Tadelakt Ancient Moroccan Finishing Technique Pre-Fabricated Bale Panels Down Under How-To Frame Bale Walls Hemp Lime Walls Tributes to Our Roots

Tadelakt Ancient Moroccan Finishing Technique Pre-Fabricated Bale Panels Down Under How-To Frame Bale Walls Hemp Lime Walls Tributes to our Roots

$10.00 USD Issue #63 Spring 2014

On the cover:

PUBLISHER Odisea LLC EDITOR Jeff Ruppert ISSUE LAYOUT Satomi Lander WEB HOST Sustainable Sources GRAPHICS Morninglori Graphic Design PRINTER Publication Printers

Tadelakt Lime Finish by Artesano Photo by Ryan Chivers

The Last Straw is a quarterly journal documenting Submission Guidelines the natural building world. It was formed in 1993 to Copy should be created using Times New Roman address the lack of public information about straw font, 11 pt, no bold, no colors, no underlining except bale construction and has grown to cover all related for web sites, and no indentations for paragraphs. topics. We are reader-supported, meaning we rely Don’t take time to reformat copy you receive from on raw stories from the field. others; we can do that here. We’ve set up some format, spelling and other rules we could share upon request. The Last Straw is produced quarterly. For subscriptions and address changes, back issue Word Count – with 30 pt heading orders, printing and distribution, promotion, • 900 words fills one page classified advertising and the calendar of events • 500 words with two photos fills one page please visit our website at thelaststraw.org. • 700 words with one photo fills one page • 1000 words with two photos fills two pages Donated articles and photographs are always and sincerely welcome on any topic relating to straw- If several photos are used in an article and captions are bale and natural building. Letters to the Editor are added to the photos, the space for text will be reduced also encouraged. Remember, your input is what accordingly. keeps TLS up-to-date, functional and relevant! We work with offerings respectfully, though we may Submission Deadlines have to edit, postpone or decline their use. The Last December 1, March 1, June 1 and September 1. Please Straw team reserves editorial responsibility for the note that the story deadlines are important to our content of the journal. production schedule. Text and photos may be sent by surface mail or electronically to the TLS editorial TLS Editorial Office office. For complete submission guidelines for articles Jeff Ruppert and photos, see our web site at thelaststraw.org. Editor PO Box 1809 Contact the editorial office for information and input Paonia CO 81428 regarding issue topics and content development, (970) 704-5828 ideas for articles and issue design and other advice, [email protected] encouragement, complaint or controversy.

CONTENTS 5 Editor’s Note 6 DEtour: A Mere Twenty Years 8 Ontario Natural Building Coalition Holds Annual Natural Building Conference by Frank Tettemer, ONBC Director 10 THE SITUPS*: Super Insulated Tilt-Up Panel System “Into Mainstream” by HUFF ‘n’ PUFF CONSTRUCTIONS 13 Tadelakt Lime Finishes by Ryan Chivers 10 16 Tribute to Judy Knox 19 Mechanizing Straw-Clay Production by Alfred von Bachmayr

Tribute to Alfred von Bachmayr by Catheirne Wanek 21 Straw Bale Building in Japan by Kyle Holzhueter

29 Framing Bale Walls: How to by Andrew Morrison 32 The growth of hemp lime as a natural building method 13 by Tom Woolley 35 Community Rebuilds - Path to Zero Waste by Stuart Jeffrey Hart 37 Book Review: Rocket Mass Heaters Third Edition 39 Classifieds Events and Human Resources on the back cover

The views expressed by our authors do not necessarily represent our own. We retain the right to edit, change or refuse to print submitted content. All submissions become the property of The Last Straw. And remember, 32 safety is of the highest priority on construction projects. Editor’s Note NOW that we have two issues under our belt it is time legacy remains a powerful inspiration to all of us and it is to look forward and assess where we are going. We have an understatement to say we wouldn’t be here without her concluded a successful fund-raising campaign and are dedication and passion. increasing visitor numbers on our website, which, by the way, is very important to our mission of long-term success The other person we want to pay tribute to is Alfred (please visit the website regularly and take advantage of von Bachmayr. Alfred was an innovator, humanitarian, viewing the images you see here and more in full-size). We inspirational teacher, and an accomplished architect. I had have a solid process for publishing and content is coming in the pleasure to work with Alfred helping him engineer his to fill future issues. While it may seem minor, our biggest first pallet-truss prototypes and to visit with him in Anapra hurdle is mailing costs due to our lack of access to bulk (a colonia of Juarez, Mexico) while he worked tirelessly mailing rates. This is simply due to not having thousands of with those in need. Alfred was born on a ranch in South- subscribers, yet. Other than that, things look great for our Central Colorado that is now the large subdivision called future and TLS is here to stay! “The Baca Grande” near Crestone, known to many of us as the regional hotbed of experimental building, which is Looking forward we have some great articles, or series of somewhat ironic given it is Alfred’s birthplace. articles, we are excited to share with you. Kyle Holzhueter is continuing his look at Asian natural building by focusing We have included an article by Alfred from the past while on Japan. He will be looking at Thailand in a future issue Catherine Wanek, a past Editor of TLS, reminds us of his and will bring us a closer look at Japan as well. greater achievements.

