Slope pan flashing to outside.

Included in TLS #49 (Myths and Realities, Spring 2005) was a discussion of ways to deal with moisture at the bottom of windows. David Eisenberg shared a written design detail for a pan under the window to carry water away from rather than down the wall. We wanted to share a drawing of this detail and David kindly provided one for us to share in Tech Tips.

Here’s the portion of the discussion in which David details this design idea.

“Protecting the bales beneath the windows requires that you catch the water under the window and make sure it gets all the way out of the wall. In other words, ideally, you would have a pan of sorts under the window, sloped slightly to the outside, extending a bit beyond each side and with a lip at the back and on each end (so water can’t just run off the ends), and extending out beyond the exterior wall surface, with a drip edge – so that any water that leaks through or runs down the sides of the window ends up in this pan and is shown the exit. You can make these pans out of metal, plastic, ice and water shield, cast this shape into a concrete sill, anything that will keep the water from leaking through it, but the principal thing here is to make sure that the water can’t get into the wall below the window. You can put your window sill material, whatever it is, on top of this pan flashing being careful not to punch unsealed holes when you install the sill. It can take a little thought and ingenuity to do this, but it assures you that, when the windows leak, the water leaves the building.

Concept of pan flashing turned up at back and sides extending beyond exterior finished wall with drip edge. Extending behind finish or trim at each side of opening.

“That old practice of just putting roofing paper or plastic over the top of the bales and setting your windows on it and then plastering over it just leads the water down inside the plaster to the bales wherever the water protection ends unless it runs continuously down the wall under the window to below the bales (and we don’t recommend doing that).  It just temporarily moved the problem down, didn’t solve it.”

What is the ratio of your mix? Let your sand tell you!

This article is original content and has not appeared in The Last Straw.

St. Astier Natural Limes, a producer of hydraulic lime products from France, is offering a set of DVD videos called The Master Stroke DVD Tutorial Series.  The Master Stroke is a 4-disc series beginning with lime mortars.  Other discs cover plastering and rendering with lime, and building and pointing with lime.  In this article we will review the first in the series, Making Lime Mortars.

The content of the DVD is laid out very clearly and is easy to follow.  The quality of the video is very polished. The main purpose of the DVD is to show the construction worker how to create a consistent, high-quality mortar or render.  Tips include how to properly keep your sand dry, how to measure each bucket of sand, etc.  But there was one piece of information that really make this video important.  Nearly half of the video is dedicated to the concept of the sand void ratio and how it affects your mix.

Have you ever wondered where the ratios we use for our mixes come from?  This video explains how they are derived.  Without going into too much detail, the ratio of sand to lime is determined by finding the void ratio of your sand.  Once you know how much air is between the grains of sand you can find the volume of binder.  If you use too much binder, the sand particles will be far apart, separated by water and lime.  If you use too little lime you are not filling all the voids with lime and you will have pockets of air and water.  The perfect ratio is one that fills all the voids and leaves little room for air or water.  Once you know this ratio, based on your sand, you can then adjust the ratio to achieve your desired results.  Don’t think you can just figure this out on your own through this article.  There is a proper way to do this, and each step is clearly defined in the video.

To know the proper ratio of sand to lime (or any other binder – clay, cement, gypsum, etc) is like an enlightenment for most of us.  Have you ever wondered why the code says 4:1:3/4 (sand:cement:lime), or why your friends used 1:2:9 (cement:lime:sand)?  Now you don’t have to guess.  Watch this video and learn how to properly measure the void ratio of your sand and the ratio of sand to binder.  It will become apparent that the mix your friends are using on their project has little bearing on your mix.

Mortars, renders and plasters all folow the same ratio and mixing concepts.

Learning how to derive the ratio of sand to binder is obviously very valuable.  The rest of the video walks you through the measuring and mixing process, showing how a professional would prepare his or her mortar.  After being a sub-contractor and mixing thousands of batches of plaster, this video would have been great as a tool for estimating.  In my mind it creates a baseline for high-quality that a builder can use to determine costs.

In summary, I would say buy this video!  It can be purchased at the link above for $39.  From novice to professional, you will find value.  Good luck.

This review is intended to be objective.  No compensation of any form has been accepted in connection with this article.

by Wayne Bingham and Colleen Smith – Idaho, USA

Our interest in straw-bale construction grew out of our concern for energy efficiency. Our research into building energy efficiency grew into an awareness of sustainable building practices. An urge to build an energy-efficient home of materials that are sustainable grew as we explored these issues.

As we examined the site conditions for our home in Idaho, we found prevalent winds came from the southwest, passive solar orientation was due south, and views were predominantly southeast toward the Teton mountain range. The homestead to the west anchored the place visually and the rolling grass and grain fields to the north and east held their own hypnotic beauty.

We asked ourselves, “How do we place a building here and what would it look and feel like?”

From Small Strawbale by Bill Steen, Athena Swentzell Steen and Wayne J. Bingham. Published by Gibbs Smith

We walked the site many times over several years, searching for the right place to build and the right kind of structure to build to respond to the soil, views, and
weather. When the irrefutable drive to build overwhelmed us, we went to the land and stayed for three days, walking, feeling, talking, and looking for the right place. We examined alternative ways of achieving solar gain while maintaining prominent views and avoiding challenging weather patterns.

The summer sun in our high mountain desert can be intense. The days can be hot, evenings cool down fast when the sun goes down, and the nights are cold. So a porch wrapped around straw-bale walls made sense to us. It can protect us from the sun, provide outdoor living space, and allow the straw bales and the internal thermal mass to moderate and maintain a relatively even temperature inside the house. The porch would also serve to protect the earthen-plastered bales from the weather.

We wanted the house to sit lightly on the land and allow the rolling surface of the earth to flow unimpeded past the house. We raised the porch surface only six inches
above the adjacent ground around the entire perimeter to require only one step to grade.

We have visited and experienced several houses that deeply impressed us and we developed several drawings to reflect this approach. They were approximately square, had hip roofs and wrap-around porches. The deep porches were occupied with plants, chairs, tables, firewood, clotheslines, and other apparatus for living out-of-doors under cover.

After consideration of many schemes, we settled on one that is 34-ft. square, providing 1,156 gross sf and 961 net usable sf. Seventeen percent of the total area is in straw bales and the house is 83 percent efficient. It has a kitchen/living area, one bath, a master bedroom and guest room. There is a loft for the grandchildren.

Photos by Wayne J. Bingham

Colleen had researched the area for organic straw bales that were 14-in. high x 18-in. wide. We found a farmer in Blackfoot, about 90 miles away, who had grown straw without herbicides or pesticides. Because the crop had matured and there was rain forecast, he cut and baled the straw. We had been working to have the house dried-in before taking delivery of the bales. We were able to place the bales under the newly finished roof before rains. Bale installation took only one week, notching and fitting under the roof and between columns and windows and doors.

