Strawbale buildings are warm in winter and cool in summer. Natural materials are used to create beautiful, healthy homes with a low environmental impact. Highly affordable for self-builders, in professional construction, the relationship between quality, price, and long-term savings can easily be achieved. Straw bale is also especially suited to community-based projects as it generates curiosity and often needs groups of enthusiastic volunteers.
This guide gives detailed descriptions of how straw bales react to different applications and enables anyone to design and build these natural homes in other climates.
Included are:
- Step-by-step instructions for many processes
- Tips, tricks, advice, and warnings
- Over 600 photos, drawings, and diagrams
- Materials, tools, and building techniques
- Solutions to common problems
- Plans for a practice straw bale building
Since every build is unique (availability of materials, skills, budget, climate, etc.), many different and varied building techniques are explained. Self-builders will learn a vast array of skills and the confidence to build their own, while professionals will be enabled to successfully incorporate bale building into their portfolios.