Hello.

Does anyone have any experience with straw bale construction? I'm
pondering options for a self-build at the moment and a wooden framed
house with bale infill looks interesting (mainly due to low U-value,
speed/simplicity of use and cost).

Has anyone here built a straw bale construction? (Or even better, worked
out how to fit one into the building regs!) There's a great deal of
enthusiastic information online from straw bale advocates but some more
dispassionate opinions would be nice.


Asher.

--
asher http://domestic1.sjc.ox.ac.uk/~ahoskins/
asher AT crumbly DOT
[life in plastic, it's fantastic!] freeserve DOT co DOT uk

"Asher Hoskins" wrote in message
...
Hello.

Does anyone have any experience with straw bale construction? I'm
pondering options for a self-build at the moment and a wooden framed
house with bale infill looks interesting (mainly due to low U-value,
speed/simplicity of use and cost).

Has anyone here built a straw bale construction? (Or even better, worked
out how to fit one into the building regs!) There's a great deal of
enthusiastic information online from straw bale advocates but some more
dispassionate opinions would be nice.


Asher.

The only thing that really worries me on these types of buildings, is how do
you make them fire proof? I don't mean from electrical or chip-pan fires, I
mean from water droplets hanging around when the sun shines, or from
lightning strikes etc.

How much does it cost to make all that straw fire resistant? Or does it
come pre-prepared and treated, and with discount quantities?

BigWallop wrote:

The only thing that really worries me on these types of buildings, is how do
you make them fire proof? I don't mean from electrical or chip-pan fires, I
mean from water droplets hanging around when the sun shines, or from
lightning strikes etc.

Daub is probably the answer... IIRC there was a Grand Designs self build
that used that technique. Once up the interior was daubed / plastered
and ended up looking much like any other wall. Can't remember what they
had outside. As the OP said good insulation and very cheap (handy if you
set out the house design in multiples of bale length though!)



--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

On 2005-06-01, BigWallop wrote:
The only thing that really worries me on these types of buildings, is how do
you make them fire proof? I don't mean from electrical or chip-pan fires, I
mean from water droplets hanging around when the sun shines, or from
lightning strikes etc.

How much does it cost to make all that straw fire resistant? Or does it
come pre-prepared and treated, and with discount quantities?

While loose straw will burn easily, when bales are used in construction
they get compressed and all the loose straw is trimmed off the outside
before rendering. Prepared like this there's not enough air inside the
bales to sustain combustion (the canonical example from the straw bale
sites is to think about how hard it is to ignite a phone book compared
to a single sheet of paper). Rendered straw bale walls are apparently
more fire resistant than conventional building materials.

That said, site security from the time that the bales are first
delivered to the the first coat of render is something that needs
consideration (as does keeping an eye on where people fling their
cigarette butts during that time).


Asher.

--
asher http://domestic1.sjc.ox.ac.uk/~ahoskins/
asher AT crumbly DOT
[life in plastic, it's fantastic!] freeserve DOT co DOT uk

"Asher Hoskins" wrote in message
...
On 2005-06-01, BigWallop wrote:
The only thing that really worries me on these types of buildings, is
how do
you make them fire proof? I don't mean from electrical or chip-pan
fires, I
mean from water droplets hanging around when the sun shines, or from
lightning strikes etc.

How much does it cost to make all that straw fire resistant? Or does it
come pre-prepared and treated, and with discount quantities?

While loose straw will burn easily, when bales are used in construction
they get compressed and all the loose straw is trimmed off the outside
before rendering. Prepared like this there's not enough air inside the
bales to sustain combustion (the canonical example from the straw bale
sites is to think about how hard it is to ignite a phone book compared
to a single sheet of paper). Rendered straw bale walls are apparently
more fire resistant than conventional building materials.

That said, site security from the time that the bales are first
delivered to the the first coat of render is something that needs
consideration (as does keeping an eye on where people fling their
cigarette butts during that time).

Asher.

Ah ha!!! I wasn't with that bit. The Bales are actually used as the
building blocks, then are fully enclosed in a plaster rendering. That makes
sense now. :-)

I was imagining a load of straw bales stacked against the side of timber
framed houses there, but it actually sounds like a great idea if the straw
is all concealed behind a thick layer of plaster.

And the security and fire safety arrangements during construction would have
to be a bit strict as well, wouldn't they. Must do a bit more research on
this.

