Learn the key points for positive communication with your neighbors before and during construction to minimize complaints, time delays, and other issues.
Welcome to StrawBale.com
My name is Andrew Morrison and welcome to my straw bale building site dedicated to anyone interested in building their own straw bale house. If you are brand new to straw bale or are a straw bale construction specialist there's something for you at StrawBale.com.
Click here if you are NEW TO STRAW BALE BUILDING and want to know the basics about straw bale construction. I have a ton of information for you including: photo gallery, step-by-step instructional videos, information about straw bale workshops around the world, free straw bale articles, top notch consulting, free straw bale social network, and a full straw bale building blog. Be sure to sign up for my e-mail updates and my free 16 day straw bale e-course so we can keep you posted of the latest developments in the ever-changing world of straw bale. If you are eager to fast track your education in straw bale construction, click here.
Happy Baling!
Andrew
My Latest Blog Entries Are Below
Contracting Part VI: Working with Banks and Mortgages
In this article, I discuss some simple tricks of the trade for dealing with banks or mortgage firms when financing a straw bale house.
Contracting Part V: Working with the Building Department
Learn the ins and outs of creating a positive relationship when working with your local building department, right off the bat.
Contracting Part IV: Estimating and Creating a Budget
The primary place where both owner-builders and contractors fail when building a home is in the estimating of construction costs. Learn some tips to help you avoid that pitfall.
Michel Couvreux: An Expert’s Discussion of Lime
I recently asked my friend Michel Couvreux of TransMineral, USA to write a guest piece about lime and the many confusing aspects of choosing and/or working with the right material for a straw bale house.
Contracting Part III: Site Evaluation and your Building Process
As a contractor, you’ll need extensive knowledge of each site evaluation and what it means. There are some easy to forget details that might surprise you…
Contracting Part II: Reading Your Jobsite Construction Plans
Mistakes are often made in contracting when reading plans. Make sure you know your plans well and know how to read them to catch any potential mistakes.
Contracting Part I: Know What You Are Getting Into
It is important that you fully understand what will be expected of you as you embark on the contracting of your home. It is easy to say that you want to contract the construction, but there is a lot to the process and perhaps the biggest pitfall is not knowing what will be asked of […]
Plaster Tip: Applying American Clay Over Natural Hydraulic Lime
In this article I discuss using American Clay plaster over a Natural Hydraulic Lime plaster, making sure that cure times are accounted for.
Smooth Plaster on Straw Bale Walls
I recently received an email asking if it was possible to get the interior walls of a straw bale house flat and smooth. I have included the email and my response to it below. Question: Are there any alternatives to finishing the interior walls of a straw bale home with plaster? More specifically, can I […]