Many of you know who Andrew Morrison is from Upcoming Articles and Authors strawbale.com, the incredibly successful web resource and One of the articles in this issue focuses on hemp lime, or education portal. Andrew runs dozens of workshops around hempcrete, which is used as an infill wall system. Tom the globe each year and has committed to bringing us some Wooley makes the introduction for us and our next issue of his wisdom on a regular basis. To follow up his article will feature a more in-depth article from the authors of on permitting in the previous issue, he walks us through the upcoming book, The Hempcrete Book: Designing and his favored framing system for bale walls. You can expect building with hemp lime. to see Andrew in every issue for the foreseeable future, so if you have something you want him to cover let us know. To go along with the theme of making an introduction for And we invite you to discuss what you learn here by visiting future content, there is an article in this issue about a pre- the website and making comments and asking questions. fabricated panel wall system from Down Under. Our next We’ll do our best to have the authors answer questions, and issue will look at pre-fabricated panel systems from around if not we’ll keep the conversation rolling ourselves. the world, by various builders, comparing their systems and looking at the advantages (and disadvantages) of this Looking back on our collective history and continuing his approach to wall building. contributions in what we call the DEtour, David Eisenberg reflects on where he began with bale construction and where Finally, We have placed a survey on our website that asks we are today. To exemplify the fruits of our collective labor, the simple question, “How do you orient bales within your David uses his talents to remind us just how far we have walls?” Some folks like to place them flat while others come, and not surprisingly, how trend-setting our work can prefer them on-edge. If you are an experienced builder or be. an owner-builder with bale building experience, please take a moment and answer the four questions. We will feature Tributes the responses in the next issue, which should make for some To continue remembering where we have come from, we good reading. are paying tribute to two of the most important people to impact TLS and the natural building world. I want to wrap up by thanking you once again for your support, your interest in natural building and your feedback Judy Knox founded The Last Straw, along with her partner as we move forward. We are excited to bring you the best Matts Myrhman, back in 1993 during a period of time when stories from the field and hope to see you soon on a project. they were bouncing around the globe talking to people about straw bale construction. But it was Judy who had the idea -Jeff Ruppert of creating the publication you hold in your hands. Judy’s

