Table of Contents

I The technology of straw bale building



1 Introduction



Purpose and objectives of this book

About the contents

Building with straw – a contribution to sustainability in construction

Further advantages of straw bale building

Objections and anxieties



2 History and profileration of straw bale building



Early buildings (1880-1970)

The development after 1980



3 Straw as building material



General facts

Straw bales

Straw panels



4 Wall construction systems using straw bales



Introduction to the construction systems

Load-bearing straw bale walls

Non-loadbearing straw bale walls

Facing straw bale layer as thermal insulation

Structural and dynamic aspects

Summary and comparison of the individual systems



5 Roof and floor construction with straw bales



Roof insulation

Floor constructions

Supplementary thermal insulation of existing structures



6 Physical aspects of straw bale building



Heat storage and heat conductivity

Thermal bridges

Thermal insulation

Moisture protection

Moisture balance

Wind and air tightness

Fire protection

Sound insulation



7 Designing a straw bale building



Special aspects of load-bearing straw bale walls

Special aspects of non-loadbearing straw bale walls

Detailing of foundations

Base details

Wall build-up

Wall junctions with foundation, base and floor

Ring beams

Windows and doors

Wall corners

Wall/roof junctions

Interior walls

Intermediate ceilings

Service ducts

Heavy-duty fixings in straw bale walls

Wall recesses



8 Surface protection and finishing works



Interior render

Exterior render

Paint coats

Water-repellent treatment

Weather boarding, facing and ventilated cladding



9 The building process



Supervision and co-ordination on site

Health and safety measures

Assessment of the quality of the bales

Supplementary compaction of the bales

Transport and storage

Separating of bales

Reshaping of bales

Bale installation

Wall reinforcement

Wall prestressing

Removal of deformations

Backfilling of joints and gaps

Cropping of bale surfaces

Rendering of the walls



10 Trial and error – an example



Preliminary note

Scheme design

Construction – the first attempt

Solving the problems – the second attempt



11 Building cost, insurance, planning permission



Building cost, expenditure of time and personal contribution

Insurance of building

Planning permission



 

II Built examples in detail



1 Residences



Residential building in Ouwerkerk, Zeeland, Netherlands



Residential building in Balneario Punta Ballena, Uruguay



Residential building in central Montreal, Canada



Prefabricated single-family home in Hitzendorf, near Graz, Styria, Austria



Single-family home in Dobersdorf, Burgenland, Austria



Urban cottage in Berkeley, California, USA



Single-family home in Bryson City, North Carolina, USA



Singe-family home with guest house, games room and garage in Galston, near Sidney, Australia



Single-family home in Lower Lake, California, USA



Single-family home at Lake Biwa, Japan



The Spiral House, Castlebar, County Mayo, Ireland



Load-bearing straw bale house in Disentis, Switzerland



Passive house in Cavan, Ontario, Canada



First straw bale house in Vienna, Austria



Single-family home in Blanden, Belgium



Low-energy house in Maria Laach, Austria



Passive house in Wienerherberg, Austria



 

2 Home and workplace



Trout Farm Complex, Tassaraja Canyon, California, USA



Residential and office building in London, Great Britain



Ulenkrug Farm, Stubbendorf, Mecklenburg-West Pomerania, Germany



Residential building for ethnic German resettlers, Wargoldshausen, Lower Franconia, Germany



The Woodage Sawmill in Mittagong, Australia



Straw bale dome as a rehearsal and performance space in Forstmehren, Westerwald, Germany



Farm and residential building near Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Franconia, Germany



House of a painter near Santa Cruz, California, USA



 

3 Educational and cultural buildings



Foothills Academy College Preparatory, Scottsdale, Arizona, USA



Real Goods Solar Living Center, Hopland, California, USA



International Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Center Lodge,

Val-Morin, Quebec, Canada



Waldorf school in Carbondale, Colorado, USA



Salem Childrens’ Village, Kaliningrad, Russia



Sanctuary House, Crestone, Colorado, USA



Vipassana Meditation Hall, Blackheath, Australia



 

III Appendices



Measures

Networks

Internet links

Bibliography

Acknowledgements

Illustration credits

About the Author

Professor Dr. Gernot Minke, Universität Kassel, Experte für nachhaltige Baumaterialien