Several friends called out of the blue and said that they heard that plastering was about to happen and could they come to help. Yes! Stan, John, Joe, Susan and I spent the weekend hand applying the beautiful chocolate colored earthen plaster mixed with long fibers of straw. We were at the end of summer and we wanted the plaster to dry before it could freeze, rendering earthen plasters no good. We were able to apply a rough coat on three walls over a three-day weekend. Brian and I finished the final wall in two days. The first weather coat had taken about one week. The building season ended and we left for the winter, planning to return the next spring.

When we returned in June 2003, we turned our attention to the final plastering on the main house. Sift clay, chop straw, mix clay to water, add straw and sand and apply to the rough coat completed last year. Check proportions, read the newly published book Natural Plasters, do tests and define how we want to do the work. Out of the research and study and questioning came a process we are very pleased with. We applied an infill coat of stiff plaster to the existing hand-applied rough coat using wood floats. We then brought the surface to within 1/4-in. of the /finish surface using a plaster that has more sand and less straw, sent through the chopper a second
time.

The final coat was applied with a steel trowel with curved corners, and polished with stainless steel Japanese trowels. It turned out quite nicely, with soft rounded corners and the bottom edge flared out to meet the metal drip edge.

We had read of clay “alis” paint. We read recipes in the two books and called the Steens asking for their advice. “Start with one part wheat paste glue, add two parts water, add clay until it covers your finger without showing a print.” We added one small scoop of burnt umber and about four cups of medium-sized mica flakes. We painted it on with 4-in. brushes, allowed it to become almost dry, and then polished with a damp (not wet) sponge.

Wow! What a difference it made. When plastering, the joints between one day’s work and another were visible, even though we tried diligently to feather it out. The alis unified the whole surface, and no joints were visible. It has a soft sheen from the mica, and it invites touch, as everyone who comes to the house exemplifies. Some have said it looks like leather. We think it looks like the earth around the house, but is refined by plastering and polishing. It looks like it belongs to its surroundings.

Building our house started out as a dream, a desire to do something sustainable, to build with one’s hands. Our project then became something physical, real, as we worked with the foundations, concrete, rebar, straw bales, earthen plaster, roofs, wiring, and all the rest.

In the summer of 2004, we installed a photovoltaic system to serve electrical needs of the house. We mounted the solar collectors on the garage porch. Batteries and inverter are in the garage with underground feeds to the house.

Well drilling estimates came in at $20,000, so we looked for another alternative. We built an 18,000-gallon underground cistern for a fraction of the cost that takes rainwater from the house and garage that passes through a filter before going to the tank. Before use in the house, it also goes through a charcoal and UV filter. It filled completely the first winter. With the exception of propane for heating and cooking, we are entirely off-the-grid. What a feeling of freedom!

Our home developed meaning for us beyond our wildest expectations. There has been a profound change in direction of our lives and satisfaction since we explored ways of becoming involved in sustainable building and focused on strawbale as a preferred method. Thirty-five years of life energy are focused on building our home. Feeling through our needs, responding to the site, and building the house day-by-day have been the most satisfying and meaningful experiences of our lives.

———————————————————————–

Wayne J. Bingham and Colleen F. Smith, a husband and wife team, have been involved since 1998 in straw-bale design and building. Their interest is an outgrowth of an exploration of energy efficiency and sustainable building techniques. In the mid-1990s, they attended several American Institute of Architect Green Building conferences where they began to understand the need for finding new ways to build without endangering the earth and its resources or future generations.  Seeking a direction of their own, they went on a natural building odyssey to the Southwest U.S. evaluating cob, adobe, rammed earth, earthship and straw-bale buildings, visiting or staying in each. They evaluated thermal performance, beauty, the feel, construction techniques and concluded that straw-bale building held the greatest possibility to satisfy their interest.

They attended The Canelo Project straw-bale and earthen plaster workshops and came away with a love affair with strawbale and earthen plaster that has not abated. Wayne immediately plastered their concrete block garden wall in their backyard with earthen plaster (see p 11 of this issue). They returned to the Steens in 1999 to spend a year involved with workshops, construction and collaboration with Bill and Athena on the development and production of Small Strawbale published in 2005 by Gibbs Smith Publishers.

Avid photographers and travelers, Wayne and Colleen have searched out and documented indigenous buildings in the United States, Greece, Great Britain and Italy and have developed a large library of images that were the start of the book. They took additional trips to explore and further record specific straw-bale buildings that now constitute a new book called Strawbale Plans.

In addition to Wayne’s working with owners and builders on straw-bale home designs and conducting workshops, Colleen and Wayne have put their experience into building this straw-bale home of their own in Teton Valley, Idaho. www.wjbingham.com

by Rene Kilian – Denmark

Save money on your black and grey water while protecting the environment!

Reeds and iris clean the wastewater in the planted filter.

All properties without sewage facilities in rural areas of Europe must meet minimum standards for wastewater treatment. It can be expensive joining on to the main sewage lines. A planted filter’ – a modern kind of reed-bed system with vertical waterflow – has low operating costs and is an inexpensive alternative.

Approximately 30 of these filters have been built in Denmark. The systems are planted with wetland plants, and occupy around 16m² per dwelling.

The system complies with the latest Danish standards, which are stricter than the European standard.

Along with this, environmental impact is reduced and the homeowner can save money on sewage connection and payments.  The investment can be paid for through savings in less than five years, when compared to a standard sewage connection. Here is an example.

Reuse of treated wastewater
Søren Raffnsøe built his own straw-bale house, went about it in a way that was as environmentally and economically friendly as possible. The way that water comes in and out of the house has
been considered in a holistic manner, and is the first of its kind in Denmark.

The house has its own planted filter to treat wastewater. The system is only 8m2 because the house has a composting toilet.

The planted filter is a biological-cleaning system. The system, designed by René Kilian, is an effective alternative to a sewage connection. The system can even be integrated into a garden where it could resemble a garden bed growing with thatching reeds, iris and bullrushes.

Figure 1. A recycling system with the planted filter where water is reused in the washing machine and garden. 1. Sedimentation Sedimentation tank for grey wastewater only. The source of the water may vary depending on local codes or regulations but might include water from bath, washing machine and kitchen. 2. Pump well with a level controlled pump. 3. Reed bed system or constructed wetland. 4. Tank for treated wastewater and treated rainwater. 5. “Green” pipe for reuse water to washing machine and garden. 6. Water vitalizer in drinking water pipe. 7. Fine filter for treatment of rainwater. 8. Untreated rainwater toward sand catcher and infiltration unit. 9. “Black”’wastewater from toilet to compost container. 10. Urine from toilet to urine container Design by Kilian Water Ltd., Denmark

The recycled water becomes so clean that you can reuse it to flush the toilet, wash clothes and water the garden. As compost toilets don’t use water, Søren uses the water only in his washing machine and garden. See Figure 1.