The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 5 DEtour A Mere Twenty Years by David Eisenberg The headline read, “First Phase of the Testing Program workshops, and by creating The Last Straw as the vehicle to Completed.” The story began, “It is exciting to know that share and spread the word and the work. It was a solid and someday soon we may be able to build load bearing straw- righteous foundation on which the straw bale revival still bale residences with the approval of local building officials.” stands. That was the cover story I wrote for The Last Straw, Volume Judy was the Champion of Champions, constantly looking 1, Number 1, Winter 1993. It documented our path to getting for people to both lead and create more leaders. She and Matts the initial structural testing of straw bale wall panels done did a stellar job of both doing essential work and recruiting with the participation and cooperation of the building officials good people into the various aspects of the work to expand at Pima County and the City of Tucson, Arizona, among so the capacity of the revival beyond what they could manage many others. That testing led to a multi-year code development themselves. And the merging of leaders from the straw bale process with the City/County Building Code Committee world with leaders from other natural building methods like and the eventual approval and adoption of the very first load cob and adobe and rammed earth and natural plasters helped bearing straw bale code in late 1995. defuse emerging rivalries around a shared set of values. Fast forward twenty years to Atlantic City, New Jersey at I am particularly grateful for those who stepped into the the International Code Council Public Comment Hearings in work of research and testing and codes since, as one of Judy’s October 2013 and, voila!, a straw bale code was approved as early recruits, I was quickly overwhelmed by all that needed an appendix to the 2015 International Residential Code (IRC, to be done. But so many people have stepped in and stepped the U.S. national residential building code). Of course the path up over the years, to help tackle the technical hurdles and turn to that success was long, winding, arduous and so much more. what we were learning into technical guidance and ultimately For a bit of that history related to this recent accomplishment, into a comprehensive code that can be used in seismic areas see TLS #62: “A Strawbale Residential Building Code for the and elsewhere. I’ll leave it to another time to try to list all those United States.” And of course, a thorough review of back issues people, but many are still active and we’ve been blessed by of TLS would reveal much more about that path, especially world-class expertise in structural and seismic design, materials issue #54 from June 2006 featuring the international status of science, moisture, thermal performance, durability, aesthetics straw bale codes. and more. Looking at the difference between the early straw bale codes and what was approved for the IRC appendix reveals A Shift of Focus how much more we know and understand today than when we A year after writing that cover article for the first issue, I began that process two decades ago. One thing we did know at wrote another that would change my work forever. The article, the time was that it was too early to write a code for straw bale “Building Codes, Straw Bale Construction, and You” in TLS construction. But we also knew that if we didn’t write one we’d #5 drew a lot of attention because there was a great need for never get to build enough straw bale buildings to know what help and guidance in getting permits for bale buildings. Before the code should actually be. So we wrote in as much flexibility I knew what had happened, I became the straw bale codes guy. as we could figure out how to do, basing that early code on I have long blamed that article for pushing me over the edge what we thought to be an adequate and basic way to build and down the slippery slope into the valley of building codes with bales. Over the years we’ve learned a great deal about and standards. I have been working in that valley ever since. what was wrong with that original code—what was required One crucial revelation early on was how easy it was to get that probably shouldn’t have been and what was missing that approval for some of the most harmful and destructive building should have been included. And also about how much work it materials, systems and methods available and how much harder can take to change a code once in place. it was to get a permit for something that was actually good for Along the way a lot of wonderful organizations and people and the planet. individuals took up the work of research and testing and I began to see the enormous gap between the full range development, excellent resources emerged, many accelerated of hazards attributable to the built environment and the very and documented by TLS, including regional groups, books, limited set of hazards considered by the codes. More disturbing email listserves, websites, videos, workshops, and more. One was the strong and widespread resistance to incorporating thing that still stands out is the degree to which the early ethos that larger understanding of risks and responsibility into of open, honest and generous sharing of successes and failures, official discussions about what is required to truly safeguard of advances and setbacks, of techniques and innovations, has public health and safety from hazards attributable to the continued to set this movement apart from so much of the rest built environment. Though I continued to work on codes of the building industry. Judy Knox and Matts Myhrman of and standards related to straw bale and natural building, my Out On Bale, unLTD, instilled that spirit at the outset of the work expanded to try to address that larger missing context of revival through their introductory presentations writing, and sustainability in the building regulatory realm.

6 The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 DEtour Revealing and addressing that gap has been a central part on sustainability and codes, we were way out on the fringe. of the work we’ve been engaged in at the Development Center Over the past few years those issues have become part of many for Appropriate Technology ever since. Parallel to the advances if not most conversations in the building regulatory sphere. I in the straw bale and natural building worlds, we’ve seen use the analogy that it’s like you built your house way out in significant steps toward incorporating the larger context of the country and one day went outside to find that you were in sustainability into the world of codes and standards. That larger the middle of town—but not because you moved! Perhaps it’s context, once accepted, makes doing the right things easier time to start getting ready for all the new neighbors. and should eventually make doing those that cause harm more difficult, whether that harm occurs at the building site or far away, or at any time throughout the lifecycle of a building and David Eisenberg it’s component parts. Change is happening. is Director of the Those of us involved with the overall natural building Development Center for movement still face many challenges. One that seems Appropriate Technology increasingly important is how we can scale up our capacity in Tucson, Arizona and what we’ve learned about designing and building good has been a contributor to buildings using minimally processed, regional and local The Last Straw Journal materials when demand starts to increase because of from the very beginning. climate change, energy and resource constraints, economic He has led the effort challenges and more. What we have to offer may soon shift to create a sustainable from something viewed as a small, interesting niche market context in building codes to something needed much more widely and quickly than for nearly two decades. most people understand. Developing that capacity may soon He researches, writes, overtake the evolution of the various building systems as the speaks, advocates, and first priority. consults on sustainable These are fascinating times and I see a parallel between systems, codes and what’s happened with our codes work and what is likely to whatever else is of interest to him. happen with natural building. Back when we started working

