It’s been a long time coming with the next step in our house building but this weekend we finally tackled drywall! We got most of the second floor finished with the help of my Dad and friend Phil who brought along his drywall gun. It sure made a difference and was much easier to use than my cordless drill/driver.

The drywall going up is one of those magical stages in construction that totally changes the character of a house. Rooms get closed off and start to feel like the spaces they will become. The house gets easier to envision with life and people inside it and you feel a lot closer to being done finally!

We should be able to finish most of the drywall evenings this week except for a few areas where the electricien didn’t put boxes in yet.

Phil and I put up the first sheet, Laine decided to focus on our butts instead of the drywall…

Dad and Phil continue with drywall as I finish up some last minute framing.

The all the drywall is done on the second floor except the inside of the bathroom and a small piece or two around electrical and plumbing rough-ins.

Dad and I check the pocket door framing for rigidity…

The window in our bedroom is framed perfectly by the doorway!

A bit of the drywall we got done on the first floor and probably the only full, unmodified sheet that will be put up!

The other bit we got done on the first floor, in the kitchen next to the door into the utility room.

Laine at the end of a hard working weekend!

The straw bales have gone in! Well most of them anyways. We had a great three days of weather and productive hard work this long weekend and almost all the bales are installed! As suspected the bales that needed to be cut and small areas requiring custom bales of stuffed flakes were the most time consuming taking up the lion’s share of the time. We learned a lot and gained insight into how we could make the process easier if we do this again in the future!

Tying the bales wasn’t nearly as difficult as I had thought it might have been. I’ll post some photos of how we tied knots later when I have more time. Also, chainsaws and bales are made for each other! I was sculpting bales with notches and grooves with my chainsaw with little deformation of the bales integrity. It’s all in knowing where to tie new strings and how to handle the cut bales.

Throughout this week we will be trying to get one wall ready for plaster and then continue the process around the building. So windows, trims, flashings, etc.. are next then spraying on the clay slip, hopefully all this weekend. We are going to have to look at getting temporary heat as this process has started way later than we would have liked. It may mean more tarps and perhaps temporary wall framing outside the building. I don’t like the thought of having to do it but reality is a harsh teacher!

Hopefully we’ll get as much help this weekend as we did last weekend! See you there!

(cross-posted at www.greenspree.ca )

In my last post about the house I mentioned that the bales would be arriving on the 18th or so, this alas did not happen. Our farmer had a trip he had to take for two weeks and on the 17th the flax was still not ready to cut. So we weighed our alternatives and started calling around to see if we could get another source. We did, and got three wagon loads of straw ables delivered over the last two weeks.

Last night we finally installed a few test bales to see how well our notching system would work. It needs to be fine tuned but everything is looking OK! We also tested out our home made “schutz gun” clay slip sprayer. It’s basically an undercoating spray gun used upside down with a large gravity fed hopper instead og the siphon feed it’s meant to employ. It cost $27 from Canadian Tire and it works great!

The other step forward we made was with the foundation insulation parging. We used three pails of Parge Plus over the rigid foam covering the foundation edges as cement parging will not adhere well to foam. What a nightmare! The product is thick and hard to work and sets up extremely fast! By the third bucket we had the hang of it but it was tough, slogging work!

And so we are making the last preparatory steps this week to go full out over the long (Thanksgiving) weekend installing the straw bales! I am hoping as many old friends and new ones stop by to help out or even just watch, leave a comment if you need directions, and i hope our house inspires people do make greener choices in the way they build their house!

(cross-posted at www.greenspree.ca)

Luc and Cheryl Gobeil exude an air of simplicity and normalcy as we tour the new off-grid home in St. Paul County, Alberta, that Luc designed and built for them over three summers. To design and build a house is an amazing feat for someone without a builder’s background, but to be responsible for the eye-catching 3200 square foot, built to last three centuries home we now sit in is nothing short of extraordinary. Still, the couple maintains that with extensive planning and research, building a green home just like the one at Sun Forged Acres is achievable for any green-enthused John or Jane Doe. I am left with a secret inner smile- there is hope for the lot of us!

“Why the fixation on such a long lifetime for the building?” I ask. Luc and Cheryl inform me that as original occupants of this home, they have the ability and therefore the responsibility to reduce the amount of waste it generates and to use the Earth’s resources wisely. Essentially, in nearly four generations, most of the home’s components will require far fewer replacements compared with a typical home. Luc and Cheryl will also be able to answer to their grandchildren when asked if they did their part to address current air pollution, climate change, and water scarcity challenges. Read the rest of this entry »

Solar Dehydrator Video

While the South enjoys the rebirth of Spring and the green it brings, the brave Canadian trundles out into the harsh elements to partake in the ancient tradition known as barbeque season. This season why not create your own green alternatives?

