This article first appeared in The Owner Builder 196 August/September 2016. www.theownerbuilder.com.au By Brian Hodge As we embark on our 20th owner-built home, I reflect back over the progress since purchasing property…
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Category Archives: Bales
The folks at Eco-Logis have shared a blog entry about The Bay eco-village in Quebec. Part of the article discusses their unique straw bale wall-building technique.
Western Colorado farmer and bale supplier, David Swinger, provides us with an in depth look at the variables and techniques of baling straw for buildings.
Jeni Kardinal explains her manual bale press that was developed as part of her work in Bali.
A review of the Straw-Cell wall system by Chris Magwood brings us up to speed with its benefits
In this issue:
- BuildWell Library Launch
- Building Monitoring for Straw Bale Walls
- Adobe Floors – Part 2
- Polished Tosa Shikkui
- Choosing a Plaster System
- Tape vs. Mesh
- Book Reviews
- …and more.
We asked how you prefer to orient the bales within the walls on your projects. The results give us some perspective on more than just bale orientation.
This is a gift from us and the founders of TLS. It is the original Issue #1 available for download. Learn what started this publication and the modern roots of straw bale construction.
Judy Knox was one of two founders of this publication back in 1993. She passed away in late 2011. This article is a tribute to her work and how she helped others realize the power of straw bale construction.
One of the most active and creative natural builders who dedicated his life to helping other passed away in 2013. Alfred von Bachmyr is remembering by Catherine Wanek.
Kyle Holzheuter takes on a tour of straw bale construction in Japan. This is the second in a multi-part series about natural building in Asia.
By Andrew Morrison of strawbale.com There are many different approaches to framing a straw bale house; however, there is one in particular that I have used on the vast majority of…
By Huff ‘n’ Puff Constructions Editors Note: We plan to have a comprehensive article covering as many of the tilt-up straw panel systems on the global market as we can…
By Stuart Jeffrey Hart Community Rebuilds is a nonprofit organization that builds straw bale homes for low-income families in Moab, Utah. The homes are built by volunteers who exchange their…
By Elaine Brett Twelve years ago I had never even heard of building with straw. I lived in a four-bedroom colonial house in a subdivision in Maryland. The conventional American…
As an update to this post about the Feuillette House in France, here is a patent in the United States for straw bale construction. It was filed on June 6, 1921…
BIENVENIDOS, we’re the Spanish-speaking straw bale network RCP (Red de Construcción con Paja), or Network of Building with Straw. The RCP network of straw bale construction is a non profit…
By Kyle Holzhueter Editors Note – This article is a feature length pictorial look at the various aspects of natural building in Korea. The full-length article will be in the…
By Martin Hammer October 14, 2013 marked an historic day in the history of strawbale construction and natural building. A proposed appendix on Strawbale Construction, and a separate appendix on Light…
By Chris Magwood An important concept to understand when considering moisture and building materials is adsorption. Moisture in vapor form infiltrates any and all materials. The surface of most materials…
