The wealth of information from those that know has been priceless.Do we have any "Baleheads"?We're putting up a 4500sf Radiant slab.Southern Cedar post and beam.Solar powered.Structual Steel wrapped on columns with stone.Banding straps and Rebar where needed.Decking/finish ceiling is nominal 1" by varied milling widthes/2x4 grid with insulation/roof decked and metal roof.Any suggestions?Thanks,D.
Straw Bale Construction
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Just read a story about a fire in a 5000sq ft strawbale house in Fire Engineering, very small fire in wall destroyed the house, $1 mil dollar loss. Lesson was, do not furr out the walls with studs leaving an open space behind the studs where fire can travel between stud bays. This house had furred out the drywall and fire traveled freely among the strawbales, behind the wall horizontally and vertically. Once fire got in the attic, there was no fire stop/drywall on top of the bales, so embers would fall in an area where the walls were not on fire, and start a fire.
In straw bale construction it will be extremely important to have drywall/fire stops well thought out.
In straw bale construction it will be extremely important to have drywall/fire stops well thought out.
spray applied closed cell foam under the slab???side to side seamless,,no gaps in the installation resulting in a break in the thermal envelope,,a reduction of soil borne gasses,,,and man it lays right up to footing and drains and other penetrations,,places where most installs just stop and leave,,well,,not insulation at all in that spot,,
round here 2" for r10 to accomodate board stock is spec'd,,,2" closed cell foam will get you out to almost r13.5 pending on the brand,,,
yes,,it can be laid out to a reasonable profile by an experienced applicator...we shoot to +/- 1/2" and this works fine,,,
yes,,closed cell foam has a higher psi than boardstock in the 1.75 lb/cu ft or greater density,,
yes it is cost competitive if you factor the labor for laying the board,,particularly if you detail the boardstock application,,,
the one we worked in last year had a "cementatious" coating applied to the bales as a draft stop,,the owner said to "seal the bales from an air infiltration and moisture inrusion",,,this was much like the yucco-stucco type stuff,,,it was a scream to watch,,mud pump to a lathe over the bales and then hand trowl it out,,,wondered why we didnt just seal it with the foam,,and the owner said "damn we never considered that",,,moisture resistance,,air impermience,,additional rvalue...burma shave!!
firetruck1
wouild a 2" application in the firred out sidewalls help as a draftstop? it would get behind the studs in a proper applicaion...
closed cell foam for interior use is class 1 <25 flame and <450 smoke,,
round here 2" for r10 to accomodate board stock is spec'd,,,2" closed cell foam will get you out to almost r13.5 pending on the brand,,,
yes,,it can be laid out to a reasonable profile by an experienced applicator...we shoot to +/- 1/2" and this works fine,,,
yes,,closed cell foam has a higher psi than boardstock in the 1.75 lb/cu ft or greater density,,
yes it is cost competitive if you factor the labor for laying the board,,particularly if you detail the boardstock application,,,
the one we worked in last year had a "cementatious" coating applied to the bales as a draft stop,,the owner said to "seal the bales from an air infiltration and moisture inrusion",,,this was much like the yucco-stucco type stuff,,,it was a scream to watch,,mud pump to a lathe over the bales and then hand trowl it out,,,wondered why we didnt just seal it with the foam,,and the owner said "damn we never considered that",,,moisture resistance,,air impermience,,additional rvalue...burma shave!!
firetruck1
wouild a 2" application in the firred out sidewalls help as a draftstop? it would get behind the studs in a proper applicaion...
closed cell foam for interior use is class 1 <25 flame and <450 smoke,,
I would use hardi-plank instead of southern cedar.Fire proof extremely wind resistant when used with stainless steel ring shanked nails. We dont get the good old growth cedar like we used to. 2 cents Mike
well i gotta ask...whats this for? is this living space? garage? I'm a building inspector, i've never came across straw bale construction. from what i gather from reading your post the roof structure would be supported from post and beam type construction, and the straw bales would be used on the exterior?