Along with this, he saves 50 percent in his usage of drinking-quality water. To collect the excess recycled water, he has made a little pond in the garden, where there is an extra cleaning process that created a habitat for plants and animals. The drinking water itself is also special. He has installed a ’vitalizer’ in his drinking water pipes. This revitalizes the water so it attains the same quality as spring water.

Payback in less than five years

A planted filter of 16m2 suitable for a normal household, will cost around 60,000 Danish kroner/$11,083.80 USD. Connection to public sewage costs one household around 40,000 kroner/$7,389.21 USD. The investment can be paid back in less than five years, as you can save on annual wastewater bill payments. Ongoing costs for a planted filter are 0 kroner /m3; there is just a government tax of 1.60 kroner /m3. Costs for sewage are approximately 35 kroner /m3. This means a dífference of nearly 33.50 kroner / m3. With an average consumption of 170m3 per year, a household would save around 5,700 kroner/$1,052.96 USD per year, or 140,000 kroner/$25,862.20 USD after 25 years.

The planted filter at 8m2 in front of the newly built straw-bale house.

If you chose a reuse system in addition to this, and saved 50 percent on water consumption, you save 7,000 kroner/$1,293.11 USD per year. After 25 years, you will have saved 175,000 kroner /$32,327.80 USD. With the correct wastewater solution, you can really save money and protect the environment.

by Joyce Coppinger, Managing Editor/Publisher, The Last Straw Journal

Wall Structures
The structural methods used for the design and construction of bale walls are generally of two types: loadbearing and non-loadbearing. Stated another way – bales supporting the weight of the roof and any snow or other roof loads, and any post-and-beam or modified post-and-beam structure with the bales used as infill for insulation only.

Timberframe is the post-and-beam structure of choice in most countries. Posts of conventional milled 4×4, 4×6 and 6×6 wood; lodge poles, timber bamboo and other types of materials have been used. Modified post-and-beam structures are wide-ranging and diverse – anything from box columns to ladder-truss wall systems, to the current experiments in and development of SIP or structural insulated wall systems (also called wall panel systems or panelized walls) using bales as the insulation material rather than rigid foam insulation as the material sandwiched between the sheathing on both sides. [See articles in TLS#42 and #55.]

Widths
Bale walls come in many different widths depending on the size of bales you use, how you lay the bales as you stack them, and even the type of material baled and the method used to stack the bales to form the wall.

Widths Using Small Square Bales: Typical widths for bale walls are 16 or 18 inches when the bales are laid flat (strings or wires on the top of the bale). If stacked on edge, the bale width will be 14 inches with the strings or wires on the side of the bale. If the bale is stood on end to fill a framed space, the bale can be either 14, 16 or 18 inches depending on the size of the bale and the direction in which you set the bale.

Size of Bales
Even though a bale may be called “square,” it’s usually rectangular in shape.

The size of a small square bale may vary by region or country depending on the type of baling equipment used or the method of making the bale, e.g., bale press or hand pressed compared to using a mechanical baler. The bale may also vary because of the type of mechanical baler used and how it’s set to produce a bale.

The small and medium size balers used in some regions of the U.S. have a fixed bale chamber that produces a bale that is 14-in.x16-in., 14-in.x18-in. or 16-in.x18-in. The length can be varied to produce bales between 36 inches and 41 to 48 inches. This is the range of length that is required by most automatic bale wagons used to pick up bales in the field in the U.S..

You should also be aware that there are also other sizes of bales used – some are called “jumbo” bales because of their large size. In some places, these large bales might be called 4×4s or 6×6s or 8×8s. Some people define a square bale’s size as small, medium and large. Small bales can be 24in.x24in.x48-in. Or they can be 14-in.x 16 to 18 in.x 36 to 48 in. A medium bale of this type is around 4-ft.x4-ft.x6-ft., and large bales around 6-ft. to 8-ft. square by 8-ft. to 10-ft. long. Weight depends on the type of hay and settings of the baling equipment.

And density (compactness of the baled material) or compression (how much pressure is placed on the bales to “compress” them when they are created or after they are stacked) of the bales might also change the dimensions.

The binding material on the bales is most often wire or poly twine; sisal (natural fiber) isn’t the best to use as it tends to break while the bales are being handled. Some people don’t use wire as they are concerned about moisture might condense on it or be drawn to it; some feel it’s difficult to work with when retying bales, others feel it’s easier. Some don’t like to use the poly twine because of the coating or because they feel it’s not as easy to work with. In most cases ot comes down to personal preference or type of binding available locally.

Placement of Bales
Bales laid flat are usually 16 to 18 inches wide and 14 inches high; they can be 36 to 40 to 48 inches long. Bales stacked on edge are usually 14 inches wide, 16 to 18 inches high, and the same lengths as mentioned for bales laid flat. Bales used to fill in framed spaces – or stacked on end – can be 14, 16 or 18 inches wide depending on how you orient the bale in the space filled.

There has been and continues to be much discussion about the way bales are laid or positioned when stacked. Are bales set on edge or bales laid flat easier to plaster, and what reasons do balers use to explain a preference for one method or the other? Do the bales laid flat have less or ore insulation value – and why?  Do bales set on edge have more tensile strength than bales laid flat?

What to Use and What Not to Use
A bale made with a mechanical baler that chops the straw as the bales are made probably doesn’t produce the best bale for construction – it tends to fall apart or could be harder to work with when cutting and tying.

A bale made from alfalfa will be hard to use – the alfalfa tends to be woody and brittle, the bales are usually not uniform in shape and perhaps even in size to some extent. This may be true of bales made from switchgrass or flax or other “slippery” materials.

Bales made from tumbleweeds are not suitable for bale building – they are very brittle and highly flammable (usually very dry). The same could be said for pine straw bales – the kerosene in the pine needles is flammable and the pine needles are also one of those “slippery” materials mentioned earlier.

The most common materials used for buildable bales are wheat, oats, rye, rice, and hemp. It’s said that the Nebraska prairie pioneers used prairie meadow hay (probably hard to find these days), cattails and wetland reeds (most often baled during droughts). We’ve heard of the use of bales made with timothy grass, Sudan grass, and barley. We’ve been asked about corn stover and soybean stover – but don’t know of anyone who’s ever used this crop residue as a bale building material. If you’ve heard of other materials used for buildable bales, please let TLS know.

This article does not appear in The Last Straw and is original content.

Prepared by Joyce Coppinger, Managing Editor/Publisher, The Last Straw Journal

402.483.5135, <thelaststraw@thelaststraw.org> www.thelaststraw.org

INSULATION

The R-value used for straw-bale walls is R-30. Most conventional stick-built construction has an R-value of around 15 with as high as R-30 in ceilings.

Testing under controlled conditions allows the researcher to estimate the thermal resistance to heat flow through the material. This is expressed as an R-value. (R = resistance) R-value is the inverse of U-factor, or conductivity. U-factor is a measure of Btu/(hr. s.f. °F), or British thermal units per hour, per square foot of material, per degree Fahrenheit of temperature difference between the two sides of the material.