Use Mother Nature’s number one resource - the sun, to create fantastic meals and at the same time reconnect with the outdoors and neighbours (that you haven’t seen since the first snow fall) while savouring the taste of fire-roasted treats, dried fruit snacks or a solar roasted meal made in your very own solar oven! Read on for six exciting ways to green your cuisine this summer.

Read the rest of this entry »

It seems the straw bales will be cut by the middle of next week as long as the weather cooperates! If the long range forecast is correct we’ll be getting our bales before Wednesday!

That means we’ll be starting some bale installation on Wednesday with the main bale raising and stucco party happening on the weekend of the 22nd and 23rd.

All are welcome to come out and help or just watch and learn, or just hang out! There very well could be snacks, you definately should bring your own chairs, beverages, and work clothes/gloves if you want to get hands on.

Check out these links for what a bale raising entails:

http://stonehousestrawhouse.blogspot.com/2006_09_01_archive.html

http://heatkit.com/html/strawagb.htm

http://www.mhc.com/Maine/

http://www.firstraven.com/sstowell/House/house.html

http://www.everdale.org/index.php?module=Everdale&type=user&func=displayMenu&menuId=20

The event is not structured, there are no set hours, we will be working essentially first thing in the morning until the light fails every day for the entire weekend (and the week before and after for that matter!) No need to call before hand (we won’t have a phone on us at the site anyways) just show up!

Last week I was on vacation and we started framing work on the house. We started Saturday morning (Sept 1) with this:

And ended last night (Sept 9) with this:

The framing of the house was planned so that a 18-19 inch straw bale stacked vertically will fit snugly between the studs spaced at 19.2″ centers. We also lined up all structural elements from the trusses to the studs and floor beams for a direct transmission of forces through to the ground.

The second floor was made of 4×8 spruce beams spaced at 19.2″ c/c and topped with 2×6 T&G v-joint spruce with the v-joint pointed down to become the ceiling of the first floor with exposed beams and the flat side up to be the finish floor of the second floor. All boards were toenailed and then set through the tougue so there are no exposed fasteners.

We have the roof up and sheathed, and only have the gable end walls on the second floor left to frame. With a week or two left before the straw is baled we are busy busy busy!

(cross-posted at www.greenspree.ca)

Expand your living space with a straw bale garage

Start Small With Straw
If straw bale building peaks your interest, you’re certainly not alone. From beginnings in Nebraska in the 1800’s, it has gained considerable ground across North America in the 80s and 90s with an estimated 100+ straw bale buildings rising just in Ontario since the mid 1990s! Now, Canadians are choosing the straw bale path because it offers great insulative benefits and its fundamental elements are locally available natural building blocks.

Still others are getting their feet wet with straw bale for smaller structures like sheds and garages.Building a standard garage typically costs about $45 per square foot including materials and labour. A straw bale garage should compare at $50-$70 per square foot, and will take about twice the amount of time to build as a standard garage or more. Of course, it is misleading to compare the two just on price, because to achieve the level of insulation offered by a straw bale garage (twice that of a typical house), a conventional wood garage would need thicker walls and more insulation, sending the price skyward. So, why bother?

Now more than ever Canadians are placing a higher priority on their environmental values, and it shows through in the choices they make at home. Building a straw bale house or garage isn’t just better for the environment; it’s a great way to meet other people curious about straw bale building during workshops and building-bees. Straw bale walls also possess their own beauty and uniquely sculpted aesthetic, creating a calming and tranquil ambience between rounded window wells and coved corners. For the especially inspired, they can even be custom crafted with built-in light sconces, braided-clay trim, or shelving cubbies.

On the more practical side, adding a new garage or a replacing one that has seen better days typically increases the value of your home approximately dollar for dollar. In other words, by adding a garage to your property, you can sell your home at a higher price- and you may even get some of your investment back. Still, a straw bale building is a labour of love and will likely remain a treasure on your property many years after it is built.

Why is it green?
• Local materials
Buying locally keeps wealth circulating in your neighbourhood and prevents transportation-related emissions from being released into the atmosphere. Since straw is an agricultural by-product that can be grown virtually anywhere, bales are a logical and accessible choice.

• Saves Energy
When installed properly, straw bales are exceptionally insulative, and can offer R-values of R32 to R40 - or R-2.4- to R3.0 per inch! This reduces a home’s heating requirements and saves money on utility bills. For conventional wood-frame houses to compete on that level becomes costly. With ever-rising heating costs and growing public concern about energy issues and climate change, straw bale building has never looked better.

