Construction Details
Talking Through Straw Bale Walls
Whether you’ve ever tried to talk through a straw bale wall during construction or not, you’ll immediately see the value in this tip for simple and clear communication.
Whether you’ve ever tried to talk through a straw bale wall during construction or not, you’ll immediately see the value in this tip for simple and clear communication.
Planning to build your straw bale house with angular walls, instead of using common right angle intersections? This post will give you a simple, fast, and effective way to build
The Last Straw is coming back to print. Please take a few minutes to read the information and see how you can help.
I know, I know…For most of you this is old information, BUT if there are any folks out there that still have a worry in their minds (and it’s OK
One of the most artistic expressions of a straw bale wall are the niches that are carved into it. I have laid out a step-by-step process for the most common
One of the most stunning aspects of a straw bale home is the shape that window and door openings take. These curves that bring so much joy and serenity can
A consulting client recently asked me about the best practice is for removing rotten straw from an existing straw bale house. Whether you need to replace a small amount of
Like many of us, Ryan (a 7 day straw bale workshop graduate) held a deep desire to build his home using his own two hands. After all, growing up in
Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success.
– Albert Schweitzer
Plastering a straw bale house is a skill that marries both art and construction techniques. There are so many details to keep track of when plastering your strawbale home and
These things are important to keeping your sanity while you build, but more than that, they are true in day to day life as well. Imagine if you lived your
Below is a section from my book. The focus of the section is on planning for and installing partition walls in straw bale homes. I have also included a detailed
You wouldn’t be the first person to try getting plywood onto a roof, up a ladder, by yourself. You might be the first to do it without hurting yourself! When
Here’s an obvious statement and a short article to help you avoid the obvious. Don’t eat the ceiling. Simple right? After all, nobody wants to eat the ceiling. You may
You may have heard the phrase “Build a House with a Good Hat and Good Boots.” It means pay attention to your roof and your foundation. These two areas are
They say that necessity is the mother of invention, and in the case of Branislav Prvanovic, a Serbian innovator and businessman involved in the building trades, a gigantic straw bale
Dun, dun dun…… Can you feel the excitement? I just got back from working on a project in Portugal and the plaster machine was one of the coolest I’ve seen.
Mixing plaster is as much of an art as it is a science. It’s important to keep a consistent mix from one batch to the next and this isn’t always
Have you seen a bunch of these in your house? Do you have what you thought might be termites only to discover that termite treatments don’t do much to battle
There are a lot of things to consider when buying the best straw bales for your construction project. Here’s a bullet point list of the absolute “must haves.” 1. Long
Chainsaws are an active part of straw bale construction. There are some other options for cutting bales, of course, but a quality electric or gas powered chainsaw is still my
The sad and ugly aftermath of using the wrong plaster sand! In a recent workshop we discovered that the sand that was ordered for the plaster was not acceptable. I
Why would I want to do that? You may be asking yourself that very question and rightfully so. The answer may be simple or complicated depending on the situation. It
If you’ve ever made an electrical spike for your straw bale home, you know just how dangerous the process can be. At the seven day comprehensive workshop in Hurley, NY
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