Conclusions from the document Thermal Performance of Straw Bale Wall Systems available at www.ecobuildnetwork.org/strawbale.htm

Tests have shown a range of values from R-17 (for an 18-in. bale wall) to R-65 (for a 23-in. bale).

Analysis at Oak Ridge National Lab, among other places, has shown that R-values for insulation materials used in standard walls are generally much higher than the R-value for the wall as an assembly of disparate materials. Joe McCabe recently postulated that the same phenomenon could account for the difference between the high values from his testing of bales and the lower values obtained in the 1998 Oak Ridge test of a straw-bale wall system. While it is possible that the relatively low densities where bales abut each other might contribute to greater heat loss than would be measured through an individual bale, it is unlikely that this would account for the entire difference. This difference between bales and bale walls is nothing like the difference between standard insulation and what is found in stud framed walls (insulation voids, thermal bridges, uninsulated headers, and other faults).

It is noteworthy that all tests of straw-bale wall systems prior to the Oak Ridge test in 1998 had potentially significant shortcomings and should not be considered particularly reliable. The last Oak Ridge test had no identified deficiencies and is considered by most to be an accurate determination of the thermal resistance of straw-bale walls. ORNL determined the R-value to be R-27.5 (or R-1.45/inch), or R-33 for three string (23-in.) bale wall systems. Shaving a bit off the top just for conservatism’s sake, the California Energy Commission officially regards a plastered straw-bale wall to have an R-value of 30.

A final note is a reiteration of a point made earlier: it matters little whether the final truth about the R-value of straw bales walls is R-33 or R-43 or even R-53. Above R-30, the differences are minor and will usually be overshadowed by windows, floors, doors and ceiling/roof details.

Whatever the value, it is at least three times better than the average -in.R-19-in. wood stud-wall system.

FIRE

In July 2006, the Ecological Building Network in California funded and oversaw the following ASTM E119-05a – Straw Bale Fire Tests done in Texas. Both walls withstood the fire and hose stream tests, as described below.

(Documents are available at www.ecobuildnetwork.org/strawbale.htm)

One-hour Fire Resistance of a Non-Loadbearing Wall w/ Earth-Plaster Coating.

A 12 ft x 14 ft non-loadbearing wall constructed with 7.5 pcf rectangular wheat straw bales stacked in a running-bond pattern, clad on each surface with 1-inch of earthen-plaster, produced, assembled and tested as described in the documentation, successfully met the conditions of acceptance as outlined in ASTM Method E119-05a Fire Tests of Building Construction and Materials for a fire endurance rating of one hour.

Two-hour Fire Resistance of a Non-Loadbearing Wall w/ Cement-Stucco Coating.

A 10 ft x 10 ft non-loadbearing wall constructed with 7.5 pcf rectangular wheat straw bales stacked in a running-bond pattern, clad on each surface with 17 GA stucco netting and 1-inch of cement/stucco, produced, assembled and tested as described in the documentation, successfully met the conditions of acceptance in ASTM Method E119-05a Fire Tests of Building Construction and Materials for a fire endurance rating of two hours.

The EcoBuilding Network’s Board of Directors is currently Ann Edminster (Pacifica, California) Architect, author of Efficient Wood Use in Residential Construction-in., and co-chair of the development committee for LEED(TM) Residential standards.

Bruce King (San Rafael, California) Director, Founder, Structural Engineer, author of Buildings of Earth and Straw-in. (1996), -Making Better Concrete-in. (2005), and Design of Straw Bale Buildings-in. (2006); Sarah Weller King (San Rafael, California) Secretary and Treasurer Peter Loafer (Boulder, Colorado) Attorney and property developer; Drew Moran (Palo Alto, California) President, Drew Moran Construction; Anne Tilt (Berkeley, California) Architect and partner, Akin-Tilt Architects; Carol Vilonia (Santa Rosa, California) Architect, contributing columnist for Natural Home magazine, co-author of Natural Home Remodeling (2006).

MOISTURE

From House of Straw – Straw Bale Construction Comes of Age, U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, April 1995. www.eren.doe.gov/buildings/documents/strawbale.html

Will the bales rot? Without adequate safeguards, rot can occur. The most important safeguard is to buy dry bales.

Paint for interior and exterior wall surfaces should be permeable to water vapor so that moisture doesn’t get trapped inside the wall. Construction design must prevent water from gathering where the first course of bales meets the foundation. Even if straw bales are plastered, the foundation upon which the bales rest should be elevated above outside ground level by at least six inches or more. This protects bales from rainwater splashing off the roof.

From Moisture properties of straw and plaster/straw assemblies by Dr. John Straube in Canada as a result of testing done there. John holds a joint appointment as Associate Professor in both the Department of Civil Engineering and the School of Architecture at the University of Waterloo and teaches courses in structural design, material science, and building science to both disciplines. At the university, John is also the director of the Building Engineering Group. John is a founding principal of Building Science Consulting, a frequent contributor to buildingscience.com.

Based on the test data and literature review, several conclusions can be drawn:

1. A 450 mm (18-in.) thick straw bale should have a vapor permeance of approximately 110 to 220 ng/ Pa•s•m2 (2 to 4 US perms).

2. Cement: sand stuccos are relatively vapour impermeable. In fact a 38 mm (1.5-in.) thick cement : sand stucco may act as a vapor barrier (i.e., have a permeance of less than 1 US Perm).

3. The addition of lime to a cement stucco mix increases permeance. As the proportion of lime is increased, the permeance increases. Pure lime: sand stuccos are very vapor permeable. The permeance of a 38 mm (1.5-in.) thick cement : sand stucco can be increased to 5 or 10 US Perms by replacing half the cement with lime and to 15 to 30 US Perms by using a pure lime : sand stucco. The addition of even a small amount of lime (0.2 parts) may increase the permeance of cement stucco dramatically (e.g., from under 1 to 3 to 6 US Perms).

4. Earth plasters are generally more permeable than even lime plasters. The addition of straw increases the permeability further. A 38 mm (1.5-in.) thick earth plaster can have a permeance of over 1200 metric perms (over 20 US Perms), in the same order as building papers and house wraps.

5. Applying an oil paint to a moderately permeable 1:1:6 stucco will provide a permeance of less than 60 metric perms (1 US perms) and thus meet the code requirements of a vapour barrier.

6. Earth plasters were not found to have significantly different water absorption than cement and lime stuccos. The earth plasters, regardless of density and straw content, resisted 24 hour of constant wetting easily, although the topmost 1/8-in. of surface became quite muddy. In a real rainstorm this behavior may cause erosion.

7. Lime washes appear to be somewhat useful for reducing water absorption while not reducing vapor permeance. The lime wash over earth plaster did not dramatically lower water absorption but will increase the mechanical strength of the plaster after wetting, i.e., they will increase the resistance to rain erosion.

