is correct! The key is to keep the bales dry. Strawbale walls are designed to breath and, as such, they must be covered in a material that breathes. There is no need for vapour barriers in the walls of a strawbale house - in fact you don't want a vapour barrier. You can't use normal paint but rather must use something like cassein paints, or a limewash, or a silicate based paint - something that breaths.

There are 3 types of bale homes. The first is a true load-bearing (for the purists) where the straw provides the insulation and the combo of the plaster and straw (what engineers call a stress skin panel) provide the structural. The second type is a post and beam type where it provides the structural support and the straw is used as infill and insulation. Finally, there is the hybrid. This type of strawbale home has enough wood in it to support the dead load of the roof but not enough to support a snow load - that is where the stress skin panel kicks in. This is the type of house that we had built (only because our local government would not allow load-bearing - don't get me going on this). While my real love is for log houses, my wife and I choose straw for environmental reasons. A field of straw is produced each year as opposed to the decades required for a log to grow. Straw provides R-values between R30 to R50 depending upon construction quality.

[pietru]

Thank you for the explanation Ecky I appreciate it. Do you think you saved any money VS conventional construction. I know it probably wasn't your goal but I am still curious about costs.

[hood]

what about strawbale homes in south? i plan on building a home around the nashville area and it gets really hot and really humid down here.

[Kola]

I remember reading Mothers Earth News magazine about a couple who built a strawbuilt home in Georgia.

IMO, it appears that strawbuilt homes can be built anywhere....as long as it is done properly. They base their concepts similar to ours in respect to allowing the house to breathe through the stucco/mortar.

I will see if I can find the Georgoa couples article for you.

Kola

[Kola]

here ya go!

personally I love the thick plaster wall look of straw homes.


"During the past two years, Elise and Michael have continued to monitor their home's performance ? even going so far as to drill a few small holes in the walls to check for moisture. To date, even the east-facing exterior wall that receives the brunt of the stormy weather remains bone dry."

read more:
http://www.motherearthnews.com/Green-Homes/2004-06-01/Straw-Bale-Home.aspx

[Mark OBrien]

I can't remember the magazine where I read it but there are several strawbale homes near Montgomery, AL that are pre-Civil War! Apparently, if done properly, straw bale is an excellent alternative to conventional stick type homes. I've been through Montgomey in the summer and it is just as hot and miserably muggy as any time I ever spent in SE Asia. If I wasn't so set on a B&P Log Home, strawbale would be my next choice. I always wondered about another medium for building. When I was on the road driving truck, I'd drive north out of NJ into NY on I-287 and I'd see these huge bundles of rock or rubble in a rectangular "bale" for lack of a better word. They were encased in a heavy duty chicken wire and were used as retaining walls or also sound barriers. They had to be 3'X3'X5' in size. I wonder how they would work structurally if stacked like concrete blocks. Obviously you'd need a forklift to do the lifting. With their size and weight you could dry stack them and then stucco them as the chicken wire is already there! For a 30X30 house you'd need 96 "bales" to raise 4 walls 12' high. The manufacturer could even make half-bales to accomodate doorways and windows. It's just a thought anyways.

[hood]

thanks guys. yeah mark...i'm also stuck on the b&p homes. you know what would be really cool? straw bale interior walls in a b&p home. hmmmmm

[Kola]

thanks guys. yeah mark...i'm also stuck on the b&p homes. you know what would be really cool? straw bale interior walls in a b&p home. hmmmmm


Yup, its crossed my mind. I think it would look really nice. I love that thick-walled look and the softness of the rounded corners.

Remember too, straw is readily available and very enviromentally friendly. The insulation factor is a huge plus too.

IMO, there are many myths flying around in regards to straw homes. It scares many people off. Hopefully that will change...as more and more people build them.

Good jnfo on your post, Mark. ...and yeah those big bales would be great huh?

Kola

[pietru]

How about strawbale gable ends?

[sabrinafair_34]

I want a combination log home and cob construction house. Cob is the straw/slip method of using forms to build the walls, like the houses on the English coastal villages that look like the Hobbitt houses, with thatch roofs, etc. The walls are 3 feet thick in some instances and have stood for hundreds of years. Cob is breathable, you cant even paint it as it has to be limewashed becuase paint is a sealant, so therefore there isnt a moisture problem in humid climates.
There's a cob revival in North Carolina, but I've had some scoffers tell me that the moisture problem would be horrendous, even though they've never even set foot in a cob house. And because I questioned it further, apparently I'm 'hell-bent on WORTHLESS building practices'. I love how 'experts' have an 'educated' opinion but really know absolutely nothing about the subject in which they are supposedly experted.

Suzanne

[Timberwolf]

There's a cob revival in North Carolina, but I've had some scoffers tell me that the moisture problem would be horrendous, even though they've never even set foot in a cob house. And because I questioned it further, apparently I'm 'hell-bent on WORTHLESS building practices'. I love how 'experts' have an 'educated' opinion but really know absolutely nothing about the subject in which they are supposedly experted.

Suzanne
------------------------------------
Scoffers... yeah we're used to that around here.

You do what you want, and long as you're safe and smart about it, and don't let anyone tell you different.