The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 7 Gatherings Ontario Natural Building Coalition Holds Annual Natural Building Conference by Frank Tettemer, ONBC Director

Chris Magwood, speaking about setting goals and design priorities

This definitely was the most fun to be had all winter. different, and establishing priorities for each individual is Timing is everything, and this year’s gathering of the the first step in good design. And when it’s time to compare clan at Camp Kawartha, near Lakefield Ontario, warmed different materials and building components, his new book, my heart during one of the coldest of Canadian winters. “Making Better Buildings”, covers everything vital and With temperatures outside the straw bale conference room appropriate. dipping to -24C (-11F) at night, the crackling fire in the David Eisenberg’s warm voice and brilliant experiences wood stove provided a popular place to gather around over always open my heart. While transplanting Kathleen the weekend. O’Brien’s Emerge Leadership project to the forests and Tina Therrien’s welcome and opening remarks on lakes of Ontario, he found fertile soil, within this group Saturday morning lit the flame of curiosity and instilled of 80 aware and alert natural builders. Though it must the warm comradeship that nicely permeated the weekend have been a challenge for him, to travel the distance with conference. Her dedication to forming the Ontario a temperature difference of +80F to -11F, ‘Desert Dave’ Straw Bale Building Coalition 15 years ago, and her seemed undaunted, as he patiently germinated the seeds continuance as Chairperson has been instrumental in for emerging leaders, to carry on the work of building not supporting this organization’s transformation into what it just net-zero housing, but to develop ways in which every is today; the Ontario Natural Building Coalition. www. new building is restorative and adds benefits to the natural naturalbuildingcoalition.ca environment. Jacob Deva Racusin spoke of many things around Dawn Marie Smith traveled from Victoria, BC to building impact, social justice, and creativity. Lessons show us how to use alternative methods to achieve code learned were all about making straw bale walls using acceptance and obtain that elusive building permit. additional layers and materials. The synergy of plaster, Reaching for the carrot of sustainable building is not always straw, cellulose, rain screens, and cladding can easily place easy, and the ASRi and their publication, the Alternative natural materials into the Passivehaus world of warmth. Solutions Resource Initiatives’ Straw Bale Alternative Chris Magwood’s presentation reached out to owner- Solutions Resource (ASR) manual, has made the work of builders, professionals, and designers, about the importance digging these carrots much more straight forward. I loved of setting goals and priorities, well before the excavator how her experiences with Emerge Leadership helped to add arrives on site. Emphasizing that everyone’s needs are sprinkles of additional insights during David Eisenburgs’

8 The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 Gatherings presentation. Relaxing after dinner on Saturday, we were treated to our own 5x5 slideshow - five photos from a couple dozen contributors - who each had five minutes to talk about their photos. Hilarious and inspiring, the show was a fun warm-up to the evening, that included libations from a selection of organic wines and craft brewed beers from the Bale Heart Bar, that livened up our senses for socializing, while singer-songwriter Rick Fines strummed and sang, caressing the spirit of inspiration in us all. Did I mention how well we were treated and fed by the Camp Kawartha cooks? They really knew how to accommodate the evolved diets of our participants, with delicious meals and healthy snacks. Thanks to all, for your spirited participation, in making this year one of the finest conferences ever.

ONBC - Ontario Natural Building Coalition http://naturalbuildingcoalition.ca [email protected] 517 Sherbrooke St., Peterborough, ON K9H 1A1 Jacob Deva Racusin on natural building impacts, social References: justice, and creativity Tina Therrien http://naturalbuildingcoalition.ca/ http://www.strawhomes.ca/

Jacob Deva Racusin http://www.chelseagreen.com/bookstore/item/the_natural_building_companion:paperback%20+%20 dvd http://newframeworks.com/

Chris Magwood https://www.newsociety.com/Books/M/Making-Better- Buildings http://www.chrismagwood.ca/

David Eisenberg http://www.emergeleadership.net/ http://www.dcat.net/index.php

Dawn Marie Smith http://www.asri.ca/

Rick Fines http://rickfines.ca/

Camp Kawartha http://www.campkawartha.ca/ http://rickfines.ca/

The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 9 Materials

THE SITUPS*: Super Insulated Tilt-Up Panel System “Into Mainstream” by HUFF ‘n’ PUFF CONSTRUCTIONS