• Saves Wood
According to a study by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, a load-bearing straw-bale building can be built with about 48% less wood than a conventional stick-frame building of comparable size. Even with a post and beam or stick-framed straw bale building there are still savings on wood requirements because interior and exterior walls tend to be finished with clay plasters or other alternatives, rather than wood OSB panels (oriented strand board) or plywood and siding. This makes for more trees left standing, which is always an environmental plus. However, more wood is required for larger roofs to protect natural clay plaster.

• Natural and non-toxic Materials
Ever heard of sick building syndrome? When we build and renovate our homes with highly manufactured and unnatural materials, we may be exposing our families to potentially harmful chemicals and substances, and contributing to this illness. As a result indoor air quality and our health can suffer. Non-natural materials can also be difficult to reuse, recycle, remanufacture, or break down in nature. When installed and maintained properly, natural home building materials can protect you from the outdoor elements and from indoor air and moisture problems. Whereas concrete and stucco prevent moisture from escaping the walls, clay plaster draws that same moisture out.

Case Study

Nestled in Edmonton’s mature Westmount neighbourhood Chris Voninnerebner and Christine Miller are proud owners of a newly built straw bale studio. The couple’s aging garage needed replacing, and Chris saw the opportunity to work from home in a new studio space right on the property. As an artist and designer of unique concrete-based furniture and garden accessories, Chris needed a bright space to create, cure, and store his pieces. Working from home would offer added benefits of saving him money on studio rental and gas, not to mention time for daily commuting.

Chris and Christine chose straw bale over conventional wood construction because the high R-value of straw bales will keep Chris’s work space comfy and warm in the winter, and cool during hot summer days. They also liked the idea of building with natural materials like straw and clay. Having a seasoned straw bale builder for a close friend and some experience working on other builds helped them make their choice.

The 23 by 25 foot studio offers just over 500 square feet of interior space with two columns of glass blocks, and a large salvaged window that overlooks the creatively landscaped yard of this character home. It was built with a single garage door on a well-insulated polished concrete pad soon to be warmed with electrical in-floor heating. On the outside it looks like a normal garage with earth-coloured stucco finish and stylish glass-block columns. Inside, the beauty of rounded straw bale curves and the meticulous effort taken in texturing the walls make it eye-catchingly beautiful. It’s an inspiring backdrop of natural materials and soft lines for Chris’s creative work process.

In terms of environmental performance, the studio boasts a high R-value in the walls estimated at between R-32 and R-40, with R-40 insulation above the ceiling to match. This will ease the heating load for the electrical in-floor heating system. In an early test of the building’s efficiency, Christine recalls how warm the studio was in mid-February with just a space heater: “we couldn’t believe it - it was warmer in there than in the house!” They also made sure that a salvaged door and window were accommodated early in the design process, and used reclaimed wood to build concrete forms. Local bales were used instead of manufactured insulation, with recycled cellulose insulation in the ceiling. Given that siding and sheathing for the exterior walls were not needed, there were also substantial wood savings.

While Chris and Christine are already using the studio, they are looking forward to the plum-tinted exterior finishing coat and electrical hook-up. Getting a permit for the building was simple because they chose a standard wood-frame construction style with straw as insulation, rather than a structural element. When asked about their experience, they speak glowingly about their straw bale builder, the pleasant feel of the space, and how even though building with straw bales takes extra time and work, it’s worth it. For those undertaking a similar project, they offer the following words of wisdom:
• Find an excellent builder who you know or who comes highly recommended. Ask for references and make sure there’s a good fit before signing on.
• Be prepared to invest a lot of work and time.
• If you have other renovation projects you’re working on, complete them before starting your straw bale garage to maintain a manageable workload.
• Get informed and connected at the outset. You will need the support and guidance of those who have done it before. Contacting skilled friends or trades people in advance will also save time.

Finding the Right Straw Bale Builder
The success of your project has almost everything to do with the builder you work with. Mario Houle offers the following tips to consider when interviewing potential builders:
• Ask for references and speak with clients about their experience and satisfaction levels.
• Ask for photos and examples of previous projects. Knowing how many homes or buildings the builder has built will also help you gauge experience levels.
• Assess how excited the builder is about your project. If there is a lack of enthusiasm, keep looking.
• Ensure the prospective builder is well aware of these important dos and don’ts:
• Do not use rebar. It creates condensation, and will rot your bales. New books and publications still advocate the use of rebar, so beware.
• Ensure that the roof is designed with a long overhang to protect exterior walls finished with natural clay plaster.
• Use waterproof materials like durock, stone, slate, brick, flashing or parching one metre from the ground up to protect against snow moisture.
• Avoid flax bales as they are flammable and draw oil into clay plaster.
• Always consider how to protect against moisture at every step of building process.
• Remember that small is beautiful, and offers savings in heating and materials.