given the codes we use here in good ol' utah the post and beam construction would require engineering for siesmic design. the straw bales would probably provide pretty good r-value for insulation, but would require some pretty serious thought for weather protection. i think i saw something about a cement type product applied to them, that combination would seem pretty risky here given the moisture the bales might contain and the cement might trap or even wick moisture.and if kept dry with they might be really good tinder.
just for the sake of asking, whats the advantage of using straw bales for construction? is there a cost advantage vs. a more conventional method? how would you incorparate plumbing, electrical, and mechanical systems into the walls? what does the local building dept. say? i'm just curious as all get out as to how it all works.
given the codes we use here in good ol' utah the post and beam construction would require engineering for siesmic design. the straw bales would probably provide pretty good r-value for insulation, but would require some pretty serious thought for weather protection. i think i saw something about a cement type product applied to them, that combination would seem pretty risky here given the moisture the bales might contain and the cement might trap or even wick moisture.and if kept dry with they might be really good tinder.
just for the sake of asking, whats the advantage of using straw bales for construction? is there a cost advantage vs. a more conventional method? how would you incorparate plumbing, electrical, and mechanical systems into the walls? what does the local building dept. say? i'm just curious as all get out as to how it all works.
There is a mansion in I believe Miss. or Lou. that is over 150 years old.No termites ,no mold,extr. insulated. The trick is extremely dry straw during const.This is not easy to find.As you know fire needs Oxygen to burn and the coating on the straw during const.is very important.If you close the straw off from O2 ,it wont burn or develope mold and has extr.high insul. values. mike
kind of a 'thang' here in NM.
da google reveals: Strawbale Construction
Green Home Building: Natural Building techniques: Strawbale
and even a dot gov... Energy Savers: Straw Bale Home Design
I've been contemplating building a windbreak/winter sunbathing wall on the corner of the yard nearest the street/driveway using this method. Last winter the dogs enjoyed hooching up where a stack of firewood created same, but this would look less
facinating..... i've never heard of anything like that.i'll have to take this back to the rest of my inspector buddies. sounds like a pretty decent idea though.i'll have to try to get a little more information on this.i wonder what kinda testing has been for load factors.i would think given the reinforcement in the walls and the size they would hold up ok with a siesmic event,and i guess if people inside are oblivious to tornados that someone have given some thought to uplift on the roof. do they have to get engineered? whats it like getting something like this passed by building dept? i cant help think that most people would be a bit skeptical about the whole thing. boy, just when you think you've seen it all...
!!
!!This is very old,tested construction.The storms in the south get very intense! Mike
I have studied strawbale construction for many, many years. Someday I'm going to build our straw bale home. We visited, about a dozen years ago, a retired school teacher in the Reno area that built a beautiful straw bale off-grid PV home with radiant in-floor heat (no A/C needed!). If you've ever been in one you know what I mean: Being in a straw bale home is almost a zen like feeling/experience. Probably one of the best methods of "green" building.
Andrew Morrison is one of a few that has been at it for many, many years:
| StrawBale.com
Since I'm out of work I thought I would take one of his hands on building seminars but unfortunately we had conflicting trip plans...
Regarding fire: Properly built (natural stucco exterior over mesh/bales) straw bale walls are more fire resistant that just about any residential type building material. Inside a bale is a very anaerobic environment due to the compacted straw.
Bales must be set on a foundation so that moisture is not wicked into the wall. Same applies for wood frame too though.
Andrew Morrison is one of a few that has been at it for many, many years:
| StrawBale.com
Since I'm out of work I thought I would take one of his hands on building seminars but unfortunately we had conflicting trip plans...
Regarding fire: Properly built (natural stucco exterior over mesh/bales) straw bale walls are more fire resistant that just about any residential type building material. Inside a bale is a very anaerobic environment due to the compacted straw.
Bales must be set on a foundation so that moisture is not wicked into the wall. Same applies for wood frame too though.