Near Yass, Australia INTRODUCTION

Recent times have brought an increasing wave of mind, the building industry, known for its rigidity and resistance environmental and energy efficiency awareness in the building to change, will have to look at replacement materials for framing industry throughout Australia. This increased awareness of the timber in home and commercial construction. effect of logging on our forests, lakes, and streams, as well as heightened concern for the energy cost and efficiency of our THE SITUPS* buildings and ever-increasing costs of construction materials We are in the process of developing and bringing to the is bringing tremendous pressure for change to the Australian market place a unique, and ecologically sound, structural building industry. insulated panel building system. These panels will be able to A primary focus of this change is the development of be put into place by two people. This structural panel system alternative forms of construction for single and multi-family provides a cost-effective, building system that is based on an housing as well as commercial and industrial buildings. With environmentally responsible manufacturing process. a tradition that dates back almost 200 years, the Australian Huff ‘n’ Puff Constructions are manufacturing a structural building industry has utilized timber extensively for use in wood super insulated panel that uses as its core material waste frame construction, concentration on wood framing timber as agricultural cereal straw from wheat and other cereals commonly the principal raw material for the structural shell of the majority grown in Australia. of our housing and much of our light commercial structures has With the recent high rise in energy costs and energy tremendously diminished our hard wood and softwood forest availability this product’s value to the builder and his client is resources in Australia. a product that is more important now than ever before. The The cost of framing timber has more than doubled in the SITUPS is highly competitive to conventional building methods. past five years. The price of timber is projected to continue to With the reduced construction time, energy savings, non-toxic rise over the course of the next decade with additional concerns nature of the product, and strength and durability of the product over the quality and availability of that timber. The price and indicate we have a building system whose time has come. in some areas the availability of energy has added a new and important factor in most building projects. With these facts in *Trademark of Huff ‘n’ Puff Constructions

10 The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 Materials HISTORY It was on the banks of the Murrumbidgee River at Hay that we made our first SITUP. This event was first published in The Last Straw many moons ago now. It involved a BIG chain saw and a jumbo straw bale 2.4 m x 1.2 m x 1.2 m (8’x4’x4’). We made three panels out of the one bale and had a lot of waste with the “method” we used at that time. Back to the drawing board… In between building straw bale houses and wineries we kept on refining the process over the past 8 years. Eventually we got an order to make 60 x 2.4 x 1.2 x 150 mm panels for a straw bale house that we were building in Kangaroo Valley, near Sydney. These panels were to be used for the internal walls and are non-load bearing We had these internal panels tested at the University of Western Sydney. Our tests were to establish their load bearing and wind loading capacity. They did not pass muster for load SITUP Prototype From TLS #24 bearing but showed us their potential. However the size of 150 mm wide proved to be very hard to manufacture and will need a lot of refining in the process to make them a worthwhile proposition.

FIRST LOAD BEARING PROTOYPES After many experiments and research we have chosen a method that we feel has the potential to change the way we build with straw bales now and into the future. We also realise that several straw panel systems are now on the market in parts of Europe and Canada. Our opinion is that more is good and will only lead to the acceptance of building a house, flats and even high rise units and many other types of building by adopting straw as the medium in tilt- up wall technology. We have now completed two SITUP buildings in New South Wales. One close to home in a suburb of Wagga Wagga, and the other on a farm near Yass, which is close to Canberra. We are now filling an order for a three-pavilion SITUPS home in the Hunter Valley of New South Wales. The SITUPS are currently 2.450 to 3.000 metres high and come in various widths from 600 mm to 1.2 metres. We can also make them between 350 mm and 450 mm wide. The cladding can be a variety of material from renders to weatherboard, corrugated iron and many other forms of external sheeting. Internally they can also be clad in render or Gyprock and various types of lining boards. We are also developing a portable SITUPS factory to make these on a building site. Testing

The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 11 Materials SUMMARY The SITUPS will greatly reduce carbon emissions from new buildings through savings during manufacture and the operation of the building. We already know this, having built many straw bale buildings since 1998 and together with 145 straw bale building workshops now completed. Our goal is twofold; first, to reduce the carbon impact of modern buildings with the SITUPS and; second, to be able to utilize a waste product of our wheat and rice cereal growing in Australia where rice straw alone is burnt at an alarming rate. Some one million tonnes goes up in smoke (particulates and carbon) every year. Enough straw to build, say, 44,000 three-bedroom SITUPS homes on an annual basis and that is only from the rice grown in one area of Australia. All the other benefits that come with straw bale homes that we have know of and practiced over the past 17 years apply equally to the SITUPS. The main difference to conventional building with straw bales is that the SITUPS are uniform pre-compressed at time of manufacture and hence are very fast to build with, saving time and money.