8. Based on Minke’s and Straube’s earlier tests, siloxane appears to have little or no effect on the vapor permeance of cement, cement:lime, lime, and Moisture Properties of Plaster and Stucco for Strawbale Buildings EBNet BalancedSolutions.com 34 earth plasters while almost eliminating water absorption. The use of siloxane can be recommended based on these earlier tests.

9. Sodium silicate did not seem to have much impact on water uptake or vapor permeance. This additive may hold earth plaster together, or increase its erosion resistance, but as tested it had no noticeable impact on moisture properties.

10. Linseed oil at 2% in an earth plaster mix is not a very effective water repellent and does act to restrict vapor permeance somewhat. It may add some strength to an earth plaster in the wet state. Heavy applications of linseed oil to the surface of finished earth plaster will, based on Minke’s tests, reduce the water absorption to almost zero, but will markedly decrease vapor permeance.

11. The test methods described here appear to provide repeatable results, and in general compare well to previous tests on different samples by both the same (Straube) and different researchers (Minke).

Gernot Minke founded the Research Laboratory for Experimental Building at Kassel University in Germany in 1974, studying straw-bale construction and other sustainable building techniques, low-energy and passive house construction, and green roofs. He is also an independent architect and adviser for building ecology.

The full article can be accessed at the EcoBuilding Network’s web site www.ecobuildnetwork.org/strawbale.htm

INSECTS, VARMINTS AND VERMIN

Will the bales rot? Without adequate safeguards, rot can occur. The most important safeguard is to buy dry bales. Fungi and mites can live in wet straw, so it’s best to buy the straw when it’s dry and keep it dry until it is safely sealed into the walls.

Paint for interior and exterior wall surfaces should be permeable to water vapor so that moisture doesn’t get trapped inside the wall. Construction design must prevent water from gathering where the first course of bales meets the foundation. Even if straw bales are plastered, the foundation upon which the bales rest should be elevated above outside ground level by at least six inches or more. This protects bales from rainwater splashing off the roof.

Will pests destroy the walls? Straw bales provide fewer havens for pests such as insects and vermin than conventional wood framing. Once plastered, any chance of access is eliminated.

House of Straw – Straw Bale Construction Comes of Age, U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy,

April 1995

www.eren.doe.gov/buildings/documents/strawbale.html

CODES

There are provisions within the building codes that allow building with bales. David Eisenberg, Development Center for Appropriate Technology (DCAT) in Tucson, Arizona (www.dcat.net), shares these citations from codes that pertain to straw-bale design and construction as an alternative materials, design and methods of construction and equipment. David has been involved with codes issues related to strawbale and other natural building materials and methods for 15 years or more, and as a member of the board of UBC, USGBC and other organizations working with building codes and green building programs.

You can use this information to answer questions codes officials and other regulatory agencies may have.

From the 2003 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC)

SECTION 103

ALTERNATE MATERIALS — METHOD OF CONSTRUCTION, DESIGN OR INSULATING SYSTEMS

103.1 General. The provisions of this code are not intended to prevent the use of any material, method of construction, design or insulating system not specifically prescribed herein, provided that such construction, design or insulating system has been approved by the code official as meeting the intent of the code. Compliance with specific provisions of this code shall be determined through the use of computer software, worksheets, compliance manuals and other similar materials when they have been approved by the code official as meeting the intent of this code.

From the 2006 IECC

SECTION 103

ALTERNATE MATERIALS — METHOD OF CONSTRUCTION, DESIGN OR INSULATING SYSTEMS

103.1 General. This code is not intended to prevent the use of any material, method of construction, design or insulating system not specifically prescribed herein, provided that such construction, design or insulating system has been approved by the code official as meeting the intent of this code. 103.1.1 Above code programs. The code official or other authority having jurisdiction shall be permitted to deem a national, state or local energy efficiency program to exceed the energy efficiency required by this code. Buildings approved in writing by such an energy efficiency program shall be considered in compliance with this code.

From the 2003 International Residential Code (IRC)

R104.11 Alternative materials, design and methods of construction and equipment. The provisions of this code are not intended to prevent the installation of any material or to prohibit any design or method of construction not specifically prescribed by this code, provided that any such alternative has been approved. An alternative material, design or method of construction shall be approved where the building official finds that the proposed design is satisfactory and complies with the intent of the provisions of this code, and that the material, method or work offered is, for the purpose intended, at least the equivalent of that prescribed in this code. Compliance with the specific performance-based provisions of the International Codes in lieu of specific requirements of this code shall also be permitted as an alternate.

R104.11.1 Tests. Whenever there is insufficient evidence of compliance with the provisions of this code, or evidence that a material or method does not conform to the requirements of this code, or in order to substantiate claims for alternative materials or methods, the building official shall have the authority to require tests as evidence of compliance to be made at no expense to the jurisdiction. Test methods shall

be as specified in this code or by other recognized test standards. In the absence of recognized and accepted test methods, the building official shall approve the testing procedures. Tests shall be performed by an approved agency. Reports of such tests shall be retained by the building official for the period required for retention of public

records.

From the 2006 IRC

R104.11 Alternative materials, design and methods of construction and equipment. The provisions of this code are not intended to prevent the installation of any material or to prohibit any design or method of construction not specifically prescribed by this code, provided that any such alternative has been approved. An alternative material, design or method of construction shall be approved where the building official finds that the proposed design is satisfactory and complies with the intent of the provisions of this code, and that the material, method or work offered is, for the purpose intended, at least the equivalent of that prescribed in this code. Compliance with the specific performance-based provisions of the International Codes in lieu of specific requirements of this code shall also be permitted as an alternate.

R104.11.1 Tests. Whenever there is insufficient evidence of compliance with the provisions of this code, or evidence that a material or method does not conform to the requirements of this code, or in order to substantiate claims for alternative materials or methods, the building official shall have the authority to require tests as evidence of compliance to be made at no expense to the jurisdiction. Test methods shall be as specified in this code or by other recognized test standards. In the absence of recognized and accepted test methods, the building official shall approve the testing procedures. Tests shall be performed by an approved agency. Reports of such tests shall be retained by the building official for the period required for retention of public records.

From the 2006 IBC

104.11 Alternative materials, design and methods of construction and equipment. The provisions of this code are not intended to prevent the installation of any material or to prohibit any design or method of construction not specifically prescribed by this code, provided that any such alternative has been approved.

An alternative material, design or method of construction shall be approved where the building official finds that the proposed design is satisfactory and complies with the intent of the provisions of this code, and that the material, method or work offered is, for the purpose intended, at least the equivalent of that prescribed in this code in quality, strength, effectiveness, fire resistance, durability and safety.

104.11.1 Research reports. Supporting data, where necessary to assist in the approval of materials or assemblies not specifically provided for in this code, shall consist of valid research reports from approved sources.