"BigWallop" wrote in message
. uk...

"Asher Hoskins" wrote in message
...
On 2005-06-01, BigWallop wrote:
The only thing that really worries me on these types of buildings, is
how do
you make them fire proof? I don't mean from electrical or chip-pan
fires, I
mean from water droplets hanging around when the sun shines, or from
lightning strikes etc.

How much does it cost to make all that straw fire resistant? Or does
it
come pre-prepared and treated, and with discount quantities?

While loose straw will burn easily, when bales are used in construction
they get compressed and all the loose straw is trimmed off the outside
before rendering. Prepared like this there's not enough air inside the
bales to sustain combustion (the canonical example from the straw bale
sites is to think about how hard it is to ignite a phone book compared
to a single sheet of paper). Rendered straw bale walls are apparently
more fire resistant than conventional building materials.

That said, site security from the time that the bales are first
delivered to the the first coat of render is something that needs
consideration (as does keeping an eye on where people fling their
cigarette butts during that time).

Asher.

Ah ha!!! I wasn't with that bit. The Bales are actually used as the
building blocks, then are fully enclosed in a plaster rendering. That
makes
sense now. :-)

I was imagining a load of straw bales stacked against the side of timber
framed houses there, but it actually sounds like a great idea if the straw
is all concealed behind a thick layer of plaster.

And the security and fire safety arrangements during construction would
have
to be a bit strict as well, wouldn't they. Must do a bit more research on
this.


WOW!!! It all actually looks like a bloody good idea. After having a look
for "Strawbale Construction" on the web, I now see what you mean about the
energy efficiency and low cost maintenance on such a build. I'm off to have
more rummaging around on this.

I wish you much luck if you decide to go ahead with it.

On Wed, 01 Jun 2005 13:53:07 GMT, "BigWallop"
wrote:

The only thing that really worries me on these types of buildings, is how do
you make them fire proof? I don't mean from electrical or chip-pan fires, I
mean from water droplets hanging around when the sun shines, or from
lightning strikes etc.

How much does it cost to make all that straw fire resistant? Or does it
come pre-prepared and treated, and with discount quantities?

The other thing that worried me was damp.

If the straw gets damp (For whatever reason be it condensation or a
leak in the render) it will quickly go mouldy. Spores/dust could then
cause breathing problems.

sponix

On Wed, 01 Jun 2005 09:19:09 -0500, Asher Hoskins
wrote:

While loose straw will burn easily, when bales are used in construction
they get compressed and all the loose straw is trimmed off the outside
before rendering. Prepared like this there's not enough air inside the
bales to sustain combustion

Is that why thatched roofs never catch fire? After all, the straw is
packed so tightly that rain can't get in..

sponix

"Asher Hoskins" wrote in message
...
Hello.

Does anyone have any experience with straw bale construction? I'm
pondering options for a self-build at the moment and a wooden framed
house with bale infill looks interesting (mainly due to low U-value,
speed/simplicity of use and cost).

Has anyone here built a straw bale construction? (Or even better, worked
out how to fit one into the building regs!) There's a great deal of
enthusiastic information online from straw bale advocates but some more
dispassionate opinions would be nice.


Asher.

--
asher
http://domestic1.sjc.ox.ac.uk/~ahoskins/
asher AT crumbly
DOT
[life in plastic, it's fantastic!] freeserve DOT co
DOT uk

Hi Asher.
The woodman's house on Grand Designs looked like this :-
http://www.channel4.com/4homes/ontv/...ry_image2.html
or
http://tinyurl.com/c74na
It was a super house.

Baz

On Wed, 01 Jun 2005 08:39:13 -0500, Asher Hoskins
wrote:

Hello.

Does anyone have any experience with straw bale construction? I'm
pondering options for a self-build at the moment and a wooden framed
house with bale infill looks interesting (mainly due to low U-value,
speed/simplicity of use and cost).

Has anyone here built a straw bale construction? (Or even better, worked
out how to fit one into the building regs!) There's a great deal of
enthusiastic information online from straw bale advocates but some more
dispassionate opinions would be nice.


Asher.

I saw this method used on one of the Louis Theroux, whacky character
shows. It was built in a remote, sparsely populated part of North
America. I remember wondering at the time how long it would take for
the straw bales to disintegrate, given expected humidity levels and
sound construction methods.

