Here’s some more information about the workshop I’ll be teaching in Hurley, New York this April 12th – 18th. You can sign up for this workshop or any of my workshops by visiting www.StrawBaleWorkshops.com. There is a lot of information on that website about the workshops, their cost, lodging, and more. Please check it out.

Hurley is an old, historic town in upstate New York. If you like history, this is a great place to visit. It’s also only a short drive to Woodstock, the location of some, uh, more modern history! It is, as so many straw bale workshop locations seem to be, a beautiful part of the country. Funnily enough, I’ve actually been to Hurley, many years ago. My father-in-law lived there for several years and I visited him one cold winter. I’m happy to not be building there in January and I expect it to be beautiful in April. Here’s what the host has to say about the project.
Read the rest or post a comment »

Many of you have been asking me about specific details of each workshop that I’m offering this year. I figured the best way to address this is for the hosts to tell you a little about their projects and the area in which the projects will take place. I’m going to start with the Montana workshop because it’s on its way to being full. I imagine that some of you are considering attending but have not yet made up your mind. That’s fine, and I hope that the details of this entry help you make your decision to attend. Like I said, the spots are going fast, so don’t wait too long to decide.

I’ll write more posts about each workshop over the next few days, so stay tuned to learn about each location and what’s in store.

So first of all, this workshop is in Missoula. How cool is that? A straw bale workshop in downtown Missoula! I expect there will be some local interest in the project and the workshop and wouldn’t be surprised if we get some news coverage as well. I’ve been to Montana several times in my life and I love it. You may have heard the term “Big Sky Country,” well it’s true. The sky really does seem bigger there. Why, I don’t know, but it is some beautiful country for sure. Okay, enough from me, here’s what the hosts have to say about the project and the location.
Read the rest or post a comment »

I’ve just added another date to the 2010 workshop schedule.  If you’re on the East Coast and have been interested in taking one of my workshops, this is the workshop for you.  It is the only East Coast workshop I have planned for this year, so don’t miss out.  Click here to sign up today.  Keep reading for more information about the site and the workshop itself…

Read the rest or post a comment »

Hi everyone. Sorry if I have not responded to some of your comments. I have been responding for the last several weeks and only recently noticed that my comments were not being posted for some reason. Unfortunately, they were all lost! I’ll try and go through to discover where I missed a response, but that may be a losing battle as there are hundreds of posts and thousands of comments for me to look through. If you feel I did not respond to a question you’ve asked, please go back to the blog entry and ask your question again or simply submit a comment on the entry that says “see my comment above” and I’ll get back to you. Thanks for your patience!

I’m looking for feedback on whether this is a viable workshop scenario. I think it would be great, but I want to see what level of interest there is out there for such a topic.

I envision a shorter workshop, perhaps 4 days long. The project is a roughly 700 ‘ long by 4 1/2′ tall privacy wall in Sante Fe, New Mexico. We would complete some foundation work (the exact style of foundation is yet to be determined and we’re open to feedback and suggestions on that as well), install with the first the bales and any toe ups that would be required, water proof it as necessary, install wire mesh work, and plaster the entire wall with one coat.

Of course, 4 days may be wishful thinking, but with enough people, we can do it all!

We would provide all the meals, bathroom facilities, and a place to camp. You’d just have to come, learn, and have fun. I don’t have a price figured out yet, but I imagine it would be somewhere around $450-$500.

Please let me know what you think and if you’d be interested in attending. I think it would be a blast!

The most common time I am asked the question of how to identify moisture issues is when someone buys an existing straw bale house. Moisture is not often a problem in straw bale homes as long as the house was built well. That said, there may be issues that show up over time. Here are some basic things to consider when wondering about moisture issues in the home.
Read the rest or post a comment »

Hi everyone. The potential dates for upcoming workshops this year have changed. If you have been interested in hosting a workshop, please be sure to look at the new dates. If they do not work for you, please let me know and I can look into making some adjustments; however, these are the dates that work best for me and my family. Please visit www.StrawBaleWorkshops.com and view the “Host a Workshop” page to see the new dates.
Read the rest or post a comment »

I recently received an email from a woman looking for quality employment with an architectural firm that works in green design, especially straw bale. She sent me her resume and some sample projects and I was very impressed with both. She’s a recent graduate from the University of Texas at Austin with a masters in architecture. Prior to graduate school she worked at Daniel Smith and Associates (www.dsaarch.com) designing and building with straw bales.