John Glassford and Susan Wingate-Pearse Huff ‘n’ Puff Constructions “Jack’s Flat” 22-24 Moore Street GANMAIN N.S.W. 2702. AUSTRALIA

61 2 6927 6027 Work 0412 11 61 57 Mobile Email: [email protected] Web Site: http://www.glassford.com.au Near Wagga Wagga, Australia

Hunter Valley, Australia

12 The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 Plasters Tadelakt Lime Finishes by Ryan Chivers

With the modern development of natural building technologies, there has been a resurgence and rediscovery of ancient and traditional methods of plasterwork. For over 10,000 years, in nearly every culture, humans have used lime as an applied material that serves as both function and decoration. From the frescoes of the Italian Renaissance to the sculpted bas relief masks of the ancient Mayans, the chemistry, durability and elegant beauty of lime has, until modern times, been a staple of art and architecture the world over. In the twentieth century, builders have all but forgotten how to work with earth and lime based mortars, and plasters. Thanks to the efforts of passionate builders, crafts-people, architects and designers, and many within the natural building community, these old ways are being revived and put into practice once again. Collectively we are relearning how to successfully formulate and apply traditional plasters, using locally sourced materials and modern tools. The rich and mysterious culture of Morocco offers one example of an ancient lime plaster art, nearly lost, which is now enjoying a rebirth. Tadelakt is a waterproof, polished plaster made from lime and finished with olive oil soap. The history of this highly specialized technique dates back many thousands of years. It has its origins in and around the ancient city of Marrakech at the foot of the High Atlas Mountains. The Berbers, some of the indigenous peoples of North Africa, discovered the magical water resistant chemistry of lime treated with soap. In the beginning, tadelakt was used as technique to waterproof earthen cisterns. The ability to effectively and hygienically store water was a major development. It was not long before tadelakt became recognized as a beautiful finish technique that could be pigmented and applied on any surface, especially where moisture was prevalent. Eventually, Tadelakt became a highly prized surface treatment that was widely specified in the traditional NorthAfrican hammams (communal bath houses) and royal palaces. To this day in Morocco the tadelakt technique is passed down as an oral tradition from master to apprentice in an unbroken lineage that dates back to antiquity. The word “Tadelakt” comes from the Arabic verb “dlek” which means to rub, or perhaps most appropriately, “to caress”. The word “dlek” describes the final step of finishing where a smooth stone is used to burnish the lime. Olive oil soap is applied during the final polishing and the tadelakt is burnished to a brilliant luster. In an interesting chemical reaction, the stearic acid in the soap combines with the free calcium of the fresh lime to create calcium stearate, a water resistant wax like material. The allure of tadelakt is not easily described in words or pictures. It is only through touching it that you can fully appreciate this unique finish. A tadelakt surface is at once hard as stone and soft as silk. The combination of the soap and lime creates a living, breathing surface that appears to be part stone, part leather, shiny and smooth. Unlike some other plasters, tadelakt is