There's a lot of vested interest in the high energy production of the
standard insulation materials in this country and elsewhere. I'm sure
they'd use their combined clout to see off this low cost, low energy
interloper in very short order. Probably by use of the building regs.
--
Regards,
Mike Halmarack

Drop the EGG to email me.

On Wed, 01 Jun 2005 15:11:19 +0100, John Rumm
wrote:

BigWallop wrote:

The only thing that really worries me on these types of buildings, is how do
you make them fire proof? I don't mean from electrical or chip-pan fires, I
mean from water droplets hanging around when the sun shines, or from
lightning strikes etc.

Daub is probably the answer... IIRC there was a Grand Designs self build
that used that technique. Once up the interior was daubed / plastered
and ended up looking much like any other wall. Can't remember what they
had outside.

Lime plaster of course

I'd love to build a strawbale house too. A lime plastering friend of
mine who lives in North Wales has worked on several strawbale houses
via Barbara Jones (who is the Queen of strawbale in the UK)

Buildings with a structural timber framework and straw infill are
easier to get planning permission for cos the calcs are easier to do
but I prefer buildings where the straw bales are loadbearing

Anna

~~ Anna Kettle, Suffolk, England
|""""| ~ Lime plaster repairs
/ ^^ \ // Freehand modelling in lime: overmantels, pargeting etc
|____| www.kettlenet.co.uk 01359 230642

"Baz" wrote in message
...

"Asher Hoskins" wrote in message
...
Hello.

Does anyone have any experience with straw bale construction? I'm
pondering options for a self-build at the moment and a wooden framed
house with bale infill looks interesting (mainly due to low U-value,
speed/simplicity of use and cost).

Has anyone here built a straw bale construction? (Or even better, worked
out how to fit one into the building regs!) There's a great deal of
enthusiastic information online from straw bale advocates but some more
dispassionate opinions would be nice.


Asher.

--
asher http://domestic1.sjc.ox.ac.uk/~ahoskins/
asher AT crumbly
DOT
[life in plastic, it's fantastic!] freeserve DOT co
DOT uk

Hi Asher.
The woodman's house on Grand Designs looked like this :-
http://www.channel4.com/4homes/ontv/...ry_image2.html
or
http://tinyurl.com/c74na
It was a super house.

Hsy is NOT straw.

Mary

Baz

Asher Hoskins wrote:

Hello.

Does anyone have any experience with straw bale construction?

The Centre for Alternative Technology www.cat.org.uk have built 1 or 2 on
their site and doubtless have some book[let]s and other info on them.

"Asher Hoskins" wrote in message
...
Hello.

Does anyone have any experience with straw bale construction? I'm
pondering options for a self-build at the moment and a wooden framed
house with bale infill looks interesting (mainly due to low U-value,
speed/simplicity of use and cost).

Has anyone here built a straw bale construction? (Or even better, worked
out how to fit one into the building regs!)

I'm sure I read somewhere that the BBA was testing straw bales as used in
this purpose. Why not ask them if they did and if so what the results were.
If it passed this would have all the info you need for the building regs.

In message , John
Rumm writes
BigWallop wrote:

The only thing that really worries me on these types of buildings, is how do
you make them fire proof? I don't mean from electrical or chip-pan fires, I
mean from water droplets hanging around when the sun shines, or from
lightning strikes etc.

Daub is probably the answer... IIRC there was a Grand Designs self
build that used that technique. Once up the interior was daubed /
plastered and ended up looking much like any other wall. Can't remember
what they had outside. As the OP said good insulation and very cheap
(handy if you set out the house design in multiples of bale length though!)

Hmm. What about vermin? The Grand Design program failed to even ask the
question.

Straw bales contain a fair amount of unharvested grain and are predator
safe winter housing for rats and mice. In order to get at the food they
soon learn to chew through the polypropylene (sp?) string.

The on-farm cure is to bury a bag of bait sachets in the bottom layer
but I don't know how effective or how much of a problem this might be
for a single bale wall. Also farm stacks are used and rebuilt each year.

regards

--
Tim Lamb

In message , Mary
Fisher writes

Hsy is NOT straw.

Mary

Can't argue with that ...

--
geoff

water droplets hanging around when the sun shines,

I have a wondrous vision of thatched cottages spontaneously combusting
on the appearance of a rainbow.

