Straw+or+chaff

back to Building materials

[] = Straw-bale construction = From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Advantages of straw-bale construction over conventional building systems include the renewable nature of straw, cost, easy availability, and high insulation value. [|[2]][|[3]][|[4]] Disadvantages include susceptibility to rot and high space requirements for the straw itself. [|[5]]
 * Straw-bale construction** is a [|building] method that uses [|bales of straw] (commonly wheat, rice, rye and oats straw) as structural elements, [|building insulation], or both. This construction method is commonly used in [|natural building] or "green" construction projects.

History
Straw, grass, and reeds have been used as building materials for centuries. Straw houses have been built on the African plains since the [|Paleolithic]. Straw bales were used in construction 400 years ago in Germany; and straw-thatched roofs have long been used in northern Europe and Asia. In the New World, [|teepees] were insulated in winter with loose straw between the inner lining and outer cover. [|[6]] Pilgrim Holiness Church in Arthur, Nebraska Straw-bale construction was greatly facilitated by the mechanical hay baler, which was invented in the 1850s and was widespread by the 1890s. [|[6]] It proved particularly useful in the [|Nebraska Sandhills]. Pioneers seeking land under the 1862 [|Homestead Act] and the 1904 [|Kinkaid Act] found a dearth of trees over much of Nebraska. In many parts of the state, the soil was suitable for [|dugouts] and [|sod houses]. [|[7]] However, in the Sandhills, the soil generally made poor construction sod; [|[8]] in the few places where suitable sod could be found, it was more valuable for agriculture than as a building material. [|[9]] The first documented use of hay bales in construction in Nebraska was a schoolhouse built in 1896 or 1897. Unfenced and unprotected by stucco or plaster, it was reported in 1902 as having been eaten by cows. To combat this, builders began plastering their bale structures; if cement or lime stucco was unavailable, locally obtained "gumbo mud" was employed. [|[9]] Between 1896 and 1945, an estimated 70 straw-bale buildings, including houses, farm buildings, churches, schools, offices, and grocery stores had been built in the Sandhills. [|[6]] In 1990, nine surviving bale buildings were reported in [|Arthur] and [|Logan] Counties, [|[10]] including the 1928 [|Pilgrim Holiness Church] in the village of [|Arthur], which is listed in the [|National Register of Historic Places]. [|[8]] Since the 1990s straw-bale construction has been substantially revived, particularly in North America, Europe and Australia. [|[11]]



[|http://strawbale.sustainablesources.com/#Define] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] []