Getting Started
Straw bale builder Mario Houle recommends that home-owners learn as much as possible about straw bale building when getting started. Luckily, there are plenty of resources available online, at your public library, and the local bookstore. But don’t stop there. Speak to people living in straw bale homes and to experienced straw bale builders. You are guaranteed to benefit from their experience. By far the most empowering way to learn is through experience. Look for workshops and work-bees held by individuals or organizations in your province. In addition to gaining skills and know-how, you’ll also cultivate your community and social network!

Design Considerations
The design approach you choose will depend on the functions you’d like your space to have, your budget, and your preferred aesthetic style. Your options include designing the building from scratch, purchasing existing plans, or modifying a conventional garage kit plan. At this stage you should carefully reflect and decide on the type of space you need versus any time, space, or cost limitations.

Custom-designing your garage will bring costs upward, but can allow you to creatively incorporate special features like greenhouses or second-floor workshops, studios, home offices, or in-law suites. A custom-designed building can also help you maximize your site’s passive solar heating potential. Purchasing existing plans and kits can greatly simplify your design process, and will save you time and money. The trade-off is a structure less capable of adapting to your unique needs. Remember, insulating to a really high R-value only really makes sense if you will be spending a lot of time in that space. Consult with builders and architects to help you weigh your options. Finally, ask your local planning and development office about zoning restrictions that may affect your plans for additional features such as suites.

What professionals need to be involved?
Depending on your skill level in construction, you may choose to complete many or all of the building stages yourself. This will save you a lot of money, but as with anything else be prepared to invest a significant amount of time. If you are fortunate enough to have friends or family members skilled in building trades who are willing to help you, you are sure to have a more affordable and manageable project on your hands. For beginner builders or those with no construction know-how, finding knowledgeable and reliable professionals to work with is crucial.
Consider Professional Help:

Design
Excavation and foundation work
Framing
Electrical
Door and window installation
Roof assembly and roofing
Interior and exterior finishing

Locating Materials
Where possible, source out eco-friendly materials and components for your garage. Check with farm and feed supply stores, farmer’s market vendors, garden centers or animal shelters when ordering your bales. You will need to make contact with your source as early on so that enough bales are produced tight and dry enough for building purposes.

For your foundation and driveway, find out if any local concrete contractors offer flyash concrete, which is a concrete mix that replaces up to 35% of the Portland cement with ash from coal-fired electricity plants. This diverts flyash from the waste stream, and saves the energy that would have been required to produce more virgin material. If you have a hard time finding material sources, try your local provincial or regional chapter of the Canada Green Building Council for leads.

Before you buy lumber for framing the garage, consider using FSC or Forest Stewardship Council certified wood. Lumber with this certification is verified to have come from sustainably managed forests. Finding FSC wood can be difficult, but distribution is growing in response to demand, so continue to ask for it. Certain locations of Home Depot will carry FSC certified 2×4 studs as well as other lumber products, but you will need to inquire in advance and speak to the store about your needs.

Alberta-based, Panel Source International ships a wide variety of FSC wood products for orders across the continent, with distribution in various Alberta retail outlets projected in late summer of 2007. These include dimensional lumber or studs of various sizes, structural panels like sheathing, plywood, siding, MDF (medium density fibreboard), spruce siding and more. Consumers can expect to pay 5-10% more than conventional lumber prices for FSC certified wood, but it’s a small price to pay to keep our forests standing and sustainable.

There are even greener options for roofing to consider. Standard asphalt shingles or tar and gravel roofs are known to off-gas under the beating sun and are messy and unpleasant at best to install. They also require the use of adhesives which can damage the lungs and central nervous system. Look for the following alternatives in your area:

Slate Roofing
Concrete Tile Roofing
Clay Roofing
Lead-free Metal Roofing
Fiber-cement Composite Roofing
Recycled Plastic or Rubber Roofing
Green Roof
Solar Shingles
Recycled Asphalt Shingles

Challenges
As with any building system, there are pros and cons. Each one is different, offering unique considerations, challenges and opportunities. When it comes to straw bale building, the disadvantages and considerations include:
• cost
• work and time-intensive
• thicker walls makes for a loss of interior square footage
• roofs need longer overhangs if clay plaster is used
• need to take extra preventive measures to take care of moisture
• there are some design limitations, however with siding almost any style can be used with straw bale
• naturally plastered walls can not be washed as readily. Those with a concern about washing walls should apply a lime plaster finish
• requires more maintenance than with drywall

In the End…
A straw bale garage could be a perfect starting place for you to dabble in the art of natural building. Or, it may well be the most fitting answer to a simple need for a backyard workshop, home office or car port. Whatever your situation may be, remember to enjoy your journey, the friends you make along the way, and the beautiful new space you’ve gained as a result. And, be sure to pay it forward by helping others with their own straw bale endeavours.

