Toby And Liz's Strawbale Abode Toby and Liz's strawbale abode I thought I would put up a few pictures from the past. A couple years ago some friends of mine, Toby and Liz, decided to hold a "straw raising" party to get some help putting up the walls of their soon to be guest house out in the Arizona Desert. They needed to build the guest house first in order to have a place to stay while they built their main house out of tires. They did all of the tedious prep work and all the finish work. Toby and Liz built this casita the way everyone should...they let the building build itself. Here I am playing with chicken wire. After the first day's plastering. Notice shoulder high by the door you can see the large snake head that Toby is creating beginning to take shape. A finished interior shelf up high. Bed loft with skylight and cool window. Awesome little kitchen Here they made a really cool copper "skylight" around the opening for the chimney. The finished product. Photos by Monica Van Hall
Sun Plans :: Sun-Inspired Passive Solar House Plans Forest View 2 features abundance of arches inside and out just like the older, original Forest View, but this client wanted the master bedroom on the cool northeast side of the house. They also desired the sunroom to be on the southeast corner. The shallow porch on the south creates a nice place for sitting without blocking winter sun and the arched columns make the south view even more attractive than the front of the house! The dominant feature of the house is still the central great room with high ceilings surrounded by arches. When you enter this room from the foyer or family entry side, your eyes are immediately drawn to the south French doors with large arched windows above. First Floor This three bedroom, two bath home feels much larger than it is with the variety of spaces found in larger homes. Carport or Garage The plan comes with an attached carport with storage area, but there are many options for changing it. Construction Info Modification Ideas Ready to build this house plan?
Strawbale Redux Here is a rudimentary drawing of the floor plan done with Paint. Not bad for my first try! Basics-the exterior dimensions are 32 X 46 but remember, these are strawbale walls so that translates into actual interior dimensions of 28 x 42. For orientation, the house is on a nearly E-W axis. The house is a basic ranch but you may be wondering: Why waste sq footage in such a small house with that hallway? The wall between the LR and S BR will be adobe for thermal mass. We tried to design the house for the way we live. Another important aspect of the design was to have light coming in from 2 sides in every room. Building Stage: PlansThe plans are now back to the City for (hopefully) final approval. Until next time...keep your straw dry.
Article Index Page | EcoLiving Articles about projects that save you money. viewing 1 - 5 of 55 results. Old furnace, washer or water heater?By C.M. Mack Upgrading your furnace, water heater or washing machine to the most energy efficient models will immediately slash your energy or water bills. more Topics: Draft-proof Your HouseBy Rhea Seymour How to identify air leaks in your home, then seal cracks with caulking or weather stripping and apply for rebates to reduce your expenses. Green Kitchen Design IdeasBy Catherine Therrien See which appliances, kitchen cabinets, floor tiles and countertops make the greenest choices when you want to upgrade your kitchen.
Straw Bale and Hemp Construction Sam Atkinson LLP specialises in the design and construction of straw bale and hemp buildings. Our recent projects include a straw bale cottage, a straw bale bungalow, straw bale classrooms, a straw bale bird hide and a straw bale screen. You can also see more about our range of straw bale holiday accommodation at www.strawbalecabins.co.uk Straw is an abundant building material and offers a great many environmental advantages such as super insulation, energy efficiency and carbon storage. Hemp is grown here in East Yorkshire by the Voase family (www.kjvoaseandson.co.uk). We successfully use their hemp fibres in many of our lime and clay plasters and we cast their hemp shiv mixed with lime to form walls or to fill awkward spaces. Please click the links below to view some of our recent projects:
Eco Nest 1200 Plan This 1434 sf home was designed specifically for an off grid building site. It's floorplan allows all spaces to be easily heated by the solar gain or by the woodstove at night. The main bedroom has its own bathroom and there is a cozy sleeping loft above the dining area for guests. The screened porch expands the living area to encompass the outdoors and the storage room will hold the bikes and garden tools. A 'living roof' completes the greening of this unique eco-nest! Great plan for a remote vacation getaway or full-time rural home. Floor Plan All of Integral Design Studio's strawbale plans incorporate an internal modified post and beam structure, with bales on edge as infill. These plans include all four elevations, scaled floorplans, cross section details, other significant construction details. *In some cases the prints may be on 24"x36" sheets.
A House of Straw Maisons intégrées dans le paysage Les anglais les nomment "earth house". Une "earth house" est un style architectural caractérisé par l'utilisation du terrain naturel dans la construction des murs de la maison. Une earth house est habituellement installée partiellement dans le sol et recouverte d'une fine végétation. Ce type de maison est l'une des plus efficaces sur le plan énergétique. En Suisse (Dietikon), village conçu par Peter Vetsch, version très moderne : Cette implantation contraste avec l'environnement des maisons individuelles traditionnelles. La résidence se compose de 9 maisons, dont certaines peuvent comporter jusqu'à 7 chambres. États-Unis : Cette maison est intégrée dans le paysage et possède des murs en béton sur deux côtés avec des murs de verre entre. Surface totale de la maison : 255 m² pour 3 chambres. Écosse, îles Hébrides Version moderne d'une construction de l'âge de pierre. Pays de Galles Maison qu'on peut facilement louper si on n'y prête garde. Maison enterrée unique en Suisse (Vals)
Why Build With Straw Bales? Straw bale construction lends itself well to an owner builder project. Some of the applications well suited for straw bale include: a cottage, office, garage, studio, and an art barn. You don’t have to limit yourself to these smaller projects. Thousands of people have successfully built their own straw bale house. As a world leader in straw bale education we want to help you every step of the way. I’ve created a great introductory video on why to build with straw bales. Reason #1 Energy Efficiency. A well built straw bale home can save you up to 75% on heating and cooling costs. Reason #2 Sound Proofing. Straw bale walls provide excellent sound insulation and are superior wall systems for home owners looking to block out the sounds of traffic or airplanes in urban environments. Reason # 3 Fire resistance. Straw bale homes have roughly three times the fire resistance of conventional homes. Reason # 4 Environmental responsibility. Building with straw helps the planet in many ways.
Green Home Building: Index Sustainable Web Hosting - 10 Sensational Homes Built from Straw | green-building Written by Ryan Hollitz | 19 December 2009 Posted in Blog - Green Building New building materials could really make your house green from the ground up! Straw! :) via [thedailygreen.com] In the classic story of the Three Little Pigs‚ a naive piglet decides to build his home out of straw, which soon gets the huff and puff treatment by a big bad wolf, resulting in the poor little pig's untimely end. Many may wonder why a person would want to build a home made out of straw, but apart from providing a place to hide from the big bad wolf, they have some substantial benefits. Read on to discover just how right that first little pig was to build his home out of straw. Photos: Brett Weinstein/Realty Advocates 1. This unique, beautiful straw bale home in Oakland, California recently carried a $1.1 million price tag. Photo: JD Peterson 2. This gorgeous home, perched on owner Henry Siegel's 2 1/2-acre leafy lot, offers panoramic views and cozy comfort. Photo: University of Bath 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.