Basics of building our straw bale house
We’ll be building a straw infill house, meaning that the straw bales mainly provide insulation and that the structural support is largely provided by 4×4 wood framing. If you want to learn more about straw bale houses I recommend going to https://strawbale.com. We did a house building workshop with them back in 2019 and it was incredible, we did from step three below through the first layer of plastering. Also their website has a ton of information if you are just curious what a straw bale house is and why anyone would want one. Below are the basic steps of how our house will be built.
If you are interested in helping us build please email me at LoneFrogFarm@gmail.com
Step One. Excavation and Foundation
This can be any standard house type of foundation with a few tweaks like wider footings to account for the width of your walls. We are needing to do a reinforced cement block stem wall foundation to protect us from potential landslides from the hillside to our west. We’ve hired a couple contractors to do this part, lots of specialized equipment and training needed here! This was started in early March and will hopefully be done by the end of April.
Step Two. Framing
This step will hopefully get started at the beginning of May. Unlike a traditional house that uses a LOT of 2×4 boards we will be using 4×4’s spaced further apart in order to leave room for our straw bales later. We will also be ordering roof trusses and installing those.
For this step we’re going to be hiring a friend with construction experience to help us out and possibly asking for help from a small number of volunteers since this is all on the more technical side compared to the bale wall parts that happen next.
Step Three. Placing the Bales
Here’s where the fun starts! But it is also where the race against the clock starts because we have to keep the bales protected from rain until the plaster is applied. This will be the start of work party season, from here on out pretty much all the steps are great for large groups of volunteers to help out. We will be stacking straw bales in a ‘running bond’ which is basically just how you stack lego blocks. Each layer of blocks will be offset from the one below for stability. Most of the work at this stage will require some strength as the bales run around 40 – 50 lbs. However, there will always be a need for other types of helpers doing things like cooking, running supplies to bale teams, making trips to town for supplies and entertaining kiddos, etc. So don’t feel like you can’t help out here if you aren’t capable of lifting bales for hours at a time (though of course we need a lot of that too).
Step Four. Bale Wall Securing & Details
This is a great step for everyone to help! There are a lot of things that go into this, some of which happens partially at the same time as step three. Bales are inspected and pounded into place to make sure the walls are flush. Wiring is marked and run through the walls, wire mesh is secured over the bales inside and out to add strength and rigidity. Bales are shaped to determine the final curve around windows and doors, structures are placed for cabinets to secure to once the wall is completed and a bunch of other bits and pieces are done.
Step Five+. Plastering
This is the last big work party step. Three layers of plaster made from a mix of lime, cement and sand will be spread over the bale walls inside and outside the house. This completely encases the straw bales protecting them from weather, fire and vermin. The first two layers will be about 1/2” thick, and the last layer that will contain the tinting will be about 1/8” thick. This will be done by several small teams at once. One team mixing plaster and several other teams applying the plaster to the walls. Honestly this part is pretty fun, I loved smooshing the plaster onto the straw walls and watching it all come together, for me this is when it really starts to look like a house.
After the first layer of plaster is on we get to breathe a big sigh of relief because now our straw is protected from the elements and we don’t have to worry about a random storm messing up our beautiful walls. We then can do the next couple layers of plaster as time and weather permits.
After this will be all the myriad little things that finish a house, flooring, lights, cabinets etc. And of course a big thank you to all of our helpers!