If you’re interested in learning more about her, please comment here and I will get you in touch with her. Again, her work is very unique and beautiful, in my opinion.

Sometimes even the best planning can result in a mistake. For example, I recently heard from someone who purchased a house and found that there is no dryer vent through the straw bale wall to the exterior of the home.

Here’s a quick step by step guide to installing a vent after the fact. Be sure that you do this job with the power turned off to the house. I suggest you turn off all of the power, so there’s no risk of hitting a live wire buried in the bales.

It’s best to cut a larger hole than what you need as trying to cut a perfect size hole in a bale wall can be difficult. By all means, try it if you want as you can always enlarge your first attempt and continue with the method below. Much will depend on what size vent (or other protrusion you’re working with) you are trying to install. It will also depend on the density of your bales.

For the larger box method, start by using a rotary hammer drill with a chisel bit to remove the plaster. I suggest you score the outline of the area heavily with a scoring tool so that the plaster doesn’t continue to break in all directions as you go.

Cut out any mesh in the wall. Be sure to leave enough mesh when you cut it out to later anchor the framing that will go in the hole. You’ll need to bend it out of the way for now.

Use a chainsaw to plunge cut the straw out of the hole. Again, watch for wiring here!!!

Insert a small wood frame into the new hole and anchor it to the wall by attaching the bent back mesh to it.

Insert the dryer vent exterior wall fitting.

Insulate around the piping.

Trim out the new box with a wood detail, tile around the vent pie as necessary to hide the repair, or replaster the area with a skim coat over the entire wall to hide the repair.

Connect the dryer vent to the stub out.

Get going on the laundry that’s been piling up!

If you plan to build with bales, you absolutely must have a moisture meter with a probe. It is so valuable that I consider it a “must have,” not a “it would be cool to have” tool.
Read the rest or post a comment »

There are many catch-words used these days to describe energy efficient homes built with natural materials and respect for the land: green, eco-friendly, passive solar, low impact, non-toxic. The property described here is all of these things plus the energy of the artist-owner-builders and all the volunteers and craftsmen whose good will is embedded throughout. Hummingbird is not just a “must see” place but a must “feel”. People feel it all the time- like the repair man who recently asked “Is this a straw-bale house? The whole place felt different as soon as I drove in- it felt good.” and the B&B guests who wrote comments such as ” The house felt like a living thing…the curved stucco walls an embrace.” and “When I stepped into Hummingbird I felt a peacefulness.”

Now this property is looking for enthusiastic new owners. For those who would choose a life in the thoughtful lane, we hope you will visit.
Read the rest or post a comment »

I’m looking for four hosts for workshops this summer. If you plan to build a house or a studio cottage this summer, you can get a lot accomplished in one short week by hosting a workshop. Imagine having 20 or more people working on your project with the guidance of a straw bale expert. That’s a lot of free labor! I need hosts for the following four dates.
Read the rest or post a comment »

Greetings everyone. First of all, I’m looking for a bale contractor in West Virginia. Anyone interested?

More over, I’m looking to increase the size of my recommendation file for straw bale contractors around the world. I know there are other places out there where contractors can list their names, and I have reviewed many of those sites over the years. I’m looking to create a resource list on this site as well. If you’re interested in being on my list, please let me know. There would be no charge for this listing and you would be in front of anyone on this website who is looking for a contractor. That’s a lot of people.
Read the rest or post a comment »

In case you didn’t sign up for the early release information, I want you to know that the Be Your Own Contractor Training registration is now live. You can sign up today at www.BeYourOwnContractorTraining.com. There’s tons of free information on that site to explain exactly what you get by signing up and there’s also a lot of free BYOC information that you can glean from the site even if you decide not to sign up. Either way, the site is worth checking out.

You can save thousands of dollars by being your own contractor, but only if you know what you’re doing. Sign up for my 7 week on-line training course to learn the ropes so that you can have the success you want. Here’s another version of the link: www.BYOCTraining.com. I hope to see you there.

There are less than 300 spaces left in the training, so sign up soon.