104.11.2 Tests. Whenever there is insufficient evidence of compliance with the provisions of this code, or evidence that a material or method does not conform to the requirements of this code, or in order to substantiate claims for alternative materials or methods, the building official shall have the authority to require tests as evidence of compliance to be made at no expense to the jurisdiction. Test methods shall be as specified in this code or by other recognized test standards. In the absence of recognized and accepted test methods, the building official shall approve the testing procedures. Tests shall be performed by an approved agency. Reports of such tests shall be retained by the building official for the period required for retention of public records.

INSURANCE AND FINANCING

See http://sbregistry.greenbuilder.com – the International Straw Bale Registry sponsored by The Last Straw journal, Greenbuilder.com, Development Center for Appropriate Technology and the Texas straw-bale association as a resource and research database pertaining to straw-bale building, including buildings open for tours and visits, descriptions of design, construction, materials, special features and those who were involved in the building project, including homeowners, owner/builders, insurance, mortgage lenders, builders, architects and others.

When planning and building a straw-bale building, it is best to make contacts early in the process about liability insurance coverage during construction as well as homeowners coverage after the building is completed.

Homeowners insurance is available for straw-bale homes and insurance coverage for other straw-bale buildings is available also. Independent insurance agents and companies may be more likely sources, but many other companies offer homeowners and liability insurance.

Many straw-bale buildings are owner-financed or built on a pay-as-you-go basis, but as strawbale and natural building become more popular and generally accepted many structures have been financed through mortgage lenders, banks, credit unions, state and federal funding for housing, and other sources.

Contact your local sources to determine your best options. You may want to prepare detailed financial calculations and a budget for the project before approaching these groups and institutions. And you will need to be well versed about straw-bale projects in your immediate area, identify comparables from real estate companies, if possible, and have already contacted your local codes official about regulations and permits so that you know the project can be permitted.

No, this is not the house. We don't have a picture of a bale house on fire!

This story is a reluctant one about a house comprised of both wood-framed and straw bale walls lost to a fire. The structure was built over a longer period of time than most main-stream homes.  The different phases incorporated the most appropriate materials at the time for the owners. We are excluding specific reference to the owners and the location of the building due to privacy concerns. For this article we will say that the building is in the central U.S. at approximately 8000 ft elevation and the Owner’s name is Bob. In the end, it really does not matter who owns the home or exactly where it is. What we will focus on is the performance of the bale walls in the fire, the aftermath, and how the owners and insurance company feel about the whole incident.

The building was an un-permitted residence in a rural mountainous area. As mentioned above, some of the walls were wood-framed, others were built with bales. The bale portion of the structure was round, approximately 26′ in diameter, on a foundation that was an 8″x18″ concrete grade-beam supported by concrete pillars, with a yurt-style roof which included a “tension-ring” cable. The bale walls were Nebraska-Style (no posts) and had a 2×6 box-beam for the top plate with plywood on the bottom but not the top. The box-beam was filled with rigid foam insulation. Both the interior and exterior surfaces of the bale walls were covered with cement-based plaster. Two coats were present on the exterior and one coat was completed on the interior. There were relatively small areas not plastered on the interior, but the location of these un-plastered areas were not specified in my conversation with Bob.

The fire was started in the crawl-space of the framed portion of the structure by accident. It quickly spread throughout the framed structure and overtook the occupants who had to flee for their safety.  Bob is a local volunteer firefighter who was overcome with smoke inhalation and had to be taken away for medical care. He was present for a majority of the fire and taken away before it was extinguished. However, he has some interesting comments regarding the bale walls, how they performed and how they were affected by the fire. The family lost everything to the fire and is now picking through the remains.

The fire quickly engulfed all of the wood-framed structure and spread to the floor and then the roof of the round bale structure. The roof of the round structure collapsed inside the bale walls but the bale walls themselves were still standing when the fire department , hampered by by the long driveway and 18″ of fresh snow, arrived on the scene 50 minutes after the fire started.   Due to smoldering straw the fire department felt compelled to knock the bale walls down to access smoldering area within the walls.  Eventually all the bale walls were knocked down and all of the smoldering extinguished. This process took five days after the initial incident.

Bob commented about how fast the areas with no plaster ignited compared to the bale walls covered with plaster. The windows and doors had been framed using standard wood bucks. These, in addition to the wood box-beam, became the main avenues for the fire to spread into the bale walls. It appeared that the fire moved down from the top and in from the window and door bucks. Had these areas been plastered, or concrete bucks used, Bob feels the bale walls may have been spared.

Due to the generally impenetrable nature of the walls they seemed to act as barriers to heat-flow in both beneficial and detrimental ways.  Bob had installed his solar PV array 10 feet from the bale structure. The PV panels were virtually unharmed due to the shielding nature of the bale walls. His wood-framed shop, situated approximately 30 feet from the framed portion of the residence, ended up burning to the ground from direct exposure to the heat of the fire. The drawback was that Bob felt the bale walls created an oven-like effect within the building, holding heat inside, keeping the temperature very high.  As a result, one of the losses was the family safe which was supposedly fire-proof.  It was unable to withstand the “heat-trap” surrounded and created by the bale walls.  From these accounts, It is clear that the bale walls have a very significant heat-shielding effect during a major fire event.

The entire structure was insured by Allstate Insurance.  Bob was honest with them at the time of insuring the building and did not hide the fact that part of the building incorporated bale walls.  Allstate did not seem to make a big deal of the fact either then or now.  It appears they are making a pay-out on the insurance policy.  This is good news to bale building owners everywhere.  An insurance company had the capacity to not focus on the fact that some of the exterior walls were made of straw and plaster.  It is not clear if they understood how stable the walls were during the fire since they did not collapse, like the rest of the structure.  The fact that the bale walls did not contribute to serious problems was probably one reason for the lack of focus.

Being a volunteer firefighter Bob was frustrated he could not help fight the fire that destroyed his own home.  He understood that following orders from his fellow firefighters to seek help for his smoke inhalation was the right thing to do.  When asked about how the fire was suppressed in the bale walls and why it took so long, it became clear that the ongoing smoldering was not going to stop on it’s own.  The walls needed to be broken up in order to access all of the smoldering spots.

It seems that there is a pattern among bale buildings that are engulfed by flames.  The walls remain standing as long as anyone is willing to let them stand.  The main reason they are taken down is to gain access to smoldering areas within the walls so as to eliminate any risk of spread and the accidental ignition of other fires elsewhere.  The fact that bale walls are very effective heat shields makes them good fire-separation wall candidates between living units, or uses, within a structure.  They remain stable throughout the fire event, which cannot be said of steel or wood-framed walls in low-rise residential or commercial construction.  The fact that they tend to smolder and require maintenance for days after the initial fire event costs money and resources, but weighed against the fact that they do not fail catastrophically means that they may be considered as life-safety elements in buildings with many uses and occupancies.

