Huff and puff

Sunday, August 20, 2006 MCCLATCHY NEWSPAPERS Not even the strongest winds will blow these houses down. Straw bale construction is a safe, environmentally sound and handsome alternative to traditional framing. The natural building method has moved beyond its hippie-dippy image and is gaining acceptance among mainstream homebuilders and architects. Today's straw bale homes are actually post-and-beam structures that have straw bales in the walls. Rebar runs through the bales to hold them together, or an external framework of rebar or bamboo is held together by wires that run through the bales. Chicken wire or metal lath secured to the outside of the bales is the base for plastering. Straw is cheap, about $2 per bale, and about 800 bales are required for a 2,000-square-foot home. But the labor required to erect the walls, cut electrical and plumbing channels in them and apply two to three coats of plaster should not be underestimated. "It's a lot of work," said Don Warring, who designed and built a straw bale home near Paola, Kan., with his wife, Cathy. With the help of more than 80 friends at a house-raising party, the Warrings got all the straw bales stacked in a day. But completing the project took the couple 18 months of working every weekend. Don Warring loves the solidity of his house. "There's an ambience living in it that I just don't get from a stick frame and wallboard type house. It's made by hand with your friends. It's a spiritual thing, actually," he said. By doing all the work except the concrete flatwork themselves, the Warrings were able to build their 1,700-square-foot home for just $43,000. If you hire a builder, a straw bale home will cost the same or more per square foot than a traditional home. Warring says if he had it to do over, he would still do the construction himself but would hire an architect. "An architect will bring things to the table you don't realize, so you don't have to change things as you go along. An architect is familiar with the systems you are dealing with," Warring said. Energy use As far as energy efficiency, straw bale walls provide good insulation but not better than other options, environmental chemist Rick Robson said. Robson, who now works for Hallmark, used to be a full-time builder specializing in energy-efficient homes. "Straw bale has a higher R-value (insulation rating) than standard stick construction with fiberglass insulation," Robson said. "But other systems such as structural insulated panels (SIP) and insulating concrete forms (ICF) offer comparable performance." And, like any home, a straw bale home's overall energy efficiency is greatly affected by doors, windows and roofing. The real "green" appeal of building with straw bales, Robson says, is that they are readily available and are renewable. Licensed architect Greg Rothers became interested in straw bale construction after reading an article about it in Fine Homebuilding magazine a few years ago. Rothers has designed and built two straw bale homes in the Kansas City area, including his own home. "Straw is a natural byproduct of the local harvest," Rothers said. Unlike ICF and SIP walls, very little energy is used to produce straw bales, he said. Looks great In addition, straw bale homeowners are drawn to the look of the characteristic rounded corners. "It's worked by hand. It has a shaped, human quality," Rothers said. Carolyn Studdard agrees. She and her husband, Gary, hired Rothers to build their 3,400-square-foot straw bale ranch house. "I love the thick walls," Carolyn Studdard said. Studdard uses the deep window wells to display flower pots and art work. The couple's cats love lounging in them, too. Jen Carlson's do-it-yourself experiences building a straw bale home in Lincoln, Neb., eventually led her to open a business called Straw, Sticks and Bricks. The company, which has retail stores in Lincoln and Kansas City, sells "green" building materials and consults on environmentally friendly building practices. Carlson loves the sound-insulating quality of the thick walls of her home, which she shares with her husband, Josh Shear, and their 5-month-old son, August. "It's a nice, quiet, peaceful house," Carlson said. But practical reasons are not the primary motivation for most straw bale builders. "Part of the appeal is that it's unique," Rothers said. "I like doing something different from what other people are doing."