Building with Straw

Straw bale, Cob, and Light Clay Construction

Alison Ray
20 September 2004

An experience with straw: Bioconstruindo 2004

Heidi: Queen of the Strawbale Pile

Brazilian Cerrado, Rippin the Curl

Bioconstruindo: bamboo geodesic dome, vigas reciprocas & ferrocement caixa de agua

Quick History of Straw Bale Homes

1800s Nebraska: Settlers

Lumber expensive and sod

too precious but straw was
extremely abundant!

Invention of horse-powered
baler in mid-1800s and later
steam-powered made home
construction faster and more
efficient
Warm in winter and cool in
summer, not just a
temporary thing

Constructing a Straw Bale Space

Straw bales are stacked

like blocks to form the
walls of a structure
Load-bearing walls
Infill for post and beam

Straw bale walls are

highly insulative (up to
R40), sound proof, and
when plastered resistant
to fire, vermin, and
decay
Works great in
combination with cob

Laying and sewing the bales

Binding the bales with wet cob

Nearing the top

Natural plastering: cob and clay

Almost done

Quick History of Cob

Cob is an old Devon word for mud wall

Cob has been Devons traditional construction material since 14 th century.
Traditionally, straw and dung, were added to the clay sub-soil to reduce
cracking

Cob can last for many years so long as it does not

accumulate moisture
Some houses in England are 600 years old and still standing

Cob Construction
Our
cob
birdbench

Mixing
the clay,
sand and
water
takes
muscles!

Cob is a mixture of
clay and sand (earth),
straw, and water
Cob walls have no
structural elements
Natural plaster or
rendering must be
applied to prevent
moisture
Cob is favored for its
freeform quality

Advantages of Cob

Abundant, inexpensive and

replenishable material
Free-form, creative and artistic
Easy to do (and fun!)
Structurally more stable than
conventional homes to earth
quake
Cob is a flexible material that
moves with the Earths
movements while staying
together (allowing for rounded,
natural shapes
Provides thermal mass, storing
suns energy and releasing it at
night but also cool and shaded
in the day

Cob socials! Fun to dance and play with the earth while creating functional art!

Inserting a window into a cob wall

Forming
cob bricks
from the
wet
material

Cob wall with tree stump decoration

Yes, its
the same
picture,
but look
at the
cob this
time!

Cob Giant (oven and bench)

Taipa Leve: Light Clay

German tradition for over

400 years
Leichtlehm or Wattle
and Daub

Timber provides most of

the load-bearing structure
straw, earth, woodchips,
sawdust or any material
provide insulation and infill

Panels created to be
independent so houses
could be easily
deconstructed and
transported

Using Light Clay Construction

Loose straw or other material is coated in a clay slip then

tamped into temporary forms for infill of a wood frame
The material will dry about 1 per week, an applied plaster
prevents moisture from entering the wall
Panels are light weight, insulative, non load bearing and
great sound proofing
This technique can also make sawable construction blocks

Creating light clay walls

Tamping down the walls

Building the Walls

Natural Building is good for the environment, for human health,

and community-building, but most of all

its fun!!