Straw bale construction is an environmentally friendly building method that has been used since the early 20th century and is now making a bit of a comeback. It is is a method of building that uses bales of straw as either insulation or, as both insulation and as a structural component of a building.
This is a very flexible building style and is reputed to be very easy for trades people, or even those who have never built anything, to learn. There are two main building techniques that are used, though these are not the only methods available. One of the major methods of building with straw is called the “Nebraska style”. In this method the straw is load bearing and supports the roof of the structure.
Straw bale homes can also be built in the “post and beam style”, which uses additional structural elements alongside the bales. This method is recommended for areas which may have large amounts of snowfall as it ensures that the structure can bear the increased load. In both building techniques there is a layer of plaster applied to both the inside and the outside of the building in order to seal the bales in the wall. Straw bale homes exist all over the world which illustrates how flexible this building method is.
To understand this type of construction, one must first understand what straw actually is. You may have noted that 'straw' is a very generic term and you would have been right. Straw comes from many sources.
When many people think of straw bales they are actually thinking of hay bales. These are not the same thing at all. Straw bales are actually the stalks left behind once the grain is harvested. They can be obtained from a variety of crops such as rice, barley, wheat, rye, flax, oats, and even hemp. The thing to note here, is that straw is a non edible part of the plant that is not often used for more than animal bedding.