The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 13 Plasters not a standardized finish. Walls look experimenting. After much trial and rustic, and hand crafted. Tadelakt has error, I had produced some pretty a shiny, slightly wavy appearance good results on small objects. I still and is colored with the same mineral had many questions and did not feel pigments that have been used confident enough to do a real world since antiquity. Over time, the lime application. More internet research develops a patina that creates a subtle turned up a 5-day tadelakt course ever-changing lumination. Properly offered in Marrakech. The course applied, tadelakt develops a network taught the tadelakt technique in the of very fine hairline cracks that add to traditional way, using the mysterious the ancient appearance of the finish. “lime of Marrakech.” Everything Because of its unique characteristics I had read told me that tadelakt can tadelakt can be made to seamlessly only be made with this special lime cover walls, ceilings, floors, sinks, from Morocco. This was something showers, fountains and even bathtubs. that I did not understand, and was I first discovered the tadelakt concerned about. In all of my work technique in 2005, while searching I strive to use materials that are as the Internet about ancient plaster local as possible. I would have techniques. I was instantly had a very hard time on with the captivated by the possibilities. At the idea of importing special material time there was almost no information half way around the world. I was in English. Most of the websites were in French or German. determined to find out if there was something special about the I was hopelessly fascinated and determined to figure out this Moroccan lime or if I could create a similar mix using more mysterious art. I forced myself to read the French websites locally sourced materials. For me, signing up for the course in and figure out as much as possible. Having worked with lime Morocco seemed like an obvious next step. plasters for many years, I had a good idea of where to start My experience in Morocco was inspiring to say the least - an awe-inspiring blend of sights, sounds and colors. The old city of Marrakech dates back over 1,000 years. The tall earthen buildings form a haphazard labyrinth of endless narrow streets and alleyways, all protected from the outside world by massive earthen ramparts that surround the entire city. I have never seen so much architectural art and artistic decoration. From the grandest royal palace to a simple teapot, almost everything was ornately detailed with complex repeating geometric designs. During my tadelakt course, I learned the traditional technique. We worked with roughly the same basic tools that have been used for centuries. A masons trowel, a wood float, and a stone with one flat, smooth side. I discovered that what was “special” about the “lime of Marrakech” was in the way that the lime is produced. The Moroccan limekilns are burned in the open air. A hole is dug in the ground for the fire, and grapefruit sized pieces of limestone are piled high above in a way that creates a dome like

14 The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 Plasters structure above the fire. An oily sage like plant is used for fuel to fire the kiln. This way of burning lime probably has not changed since antiquity. The lime that is produced has unique properties. Because these open-air kilns are thermally inefficient, only about the outer two-thirds of the limestone is calcined. The inner core does not get hot enough to convert to calcium oxide. This creates a lime that consists of about 50% inert limestone particles. These particles play the role of sand in the tadelakt mixture. It is also worth noting that the lime of Marrakech has some clay impurities and is therefore slightly hydraulic. Having seen first hand what was special about the traditional tadelakt lime I returned home, hopeful that I could create something similar using more locally sourced materials. All I needed to do was to find some good limestone based sand that would replicate the inert limestone in the traditional material. At my local plaster supply store, I found crushed marble sand that was sold as aggregate for white swimming pool plaster finishes. It was fine, but not too fine, and best of all it is quarried less than 150 miles from where I live. I tried mixing it 50/50 with Type S lime putty and began to make some tests. I was pleasantly surprised with the results. The tadelakt was very shiny, waterproof and super-durable. To this day I have not changed this formulation much at all and have used it on every one of my tadelakt projects. In the last few years, I have had the great fortune to be able to teach others the tadelakt technique, holding workshops in various locations in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. At every workshop, we were able to find a local source of crushed marble or limestone and lime that created a beautiful tadelakt Ryan Chivers has been a natural plasterer since 1998. He has finish. Each with it’s own distinct characteristics. played a fundamental role in the development of natural plaster For readers interested in learning tadelakt themselves, my systems used on the Front Range of Colorado. In 2006 Ryan suggestion is to start small. Even a skilled plasterer should not traveled to Marrakech, Morocco on a quest to learn the ancient take on a large project like a shower for their first attempt. The art art of Tadelakt. He has developed his own style of tadelakt of tadelakt is a practice that requires experiential understanding. that follows the Moroccan tradition using domestic tools and There are several steps involved, and the timing of each step is materials. Ryan has completed many successful tadelakt projects of great importance. If possible, attending a workshop is a good and has taught courses on the technique in the U.S, Canada, and introduction. Otherwise, be willing to learn as you go, patiently Mexico. Ryan’s company, Artesano Plaster is located in Boulder discovering the tricks through trial and error. If you take the time Colorado and can be found at www.artesanoplaster.com. to learn the tricks and work with the timing, tadelakt can be one of the most gratifying plaster finishes you will ever create.

The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 15 Remembrance Tribute to Judy Knox Judy Knox was one of two founders of this publication back in 1993. She passed away in late 2011. This section is a tribute to her work and how she helped others realize the power of straw bale construction.