The lessons learned in this building are that bale walls are incredibly stable during a fire event, offer a thick shield to retard flame-spread, and are tough to dismantle, requiring many days and resources by the local fire department.  When put together it seems that the bale walls themselves had a much better track record than any other part of the structure.  Feel free to comment or add to the discussion by logging in and submitting your thoughts.

Bob says he will not rebuild with bales mainly due to the huge amount of labor involved.  He will probably choose to build with some form of ICF (insulated concrete form) and steel.  He and his family enjoyed their bale home, but the time and labor necessary do not seem as realistic the second time around.

All fires in bale buildings are felt throughout the community as a serious and deep loss.  Even though we do not wish for them there is a great deal to learn from each and every one.  We hope this account will help firefighters, insurers, designers and homeowners make the best decisions possible.  Please comment below and participate in the conversation.  We are interested in your thoughts.  Email the author with any specific question for the owner offline.

This is the second of a two-part article on creating a poured adobe or earth floor. See Earth Floor, TLS#52, for the first article describing how to prepare for and install a poured adobe floor.

By Tom Lander – New Mexico, USA

Now, weeks later after your floor is 100 percent dry, it’s time to seal and fill the floor with Linseed oil. Here in the South West our floors can dry in a matter of a few weeks but in humid climates error on the safe side.

Materials:

Linseed oil. We prefer raw linseed oil, less petroleum additives then the common boiled linseed oil but the boiled works if you are not concerned about petroleum out gassing. Even raw linseed oil has carcinogenic warning labels. Ask for an MSDS sheet. Linseed oil is made from flax seed.

Citrus Solvent (thinner) or mineral spirits, again petroleum out gassing

We are still learning how to estimate coverage and quantity so I’m not sure how much material is needed for your size floor. Maybe buy 2 gallons each for starters; you can buy linseed oil in 5-gallon lots.

Equipment:

4” paintbrushes, natural bristle is always best but pricey

Electric hot plate or gas camp stove

Large pot or kettle

Approved vapor mask

Safety glasses or goggles

Fan for air circulation/expelling fumes if you feel this is necessary

Rags,

Gloves

Prep floor:

Sweep or vacuum any loose debris and dust. You might want to do a light mopping or sponging. Give yourself time for the moisture to dry before applying the oil.

Procedure:

Heat the linseed oil to almost boiling (do not boil). We are just trying to heat the oil to aide in soaking, absorbing in. This must be done outside with caution, flammable. Another option is to pour the oil into a large deep baking pan, cover with a piece of glass and let it sit out in the sun. Leave an air gap. With either method start with a small batch to get the hang of heating and applying.

Transfer the oil into a suitable container. You can paint the material on or if you are quick, you can pour some onto the floor and swoosh it around with the brush. The only risk here is that you will not get an even distribution of material. Try it. Be consistent and watch how the floor is absorbing. If more than one person is applying, then you might get varying results but by the time you are done it shouldn’t matter. Use up your first small amount then decide how much more (a large batch) to heat for your next go at it. For reference keep track of how much material you use for each coat and offer this info to others.

The floor will soak up this first coat and there should not be any pooling of the oil on the surface. Plan your route of attack so you end up working yourself out the door, window or hallway. You should be able to go back to the start and do a second full strength coat right a way. Remember your shoes will be picking up dirt and dust from the outside so take steps to minimize this. There are disposable booties one can buy to cover their shoes.

What we are trying to do is seal the floor but think of it more like filling the floor. Filling all the little air voids between the sand and clay particles with oil.

The floor will dictate the timing and how much material. Watch how the material soaks in. You might be able to continue with more heated, thinned coats the same day, unless you are tired or sick from the fumes and not wearing a vapor mask.

Diluting:

The first two coats can be applied full strength. For the third and fourth coat combine 75% oil with 25% thinner, heat and apply. Watch the absorption, watch for pooling or puddling but also give the material some time to soak in; you just don’t want it to dry on the surface. Have a rag and thinner handy to wipe up any excess otherwise the material dries on the floor and becomes sticky. If this happens then it’s quite a job to use thinner and rags to clean the floor. Apply at least two coats of this first diluted mix.

Next is a 50% to 50% heated mix. Hopefully by now you have learned if pouring and brushing works for you (certainly faster) or just brushing or maybe it’s time now to just brush. Isn’t this fun learning as you go? Like all earthen materials, they tell you when and what to do, what’s the word? Experience.

Remember, oily rags and brushes are flammable so hang out to dry and do not leave a pile of rags unless it’s in the middle of a gravel driveway and you want to have some fun.

www.bioshieldpaint.com

Sunny Side http://www.gillroys.com

This article appeared in TLS #59

by Tim Beatley – Virginia, USA
Reprinted with permission from Residential Architect magazine, November 2005.

We live in disconnected times. We occupy space but know little about it. Instead of joining communities or neighborhoods, we buy houses and make real estate investments.

Sustainable design offers us the chance to rekindle these lost connections, to rebuild knowledge of place. New residential development is commonly thought to bring more cars and traffic, higher taxes, overcrowded schools, diminished views, and open spaces. But there is a way to turn this around – if we can imagine new growth connecting with and strengthening our sense of place. This kind of green design might take many forms, but just a few possibilities are mentioned here.

Acting locally

One idea is to locally source building materials. In our globalized economy, such materials can originate hundreds or thousands of miles away from where they are eventually installed or assembled. They contain a high embodied energy, and their extraction often entails substantial ecological impact. Paradoxically, much of the practice of green building has emphasized materials, such as bamboo flooring, that are transported great distances.

We need to look much closer to home, to materials that nurture local livelihoods and reconnect us to place and land. An innovative sustainable wood initiative here in Virginia holds some clues and offers some inspiration. Operated by Appalachian Sustainable Development (ASD), it supports the local economy by working with small wood-lot owners who are willing to manage and harvest sustainably. The wood produced is beautiful, durable, and distinctive (more of the tree is used, with knotty “character” wood a key result), and it is certified under ASD’s Sustainable Wood label. It is then dried in a solar- and wood-waste-powered kiln and cut into flooring at ASD’s mill.

My family and I recently installed ASDcertified white-ash flooring in our home. As a result, I know where the wood was grown, and I have some assurance that the result for the landscape is not destructive but rather restorative. In this case, a sustainable material close to home was actually less expensive than its standard commercial alternative. It is a small expression of commitment to
sustainability but an important step on the way to a deeper connection and duty to place.

Using local materials is a growing practice in sustainable design communities. Innovative green projects like BedZED, the Beddington Zero Energy Development in the London borough of Sutton, have explicit targets for local materials. At BedZED, more than half of the building materials arrive from sources within a 35-mile radius of the site. Wood siding comes from local municipal forests, bricks from a local brick company.