[Longhare]

(Hmm, that sounds like something you might find on a southern drive-in's menu...)

I've wondering if cob might be an interesting option for finishing the gable ends in place of logs, stick framing, B&B. It might be a bit of a pain hauling the materials up there, but then again, you could rig something with all those triple blocks we'll have lying around. Heck, if you can haul former trees up there, why not buckets of cob? I think it might make a very quaint looking log cabin. Hmmm, I'll have to look into this...

Louanne

[chadfortman]

Look, listen and learn
A man who works with his hands is a laborer,
A man who works with his hands and his head is a craftsman,
A man who works with his hands, his head and his heart is an artist.
St Francis of Assisi.

I cant believe these people get paied and can take me to court.
And they proved to me last summer they dont know Sh@@.
Yes it crazy man me in the moutains.
i went to the town electrician to get my pole and box done.
It was becuse i knew i didnt know what i was doing and i didnt want have BS with the zoning office.
It was done by a certified electricians that knows the codes and more then the zoning office did.
The inspector decided becuse i am on the S list they fail me on 3 things they could not.
One the things was a cover for the box that just went out code in less then 6 months.
And they made me do replace that one that looked worse then the first one.
The other 2 things they failed me they could not. It said in the Electric code book a extra stablizer wire was my chose.
And they failed me on that and the box the electrician used was not aloud to be used it said right in plan writing either box could be used.
I was so mad i went over the the head electricin in town and chated with him on this.
It made me mad and it made him mad.
I also got some other old timer building inspector involved in this.
short end of it i got it passed becuse i went over there head.
I dont like people telling me how to live my life and also telling me rules they have no idea ore training what there doing.
These guys are put in a office job giving some short training and some dont know what there doing.
If someone lose there jobs now i hope these guys.
And people wounder why its take me so long to build come deal with these boneheads.
It makes you feel like you want give up but there not running me off my land.
They want to make me get a stamp on Rocks plan and pay 800 bucks to tell me i need go half foot deeper on my piers.
Its time to go in the zoning office soon to see what non sence they do on me when i say i want owner builder permit.
Will they still make me get a stamp on my plans it said on the net its the only way to build log cabins and strawbale homes.
Sorry it brought up old bad feeling and are lack of true freedoms in the USA.

[pencej]

"KEEP IT SIMPLE"

Well, the problem is power... some yield it well and with wisdom, but more often power corrupts them and they take advantage of the power their position holds over other...

[pencej]

"KEEP IT SIMPLE"

Cob can work... need some backing to take the cob, chicken wire or wattle. The English have done this in the past very effectively. However, your roofing eaves will have to be greater to protect the cob from rain.

[pencej]

"KEEP IT SIMPLE"

You can check the magazine Mother Earth... great magazine on natural building, permaculture and homesteading. Check their website... http://www.motherearthnews.com/
Strawbale works great with Timberframing because the strawbales can be used to wrap the timberframe or infill them. I built a strawbale house some years ago. I used a teaching dvd that walks you through the whole process. Was real simple like building a log home, but labor intensive and thus just as ideal for owner/builder like b & P. The imperfect thick walls gives great character much like logs.

[chadfortman]

I am interested in it looks interesting i love the Rvalue of the Wall like 30 ore 40 that kick ass. I did web search and wanted to see if any teaches here in east cost.
I stumbled across some people and i gone help out on home that the frams up and most the wall are done they need help with the shale ore cement coating. So i take some friend along since he straped on his home payment he might learn something from this. Pluse the chance to meet some new interesting people.
i got 2 pictures they sent me allready John i got see your DVDs on the building process of this i might have do half log half straw.
Any one interested in Va Dc ore Md area drop me note at chad_fortman2001@yahoo.com

[mlr1968]

Attended Class March 25th/26th of 2006.
If you are gonna be dumb, you better be TOUGH!
A retired Home Economics teacher that taught at my H/S built a Strawbale home in Decaturville Tn, bought 6 miles from my current residience. Been bout 12 years since built. No problems at all they were interviewed by the local newspaper while it was under construction and bout 4 months ago to see how it was doing. One thing they did different was they had a swimming pool company come out and spray the bales with cement stucco? And if I remember correctly they really dont have large overhangs. But no problems after 12 years, that tells me it is very possible to build strawbale in the hot humid south!

[chadfortman]

i got some pictures he sent me on my cell looks interesting.
Just to tell you this family had a strawbale half home with log home guss what side burned down .
Burning a strawbale is like try burn a phone book pressed together. After there log home burned to the ground from a wood stove they decide to build straw since that didnt burn.
Now i think i know why Skip went with heating oil to heat the home.
If your gone have wood stove like i want,
Clean the pipes and you might want think about sprinker system added to the home.
Just some advice to pass on the road for those building
when you add up the foundation and the land 2 by 6s structure i relay think strawbale and Log homes come close in price to build. Log homes have more charm i think but the Strawbale had R40 and 50 that pretty dam good in heating and cooling cost also.
Kola Build that Straw bale man send us a picture when you get it started on it.
Seya

[fossten]

Has nobody but me read the story of the three little pigs?