I heat my house with a strawburner and and struggle daily to light the
stuff. You have to cut the bands and fluff it up a bit to get it to
catch. And burried under a goodly layer of lime plaster I can't see
fire being an issue. Compacted straw burns very slowly. In a major
house fire the straw would just smoulder for hours and not produce
toxic smoke in the way that some modern building materials do.

I don't imagine rats and mice are a much greater problem than
traditional building methods either. Modern combines don't leave much,
if any, grain in the straw and while the material provides a cosy home
so do cavity walls and suspended floors.

s--p--o--n--i--x wrote:

On Wed, 01 Jun 2005 09:19:09 -0500, Asher Hoskins
wrote:


While loose straw will burn easily, when bales are used in construction
they get compressed and all the loose straw is trimmed off the outside
before rendering. Prepared like this there's not enough air inside the
bales to sustain combustion


Is that why thatched roofs never catch fire? After all, the straw is
packed so tightly that rain can't get in..

They are not packed tightly at all. And the straws are like little
flues, all pointing the same way.


sponix

Mike Halmarack wrote:

On Wed, 01 Jun 2005 08:39:13 -0500, Asher Hoskins
wrote:


Hello.

Does anyone have any experience with straw bale construction? I'm
pondering options for a self-build at the moment and a wooden framed
house with bale infill looks interesting (mainly due to low U-value,
speed/simplicity of use and cost).

Has anyone here built a straw bale construction? (Or even better, worked
out how to fit one into the building regs!) There's a great deal of
enthusiastic information online from straw bale advocates but some more
dispassionate opinions would be nice.


Asher.


I saw this method used on one of the Louis Theroux, whacky character
shows. It was built in a remote, sparsely populated part of North
America. I remember wondering at the time how long it would take for
the straw bales to disintegrate, given expected humidity levels and
sound construction methods.


I recovered thatch from UNDER the roof of my old house,whose then (not
thatched) roof was at least 60 years old, that was in perfect condition.

Straw will last as long as wood if subjected to the same sort of damp
free regime.

The key is as with wood, to keep it dry.

In quantity its a pretty tough material.
Its also remarkably bullet resistant. I'd rather be behind two foot of
straw than 1/4" of steel with someone pumping high velocity bullets around.

Anna Kettle wrote:

On Wed, 01 Jun 2005 15:11:19 +0100, John Rumm
wrote:


BigWallop wrote:


The only thing that really worries me on these types of buildings, is how do
you make them fire proof? I don't mean from electrical or chip-pan fires, I
mean from water droplets hanging around when the sun shines, or from
lightning strikes etc.

Daub is probably the answer... IIRC there was a Grand Designs self build
that used that technique. Once up the interior was daubed / plastered
and ended up looking much like any other wall. Can't remember what they
had outside.


Lime plaster of course

I'd love to build a strawbale house too. A lime plastering friend of
mine who lives in North Wales has worked on several strawbale houses
via Barbara Jones (who is the Queen of strawbale in the UK)

Buildings with a structural timber framework and straw infill are
easier to get planning permission for cos the calcs are easier to do
but I prefer buildings where the straw bales are loadbearing


My feelings exactly.

Are you sure the loadbearing calcs for straw are not available?

Building in straw should be lioke building in blockwork.

And I should think expanding foam to hold door and window frames in
woould be appropiate.

Not sure how to arrange for a wterproof skin though - breathable
membrane, air gap, metal lathe and render maybe?



Anna

~~ Anna Kettle, Suffolk, England
|""""| ~ Lime plaster repairs
/ ^^ \ // Freehand modelling in lime: overmantels, pargeting etc
|____| www.kettlenet.co.uk 01359 230642

Tim Lamb wrote:

In message , John
Rumm writes

BigWallop wrote:

The only thing that really worries me on these types of buildings, is
how do
you make them fire proof? I don't mean from electrical or chip-pan
fires, I
mean from water droplets hanging around when the sun shines, or from
lightning strikes etc.


Daub is probably the answer... IIRC there was a Grand Designs self
build that used that technique. Once up the interior was daubed /
plastered and ended up looking much like any other wall. Can't
remember what they had outside. As the OP said good insulation and
very cheap (handy if you set out the house design in multiples of bale
length though!)


Hmm. What about vermin? The Grand Design program failed to even ask the
question.

Straw bales contain a fair amount of unharvested grain and are predator
safe winter housing for rats and mice. In order to get at the food they
soon learn to chew through the polypropylene (sp?) string.

