Introduction

An almost forgotten style, straw bale building has certainly struck a chord in our collective thinking. For many people, it is a considerable leap of faith to believe an unsupported bale of straw can become a structural component. Concerns such as; fire, rotting and mold, insects and pests, resale values and longevity become an overwhelming negative response to this economically friendly way of constructing a building. These worries have all been met with solutions varying from moisture sensors, fire testing, plaster barriers and bale dipping. As for the issue about resale values, low appraisals do not necessarily mean lower resale prices. Home buyers looking for for a strong, unique and super insulted house may decide that a straw bale house is perfection. 


It is an extremely advantageous construction method. As straw bales are the residual of cereal plant stalks left after the stripped food portion, in using these for building construction the bales are kept from being burnt or left to rot and saves around 20% of wood. Homes made from this material are healthier as they do not exude toxic fumes, unlike many other conventional homes. Straw bale walls provide super insulation (doubling the R-values of their walls with traditional homes) and along with a passive solar design the building will have no need for heating or cooling services. Also, as straw bale is available almost anywhere with minimal transportation costs the lead time is about availability of skilled tradespeople, not materials.