More Straw Bale Building. Peter Mack
the most up-to-date information in the field of straw bale construction. By outlining lessons learned, comparing techniques, and highlighting the latest & greatest approaches, More Straw Bale Building will help the newcomer build a dream with more confidence, while giving the veteran straw baler new ideas, methods and techniques to chew on.
— Rachel Connor, Sustainable Building Instructor, Solar Energy International
In More Straw Bale Building, the authors detail with humour and clarity the challenges nd benefits of numerous straw bale systems they have explored both as owner/builders and as contracters.The fact that more than half the book addresses issues that come up before actually installing any straw provides a realistic picture of the preparation needed for the execution of a successful building — and the chapter on common mistakes is worth the price of the book in itself! As important resources like More Straw Bale Building become available, straw bale construction edges its way closer to being a significant mainstream alternative.
— Kim Thompson, Straw Bale Projects
First comes knowledge, then the doing of the job.
And much later, perhaps after you’re dead,
something grows from what you’ve done.
— Rumi, Mathnawi, V, 1053
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Today, more than ever before, our society is seeking ways to live more conscientiously. To help bring you the very best inspiration and information about greener, more sustainable lifestyles, New Society Publishers has joined forces with Mother Earth News. For more than 30 years, Mother Earth News has been North America’s “Original Guide to Living Wisely,” creating books and magazines for people with a passion for self-reliance and a desire to live in harmony with nature. Across the countryside and in our cities, New Society Publishers and Mother Earth News are leading the way to a wiser, more sustainable world.
A Note from the Authors
In our note to the first edition of this book, we expressed our surprise at having become professional straw bale builders. Those are four words that would have been unthinkable together a decade ago, and yet we are now joined by many others who have the same job description. In our province alone there are numerous builders and companies specializing in straw bale structures, and around the world the number has grown so that it’s no longer possible for all of us to know each other.
And yet, among the many people who now make these buildings, live in these buildings, or aspire to make and live in them, we continue to find a unique kinship and understanding. The term “straw bale movement” sometimes gets bandied about. Though it’s far from an organized, cohesive movement, there is no doubt that it is growing quickly, and that many of us involved have the same goals.
Our society is heading toward a new understanding of our built environment. For centuries, people were always closely involved with, and responsible for, the buildings they inhabited. Now we spend even more of our time in buildings, many of which are extremely unhealthy, but have lost the connection between ourselves and the places in which we live, learn, and work. As we learn ever more about how buildings work (and, just as importantly, don’t work), we understand the importance of creating buildings that are healthy, unique, beautiful, and well suited to their inhabitants.
Learning about straw bales has been a motivating factor in this education, for us and for many others. But straw bales alone are not a solution; they are part of an answer that will take more than the rest of our lives to figure out. Everybody who takes a step in this direction is merely adding to a pool of knowledge that, someday, will see the widespread creation of buildings that meet high ideals of performance, aesthetics, and environmental appropriateness.
Please accept this book as part of our ongoing contribution to this wider learning.
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank the following people a whole bunch:
All of Pete’s parents
Julie and Emma Bowen, ultimate superheroes
Andrew McKay and Andie Haltrich
Barb Bolin Val Bishop, and all at SSFC
Barb Lilker
Barry Griffith
Becky & Sherman Butler
Blackwell Engineering
Bob Platts
Camp Kawartha: Jacob, Karen, Sue, John, Dale et al.
Cam Todd and Canadian Classic Contractors
Catherine Wanek and Pete Fust
Cari and Russ
Cheryl, Beth and Grace
Chris and Judith Plant
Chris Walker
Dale Brownson
Dave McKey, Goldie and others
David Saunders
David and Anne-Marie Warburton
Deirdre McGahorn
Don Fugler
Don Polley, may he ride forever
Draydon Hartwig
Frank Tettemer & Cheryl Keetch
Gabrielle Justine Magwood
Gail & Brian Robins
Gary Magwood
Gary H’s Clean Pants
Gavin Dandy and Everdale
Gerarda Schouten
Glen Hunter, Joanne Sokolowski and baby Gil
Grant Moorcroft and Moorcroft Hemp Farm
Grassroots Store
Great White
Gut Hung Lo
Habib Gonzalez
Hank,Anita and Melissa Carr
Helen Knibb
Ian & Marchand, the Dynamic Duo
Jack Seigel, Connie Cochrane, & Ryan Seigel
James & Crissy Swan
Jan “Concrete” Cohen
J.D. Stevens
Jeff Rupert
Jenny Madden, Peter Brackenbury & Charlie’s smiles
Jim Gleason and company
Joe Cox
Mr. Joe Hiscott
John Marrow
John Panagapka & Karen Hunsberger
John Straube
Big Johnnie Taylor
John Wilson & Leigh Geraghty
John Wise & Anita Jansman
Jolien van der Maden
Joy Allan & Bert Weir
Joyce Coppinger and The Last Straw Journal
Kara & Tony Willan
Karen, Joseph and Elizabeth Soltan
KATO Construction
Ken, Kari, McKenzie and @#$#$
Kim Thompson and her hugs
Kris Dick