The on-farm cure is to bury a bag of bait sachets in the bottom layer
but I don't know how effective or how much of a problem this might be
for a single bale wall. Also farm stacks are used and rebuilt each year.

regards

Its not hard to encase the straw in somthing tough enough.

Mary Fisher wrote:
"Baz" wrote in message
...

"Asher Hoskins" wrote in message
...
Hello.

Does anyone have any experience with straw bale construction? I'm
pondering options for a self-build at the moment and a wooden framed
house with bale infill looks interesting (mainly due to low U-value,
speed/simplicity of use and cost).

Has anyone here built a straw bale construction? (Or even better, worked
out how to fit one into the building regs!) There's a great deal of
enthusiastic information online from straw bale advocates but some more
dispassionate opinions would be nice.


Asher.

--
asher http://domestic1.sjc.ox.ac.uk/~ahoskins/
asher AT crumbly
DOT
[life in plastic, it's fantastic!] freeserve DOT co
DOT uk

Hi Asher.
The woodman's house on Grand Designs looked like this :-
http://www.channel4.com/4homes/ontv/...ry_image2.html
or
http://tinyurl.com/c74na
It was a super house.

Hsy is NOT straw.


what's Hsy ?


RT

On Thu, 02 Jun 2005 11:45:04 +0100, The Natural Philosopher
wrote:

Mike Halmarack wrote:

On Wed, 01 Jun 2005 08:39:13 -0500, Asher Hoskins
wrote:


Hello.

Does anyone have any experience with straw bale construction? I'm
pondering options for a self-build at the moment and a wooden framed
house with bale infill looks interesting (mainly due to low U-value,
speed/simplicity of use and cost).

Has anyone here built a straw bale construction? (Or even better, worked
out how to fit one into the building regs!) There's a great deal of
enthusiastic information online from straw bale advocates but some more
dispassionate opinions would be nice.


Asher.


I saw this method used on one of the Louis Theroux, whacky character
shows. It was built in a remote, sparsely populated part of North
America. I remember wondering at the time how long it would take for
the straw bales to disintegrate, given expected humidity levels and
sound construction methods.


I recovered thatch from UNDER the roof of my old house,whose then (not
thatched) roof was at least 60 years old, that was in perfect condition.

Straw will last as long as wood if subjected to the same sort of damp
free regime.

The key is as with wood, to keep it dry.

That's very reassuring. Straw kinda grows on ya dunnit?

In quantity its a pretty tough material.
Its also remarkably bullet resistant. I'd rather be behind two foot of
straw than 1/4" of steel with someone pumping high velocity bullets around.

I'll delay putting that one to the test for as long as possible.

--
Regards,
Mike Halmarack

Drop the EGG to email me.

On Thu, 02 Jun 2005 11:47:58 +0100, The Natural Philosopher
wrote:

Are you sure the loadbearing calcs for straw are not available?

No, they could be available by now but weren't a couple of years ago
when a loadbearing bale house was built in ... um Devon I think. I
expect that a building control officer with experience and confidence
is a prerequisite and I think the Devon house was "experimental" so if
it failed the buck didn't stop with the BCO. Of course it didn't fail.

Round here (Suffolk) I suspect a strategic first move would be to get
Ralph Carpenter on board. He is the architect who has won awards for a
batch of eco-starter homes in Haverhill.

Not sure how to arrange for a wterproof skin though - breathable
membrane, air gap, metal lathe and render maybe?

I shan't rise to that bait

Anna


~~ Anna Kettle, Suffolk, England
|""""| ~ Lime plaster repairs
/ ^^ \ // Freehand modelling in lime: overmantels, pargeting etc
|____| www.kettlenet.co.uk 01359 230642

"Asher Hoskins" wrote in message
...
Hello.

Does anyone have any experience with straw bale construction? I'm
pondering options for a self-build at the moment and a wooden framed
house with bale infill looks interesting (mainly due to low U-value,
speed/simplicity of use and cost).

Has anyone here built a straw bale construction? (Or even better, worked
out how to fit one into the building regs!) There's a great deal of
enthusiastic information online from straw bale advocates but some more
dispassionate opinions would be nice.


Asher.


