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How building with straw bales helps create a low carbon future...

 

Building with straw is so important because it can:

• save energy and carbon dioxide in construction because of its low level of embodied energy,
• save energy and carbon dioxide in heating and cooling buildings because of its insulating properties, and it can
• remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere as it grows, sequestering it in the fabric of the building itself.

 

The majority of scientists now agree that the earth’s climate is changing and that carbon emissions must be reduced to limit the most harmful effects of that change. At the same time, supplies of oil are about to peak. Oil and other fossil fuels have powered the developed nations over the last 150 years, releasing the greenhouse gases that are now widely thought to be the cause of climate change.

 

In the UK, the majority of us spend our time in one building or another, whether at home or at work. Therefore, it is not surprising that a high percentage of energy is consumed in the construction and occupation of buildings.

 

Straw bale walls tick all the energy saving boxes:

 

• Insulation
  Standard agricultural straw bales provide a level of insulation more than twice that required by current building regulations – on the face of it, an immediate 50% energy saving (although serious flaws in the way we currently calculate and measure these things probably means that there are much greater savings to be made from good straw bale building)
  
  

• Heat storage
  When plastered with clay or lime, straw bale walls can reduce the need for heating and cooling by moderating indoor temperatures. Currently building regulations do not take thermal capacity into account.
  
  

• Air tightness
  Plastered straw bale walls are inherently air tight – the Straw Bale Cabin is six times more air tight than current building regulations require – over 80% less heat is escaping through unwanted cracks and gaps.

 

At the same time, straw bales can significantly reduce the amount of energy required to build a wall – perhaps by as much as 90%.

 

Most of these savings are well in excess of the Government’s call for an 80% cut in emissions by 2050. The added bonus is that every 10kg of straw absorbs nearly 14kg of carbon dioxide as it grows, sequestering it in the walls for the lifetime of the building.

 

The energy and carbon saving facts are compelling!!

 

Straw bales tick all the energy saving boxes only when combined with plaster. The plaster reduces air movement in and through the wall and acts as a temporary store of heat. Straw bale researchers tested their wall complete and found that reality didn’t quite match theory because theory does not take account of convection losses. Research into other walls found that most of them suffered significant convection losses. However, even though this research is twenty years old, standards still do not reflect this.