In Western Australia, there has been a creative effort to nurture furniture building and wood artistry. Rather than exporting logs (or allowing them to be converted to low-value wood chips and then exported), there is a growing sentiment that these resources can be the foundation of a highvalue-added, labor-intensive economy, of which sustainably managed forests can serve as a linchpin. Among other steps, a forest heritage center and school of fine furniture making has been established there, and the number of outlets for locally made wood products and crafts is growing.

Much of our food comes from very far away. It typically travels some 1,500 miles from where it is grown to where it is eaten, according to the 2001 report “Food, Fuel, and Freeways,” and we are usually oblivious to these origins. New developments could begin to think more carefully about the food needs of their future residents, perhaps developing long-term relationships with local growers. This is essentially the concept of Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) residents buy a share in a local farm that provides (often delivered) a basket or box full of produce each week during the growing season. CSA farms are growing in popularity – there are now more than 1,500 of them nationally – and they could be offered as part of the package that goes along with a new home (or at least as an option).

Designing in opportunities to grow food directly is another way of promoting sustainability (and healthier living), strengthening place, and re-earthing us. This is a trend in Europe, where ecological, mixed-use projects such as Viikki in Helsinki, Finland, have left green fingers between major buildings for garden plots. Single-family homes might be designed to facilitate this as well. A model sustainable home in the Perth, Australia, suburb of Subiaco, for instance, includes extensive edible landscaping and a built-in raised-bed vegetable garden in its backyard. The garden is large enough to produce all the vegetables a typical family needs.

Energy use is another way to reconnect with local places. Every place has opportunities to generate its own power, whether through wind, sunlight, or biomass. Strong European examples exist of communities that have been able to redirect community resources to local energy production. In Aeroe Island, Denmark, which aspires to be 100 percent energy independent, small power plants generate energy from the sun and from locally grown straw and hay. Expenditures for energy stay local and help to strengthen, not diminish, the region’s economy.

A more urban example is the redeveloped district of Vastra Hamnen in Malmo, Sweden, where a variety of renewable energy technologies and design ideas have been incorporated into dense housing and the ambitious goal of 100 percent renewable energy from local sources has been met.  Energy production is a visible element of the community, with vertical solar hot-water-heating panels feeding into a district heating grid.

BedZED again offers inspiration with an on-site combined-heat-and power plant fueled by wood waste from tree trimmings. In Freiburg, Germany, the Solar-Fabrik solar-technology factory burns oil from locally grown rapeseed in a carbon-neutral cycle, further demonstrating the power of combining green and local.

The energy consumed by residents and the embodied energy associated with new building materials might also be compensated for in ways that creatively restore and renew bioregions. In the U.K., the Carbon Neutral Company works with banks and building societies to offer a carbon neutral mortgage, which provides for the planting of enough trees to cover the carbon footprint of the home and lifestyle of its occupants. In Australia, similarly, several banks are now offering carbon-neutral car loans. Habitat and place restoration can happen in many ways, of course, but local tree planting holds potential for productively harnessing the green sensibilities of people on behalf of place.

In an increasingly turbulent and globalized world, rebuilding lost place and human connections in a host of creative ways provides solace, strength, and reassurance. Sustainable design must strive not only to reduce its overall ecological impact, but to do so in ways that enable us to be truly native to place.

Resources
Residential Architect magazine www.residentialarchitect.com

Appalachian Sustainable Development
www.asdevelop.org/sustainable_woods.html

www.bedzed.org.uk
Beddington Zero Energy Development, an environmentallyfriendly,
energy-efficient mix of housing and work space in
Beddington, Sutton, United Kingdom.

Viikki Eco Neighbourhood Blocks – Finland
www.cardiff.ac.uk/archi/programmes/cost8/case/holistic/viikki.html

Malmo, Sweden
naturalspace.com_broadband/swedentext.htm
The CarbonNeutral Company, United Kingdom
www.carbonneutral.com/pages/reducingCO2.asp

Sustainable Communities

Toward Sustainable Communities: Resources for Citizens and
Their Governments by Mark Roseland, Sean Connelly, David Hendrickson and Chris Lindberg.

Developing Sustainable Planned Communities by Richard
Franko, Jo Allen Gause, Jim Heid, and Steven Kellenberg.

Sustainable Communities: The Potential for Eco-neighbourhoods
by Hugh Barton.

Designing Sustainable Communities: Learning from Village
Homes by Michael Corbett, Judy Corbett, and Robert L. Thayer.

Fostering Sustainable Behavior: An Introduction to Communitybased
Social Marketing by Doug McKenzie-Mohr and William Smith.

Ecovillages: A Practical Guide to Sustainable Communities
by Jan Martin Bang.

Sustainable Communities: Learning from the Cohousing
Model by Grahm Meltzer.

Green Cities: A Guide for Sustainable Community Development
by Michael Bloomfield and Michael Lithgow.

Sustainable Communities Network www.sustainable.org
Links citizens to the resources they need to implement innovative processes/programs.

Intentional Communities www.ic.org
Information on ecovillages, cohousing, intentional communities, urban housing cooperatives and other related projects.

School of Living www.schoolofliving.org
Nurturing healthy, Community Land Trust Communities.

New Urbanism www.newurbanism.org
Many choices for living in more sustainable, convenient and comfortable places.

Tim Beatley is the Teresa Heinz Professor of Sustainable Communities at the University of Virginia. This article is based, in part, on ideas discussed in his book Native to Nowhere: Sustaining Home and Community in a Global Age (Island Press, 2004).
www.residentialarchitect.com

This article appeared in TLS #59.

Turko Semmes is a licensed general contractor from San Luis Obispo County, California, and one of the foremost experts in straw-bale building techniques.

A graduate from the Architecture Department of Cal Poly State University in 1978 with a degree in Construction Engineering, he has been self-employed since that time, running a custom home building business specializing in energy efficiency and sustainable building techniques. Turko is a co-founder of the California Straw Building Association. He has built several custom homes, agricultural buildings, and wineries throughout central California. He has taught classes and workshops on sustainable building systems to community groups and to students at the elementary, secondary, and university level. He is recognized as an expert on passive solar design concepts and other energy efficient techniques, as well as nontoxic and sustainable building materials.

The Semmes southwest-style straw-bale home (pictured here) is nestled in the Los Padres National Forest in a setting that joins nature with natural building. The courtyard/pool area is an inviting setting filled with flowers and hand-painted artwork at the main entry door leading to Turko’s office and the family den. The lower terrace provides space for relaxing poolside with an outdoor shower nearby. The upper terrace is a covered outdoor cooking and dining area. The formal living and dining rooms and the master bedroom face onto the meadow with views toward the mountains of the Santa Lucia Range. The cool and calming color palette of the master bedroom contrasts with the bright and lively colors of the other living spaces.

Turko Semmes, Semmes & Co. Builders, Inc., Atascadero CA
<turko@semmesco.com> www.semmesco.com
Photo credits: Semmes & Co. Builders, Inc.