We love straw bale construction for so many reasons!

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Fire resistance

Straw bale walls are significantly more fire resistant than conventional "stick built" structures. Not only do flames have to contend with ~1 1/2" of solid plaster before reaching any straw (in the case of lime plaster, that's solid rock we're talking about!), but if and when they finally make it to the straw, the bales are so tightly packed thanks to mechanized baling, that there's just not much air to sustain the fire. It's more likely to simply smolder and char the straw (look up fire tests on youtube!).

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Insulation

A straw bale wall is one of the most insulated walls you can build if it's properly designed and constructed. Insulation performance is measured in what's known as R-value (R for resistance).The R-value of straw bales varies based on their thickness, orientation, and how tightly their straw is packed, but you can usually expect it to be somewhere between R-26 and R-28, well above that required by the latest International Energy Conservation Code (which is itself 2 versions more recent than that currently adopted in Alamosa, Conejos, Costilla, and Rio Grande counties).

 

Importantly, the insulation provided in straw bale construction can also be more continuous than in conventional wood framing. This means it's interrupted less frequently by wood framing that compromises its effectiveness by providing paths for heat to escape the building in the winter, and enter it in the summer (thermal bridging). To make a long story short, when it's 16 degrees below zero in the depths of a brutal San Luis Valley winter, the heat introduced into your home will stay with you longer.

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Transparent and ethical material sourcing

​In our globalized system of raw material extraction and production, it can be all but impossible to understand the soical and environmental impacts of choices we make for our buildings. Where do the materials come from? Who pulled their ingredients out of the ground, transported them, formed them into what they are? How far did material travel throughout the production process? Along the way, what kinds of non-financial costs were extracted? For example, how much carbon dioxide escaped into our atmosphere? Was forced labor involved at any point? Read about forced labor in western China as it relates to building materials here.

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With straw bales, these questions are much easier to answer. The bales are often sourced from local farmers just a handful of miles away from their ultimate destinations, and are a byproduct of already existing agricultural production. Straw is the stalk of any cereal: barley, wheat, oats, rye, even rice. Once the nutritious bits are harvested, the leftover stalks can be packed into rectangular blocks and given a new life. By keeping those stalks whole, carbon that would otherwise have been released into the atmosphere as CO2 is instead sequestered within your walls (to speak nothing of the pollution avoided by burning less fossil fuels in transportation). 

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Health

Some of the products we use to insulate our buildings are not the healthiest, either for those who live in the buildings, or those who construct them. While the blowing agents used to install spray foam insulation have become less toxic, building occupants do sometimes complain about off-gasing after installation. And while fiberglass insulation doesn't off-gas, it can damage the lungs of installers who inhale it. Straw is healthy for both those who install it and those who spend time within its walls. Sidenote: we also like blown-in cellulose insulation, and suggest using it in the roofs of straw bales structures. 

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Beauty

Last but not least, plastered straw bale walls are gorgeous! Their uneven nature results in soft, thick, organic-looking walls with slightly uneven surfaces that catch light in interesting ways. They are similar in appearance to plastered adobe, and like adobe, are plastered on their interior side too (win! win!). And, as the old adage reminds us, "reduce" and "reuse" come before "recycle." Ultimately, a sustainable building is one that not only uses a limited amount of sustainably sourced materials and takes little energy to operate, but that is so well loved by its caretakers that it will be cherished and maintained for generations to come.

 

Visit our contact page to get in touch and learn more about straw bale 

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