The more I'm reading about this type of build, the more I like it. The
basic types seem to be, really, just a timber frame with the straw wrapped
round it and rendered over. Very simple. Very effective. And very energy
efficient according to all the info' I've dug up. One owner in the USofA
says they have saved the cost of building the house in what they would have
paid in fuel bills over last twelve years. They also say that the build, in
their climate (temperate I think), is expected to last in excess of 120
years with only minor maintenance works.

Looking good for the strawbale housing market, me thinks. :-)

An article on straw building appeared in Permaculture Magazine and is
available online he
http://www.permaculture.co.uk/mag/Ar...Strawbale.html

wrote in message
oups.com...

water droplets hanging around when the sun shines,

I have a wondrous vision of thatched cottages spontaneously combusting
on the appearance of a rainbow.

I heat my house with a strawburner and and struggle daily to light the
stuff.

Is it effective once lit ? And are you allowed to burn horse bedding ?

There's 100s of tonnes of the stuff slowly building up since the new regs on
disposing of the stuff came into effect.

The straw has to be dry for efficient heating. I guess the horses
would leave it rather wet. Better to compost it.

wrote in message
oups.com...
The straw has to be dry for efficient heating. I guess the horses
would leave it rather wet. Better to compost it.

That's what's not allowed anymore - at least not by spreading it on the
fields.

BigWallop wrote:

The more I'm reading about this type of build, the more I like it. The

Looking good for the strawbale housing market, me thinks. :-)

AIUI the basic problem with straw bale is that when render
deteriorates, or something allows water onto the straw, repairs must be
made rapidly else things deteriorate fast. And yer average jo isnt
nearly quick enough with repairs. So ideal for someone wililng to
inpsect it regularly and repair themselves promptly, but that just
doesnt describe most people.


NT

In message , Mike
writes

wrote in message
roups.com...
The straw has to be dry for efficient heating. I guess the horses
would leave it rather wet. Better to compost it.

That's what's not allowed anymore - at least not by spreading it on the
fields.

Rubbish! Probably:-)

Which bit of the Nitrate vulnerable zone rules prevent you?

regards






--
Tim Lamb

"Tim Lamb" wrote in message
...
In message , Mike
writes

wrote in message
roups.com...
The straw has to be dry for efficient heating. I guess the horses
would leave it rather wet. Better to compost it.

That's what's not allowed anymore - at least not by spreading it on the
fields.

Rubbish! Probably:-)

See

http://www.surreycc.gov.uk/sccwebsit...e?opendocument

and other similar sites. As it says the exact intent of the new law is
still unresolved.

A recent DEFRA magazine told farmers not to spread fresh waste from equine
stables on fields for the time being, yet they still say it is okay in
www.defra.gov.uk/rural/horses/topics/tourism.htm

In the meantime storing 250 cu metres of muck per horse for a year after
which it can be spread whilst keeping any outflow under control is a real
headache for many stables - and an eyesore for all.

"Mike" wrote in message
...

"Tim Lamb" wrote in message
...
In message , Mike
writes

wrote in message
roups.com...
The straw has to be dry for efficient heating. I guess the horses
would leave it rather wet. Better to compost it.

That's what's not allowed anymore - at least not by spreading it on the
fields.

Rubbish! Probably:-)

See


http://www.surreycc.gov.uk/sccwebsit...e?opendocument

and other similar sites. As it says the exact intent of the new law is
still unresolved.

A recent DEFRA magazine told farmers not to spread fresh waste from equine
stables on fields for the time being, yet they still say it is okay in
www.defra.gov.uk/rural/horses/topics/tourism.htm

In the meantime storing 250 cu metres of muck per horse for a year after
which it can be spread whilst keeping any outflow under control is a real
headache for many stables - and an eyesore for all.

I thought there were ways of drying it and bricking it to make solid fuel
blocks. Or am I thinking of some other ****? :-)

The Natural Philosopher wrote:
Building in straw should be lioke building in blockwork.
And I should think expanding foam to hold door and window frames in
woould be appropiate.

Hold in with long wooden staves driven into the bales.

Not sure how to arrange for a wterproof skin though - breathable
membrane, air gap, metal lathe and render maybe?

Blue plastic held down with baler twine.

Owain

"BigWallop" wrote in message
k...

wrote in message
roups.com...
The straw has to be dry for efficient heating. I guess the horses
would leave it rather wet. Better to compost it.

That's what's not allowed anymore - at least not by spreading it on
the
fields.

