Construction

Construction

 

Straw is a locally available, plentiful material which can be used to create a beautiful, yet practical and comfortable home that has a minimal impact on the environment in which we all live. The wheat straw we used for the Straw Bale Cabin came from a neighbouring farm. It was baled dry and tightly into standard bales 450mm wide and approximately 1000mm long. It was led off the field before it rained and stored dry in a barn at Village Farm until needed.

 

The construction of the average UK home produces 50 tonnes of carbon dioxide but the construction of a straw house produces only a fraction of that. Transportation over long distances increases carbon dioxide emissions. During the construction of the Straw Bale Cabin we tried to use local materials and services as much as possible. Renewable and recycled materials were also very high on our list of specifications.

 

Due to planning delays, the Straw Bale Cabin was built on a steel, twin axle chassis supplied by Bankside Patterson of Brandesburton, East Yorkshire. Although not a renewable material, it is UK steel from a local supplier and it can be recycled at the end of its useful life.

 

Renewable materials used in the construction of the Straw Bale Cabin include

 

  1. Straw (for the super-insulated walls).
  2. Cedar shingles (for the roof).
  3. Sheep’s wool (local wool for insulating the base of the walls and stuffing gaps, Thermafleece for insulating the floor, ceiling and internal walls).
  4. Timber (base, roof trusses, windows, floors, doors, cupboards).
  5. Wood fibre board (internal walls)
  6. Hemp (chopped in the lime render and clay plaster for strength).
  7. Linseed (for mastic around windows and doors and in the marmoleum flooring).
  8. Cork (an insulating layer beneath the floor boards, also helping prevent “squeaking” and an ingredient in the marmoleum flooring).
  9. Hessian (used to prevent cracking in plaster where wood joins straw, in corners, over pipes, around windows and over wall straps).
  10. Paints and oils made from plant extracts

 

Recycled items include

 

  1. The old barn door (unused for over 20 years) was used to make beams in the lounge and bedroom, edging above all windows and doors and coat hooks.
  2. The bathroom and bedroom doors were bought from a small ad in the Goole Times. They were once part of a local nursing home.
  3. Hanging rails in the wardrobe were once part of the milking parlour (unused for over 20 years).
  4. Roof water reaches the ditch or pond via the plastic centre tubes of silage wrap.
  5. The path uses a number of paving stones found on the farm and locally sourced reclaimed railway sleepers.
  6. Off cuts of marmoleum line the cupboard shelves.
  7. Furniture, curtains, books, games, crockery, cutlery and kitchen equipment was acquired from charity shops, small ads, friends and family.

 

 

Renewable energy

The Straw Bale cabin’s south facing aspect is ideal for the Worcester Bosch solar hot water panel and the BP solar photovoltaic panel. The Eclectic D400 direct-drive micro wind turbine is located 30 metres away in the field to the east of the cabin.

 

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