© Raisingspaces.com 2007

Straw bale Resources

British Columbia
http://www.sustainableworks.ca/calendar.php Workshops in British Columbia
http://www.cotr.bc.ca/natural/ College of the Rockies Natural Building program

Prairies
http://www.greenplanethomes.ca/ Saskatchewan company offering seminars in various locations
http://ecobuildings.net/index.php Alberta straw bale builder and workshop facilitatorhttp://www.trimlinedesigncentre.com/page.php?102 Edmonton-based renewable energy training centre also offering straw bale courses.

Ontario
http://www.straw balebuilding.ca/ Ontario Straw bale Building Coalition
http://www.strawhomes.ca/ Camel back construction
http://www.everdale.org/index.php Environmental learning centre with workshops on straw bale building and other related topics

Quebec
Know of a great Canadian resource on straw bale building that’s not listed above? Submit it below!Maritimes
http://abridesign.com/abri.htm Sustainable Design and Consulting company in Nova Scotia

Nunavut and Territories
Know of a great Canadian resource on straw bale building that’s not listed above? Submit it below!

Learn More Online
http://www.thelaststraw.org/ The International Quarterly Journal of Straw Bale and Natural Building
http://www.balewatch.com/ Straw bale house plans
http://sbregistry.greenbuilder.com/ International Straw bale building directory

Did you know….

Under the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s Residential Rehabilitation Assistance Program (RRAP), home owners and entrepreneurs may qualify for a fully forgivable loan of between $24000 and $36000 to create a secondary suite or garden suite for low-income adults, seniors, or people with disabilities. To find out more, contact your local CMHC office. http://www.cmhc-schl.gc.ca/en/corp/cous/cous_014.cfm

(cross-posted at www.greenspree.ca )

It’s been a long time since I’ve updated the status of our house project, one of the reasons being that we have been very busy!

As of Tuesday, we have our septic system and well installed, temporary power installed and foundation formed/poured c/w air circulation ducts and coloured hardener.

Some communication and weather issues have left us about a week or two behind, but we are hoping that won’t affect the straw bale raising date. The weekend I was to start forming the slab on grade, I went paintballing with my wife’s younger brother and severely sprained my ankle. The ER doctors the next day suspected a torn ligement or ruptured tendon and it was nearly a full two weeks before I could walk again or spend any time on my feet.

Fortunately my wife and father-in-law were able to pick up my slack and I spent as much time doing stationary prep work in the shop cutting stakes and what not. They did all the hard work of driving stakes in and levelling and installing the form lumber. I spent time cutting the ICF’s to work as edge forms, precutting and drilling the cast in sill plates and bending the corner rebar pieces.

Gradually as my ankle healed I could do more work like spreading gravel and placing the ICF’s. Meanwhile our well driller, septic system installer and plumber were drilling the well, running water lines, laying out the tile field and placing the septic tank and placing the underslab drainage pipes.

The tiring process of spreading and levelling 18 tons of drainage gravel then began! With a lot of help and a laser level we got the gravel fairly level and even. This was immediatly followed with vapour barrier and 2″ type 2 rigid insulation. Finally the inslab components, 5″ air ducts, rebar etc. went in and we were ready for concrete! At the last minute we decided to run the propane for the cooktop, electrical entrance and wood stove fresh air intake through the slab and as the concrete pouring was delayed a week we had time to spare to accomplish this. Very importantly we wrapped the fresh air intake for the wood stove with insulation so it would not cause a cold strip in the floor.

The day of the pour was hot and sunny! Not the best weather for raking and finishing concrete but just great for us bystanders watching! We had originally planned on using colored concrete where the coloring agent was mixed into the concrete before placing, but with 20 cubic yards this was an expensive proposition, more than doubling the cost of the concrete. We also found you couldn’t get a really nice dark color with integrated colouring, so we went with a black brown coloured surface applied hardener which has the added benefit of making our floor much more durable.

So far this week we have had two deliveries of wood, including our locally milled 4×8 floor beams, and will start framing this weekend! I will be adding photos to illustrate the steps described above, as soon as I get a quiet moment to go through and select the appropriate shots!

(cross-posted at greenspree.ca)