Rubbish! Probably:-)

See



http://www.surreycc.gov.uk/sccwebsit...e?opendocument

and other similar sites. As it says the exact intent of the new law is
still unresolved.

A recent DEFRA magazine told farmers not to spread fresh waste from
equine
stables on fields for the time being, yet they still say it is okay in
www.defra.gov.uk/rural/horses/topics/tourism.htm

In the meantime storing 250 cu metres of muck per horse for a year after
which it can be spread whilst keeping any outflow under control is a
real
headache for many stables - and an eyesore for all.

I thought there were ways of drying it and bricking it to make solid fuel
blocks. Or am I thinking of some other ****? :-)

That's why I was asking about the straw burner. There's quite a few local
stables round here so should be enough energy to heat a house easily -
preferably from a remotely located automatically fed burner.

"Mike" wrote in message
...

"BigWallop" wrote in message
k...

snipped
headache for many stables - and an eyesore for all.

I thought there were ways of drying it and bricking it to make solid
fuel
blocks. Or am I thinking of some other ****? :-)

That's why I was asking about the straw burner. There's quite a few local
stables round here so should be enough energy to heat a house easily -
preferably from a remotely located automatically fed burner.



Found these sites:

http://www.thepigsite.com/FeaturedAr...p?Display=1073

http://www.newindustrialproducts.co.uk/quantitech.htm

"BigWallop" wrote in message
. uk...
That's why I was asking about the straw burner. There's quite a few
local
stables round here so should be enough energy to heat a house easily -
preferably from a remotely located automatically fed burner.

Found these sites:

http://www.newindustrialproducts.co.uk/quantitech.htm

38 MW. That should keep me nice and warm :-)

Now to apply for planning permission. It is a renewable energy source after
all.

"Mike" wrote in message
...

"BigWallop" wrote in message
. uk...
That's why I was asking about the straw burner. There's quite a few
local
stables round here so should be enough energy to heat a house easily -
preferably from a remotely located automatically fed burner.

Found these sites:

http://www.newindustrialproducts.co.uk/quantitech.htm

38 MW. That should keep me nice and warm :-)

Now to apply for planning permission. It is a renewable energy source
after
all.


ROFL!!! I was thinking of a smaller version of course, but if that one on
the site chuggs yer chain, then go for it. :-)

"BigWallop" wrote in message
. uk...

"Mike" wrote in message
...

"BigWallop" wrote in message
. uk...
That's why I was asking about the straw burner. There's quite a few
local
stables round here so should be enough energy to heat a house
easily -
preferably from a remotely located automatically fed burner.

Found these sites:

http://www.newindustrialproducts.co.uk/quantitech.htm

38 MW. That should keep me nice and warm :-)

Now to apply for planning permission. It is a renewable energy source
after all.


ROFL!!! I was thinking of a smaller version of course, but if that one on
the site chuggs yer chain, then go for it. :-)

Somehow I don' t think the Peak Park Authority will go for it though. They
have enough problems with small personal windmills and solar panels on
roofs.

Anna Kettle wrote:

On Thu, 02 Jun 2005 11:47:58 +0100, The Natural Philosopher
wrote:


Are you sure the loadbearing calcs for straw are not available?


No, they could be available by now but weren't a couple of years ago
when a loadbearing bale house was built in ... um Devon I think. I
expect that a building control officer with experience and confidence
is a prerequisite and I think the Devon house was "experimental" so if
it failed the buck didn't stop with the BCO. Of course it didn't fail.

Round here (Suffolk) I suspect a strategic first move would be to get
Ralph Carpenter on board. He is the architect who has won awards for a
batch of eco-starter homes in Haverhill.


Andrew Firebarce are giooid on structural calcs. The BCO will take their
word for it.


Not sure how to arrange for a wterproof skin though - breathable
membrane, air gap, metal lathe and render maybe?


I shan't rise to that bait

Well you know Anna, there are two ways to do things: let the damp in and
arrange for it to get out outwards, or not let it in at all barely, and
let it migrate inwards and have a bit of internal heating and ventilation.

Your way is number one, but I see no problem with modern ways to
insulate/heat/ventilate and put a waterproof skin outside- you need that
anyway to get rid of the water that humans give off.


Anna


~~ Anna Kettle, Suffolk, England
|""""| ~ Lime plaster repairs
/ ^^ \ // Freehand modelling in lime: overmantels, pargeting etc
|____| www.kettlenet.co.uk 01359 230642