Judy and Matts at Sandhill Meadows, Nebraska

Back in the early ‘90’s The Last Straw was coming into list of TLS documented the testing program more than a year its own, generating a buzz and inspiring thousands of people later referred to in David Eisenberg’s article on codes at the to either build with straw or at least consider it in their next beginning of this issue]. project. TLS was founded by Judy Knox and Matts Myrman in Tuscon, Arizona where they fed early believers the stuff Helping Others they yearned for, which was the gospel of helping each As Judy told us in one of her TLS editorials, she ended other, making sure as many people as possible knew their up in Tucson after working on natural resource management choices when it came to the built reform in Alaska and mental health environment, and to use straw bale reform in New Hampshire. In 1986 construction as an agent of change. she joined a non-profit organization Judy Knox is the reason The “converting grassroots domestic Last Straw exists. It was Judy donations into micro-enterprise who wondered how all of the new loans and village banks for severely information back in the early ‘90’s impoverished women and children in about bale construction was going Latin America,” where she met Matts. to be shared with the public. At Helping others was in her DNA. that time dozens of people had sent Her work was a result of seeing Judy and Matts information about the planet in jeopardy, and it is best to their projects. What could they reprint her own words to remind us of responsibly do with the trust of so her passion: many pioneers? The Last Straw was a natural “…most importantly, outcome from such stewardship. A I realized we must re- quick effort to publish resulted in perceive our lives and our the first issue, From Russia With well-being as irretrievably Love in the Fall of 1992. [Ed note: connected to all other This first issue did not see much life on the planets.” She attention. The version most people continued, “For us, it was, think of as the first in the publishing TLS #1 and is, important to make

16 The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 Remembrance straw bale construction widely accessible as a transformative experience, as well as a way to make simple, livable homes available at a cost both people and the planet can afford.”

Straw bale construction was another way for Judy to help those around her. She helped us believe that bale construction could be an agent of change, and at the time it became the backbone behind the work of everyone who brought natural building into the broader consciousness. Straw bale was not just a wall system, it was an experience meant to symbolize much more than any one of us could lay claim to.

Judy’s Impact It was her passion to increase choice, open up opportunity for those in need and spread her love. Judy’s heart was boundless and she affected many who heard her speak. As with someone who impacted so many and offered such a profound level of inspiration, her writings and speeches best tell her passion. Her speech at the 2005 MENSA Colloquium is a great example of who she was. We would like to share a couple excerpts from that talk and you can find the entire presentation at the link below…

“If I could transform one word from human language and thought, it would be the word “they.”

The Moravians have a wonderful saying: In essentials, unity In non-essentials, liberty In all things, charity

The quest to restore and sustain life on this planet is essential and it is here that we must find our way to unity; it is here, above all, that we can no longer afford “they” in our language and actions.”

“Many of us have adopted a new technology or an innovative idea and then grafted it on to old paradigms and values. Matts and I see this all the time in straw-bale construction and related building technologies: a straw-bale, rammed earth, or adobe home utilizing solar energy and water collection systems, and then built on a hilltop of 40 virgin acres, located 20 miles away from the daily commute to work, with a road cut up to it, a new well dug, and all the other infrastructure and materials necessary to accommodate a 3,000 or 5,000 square foot house for a couple or one family.

Embracing simplicity as a way of life is prerequisite to life-affirming choices. Simplicity is necessary in a world of burgeoning population and finite resources.

What we must experience, and demonstrate to others we hope to inspire to step in our path, is that living the life of simplicity that cherishes other life is a life that exudes gratitude and joy. Less is truly more. I firmly believe our life is blocked from joy (to be distinguished from short-term pleasure) in any place where we are using more of our commons than is necessary.”

The best words we can find about Judy from someone else were shared in issue #61 of The Last Straw by David Eisenberg. The theme of the issue was The Women of Straw Bale and Natural Building and Judy led the group.

“It is not a DEtour to take the time to honor at least a few of the women who have helped lead the modern emergence of straw-bale construction. It is, however, a very risky thing to do because I know that I leave out some who are worthy of mention, people who either never came to my attention or have Judy and Matts preparing to host international slipped through the ever-more porous sieve of my memory. So guests for the first gathering of bale builders. apologies in advance to those not mentioned here, and please Courtesy of the Tucson Weekly trust that I have real gratitude for you and your contributions.

The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 17 Remembrance I will name a few who I know helped open the door for many others who have been drawn into the realm of straw bale and natural building.

I can’t imagine starting with anyone other than Judy Knox, who I’m quite certain is responsible for the humane and generous character of the straw-bale revival. Judy came to a leadership role in the straw-bale revival somewhat unwillingly, seeing it as a distraction from what she saw as the larger work she had been engaged in – a coherently integrated set of activities around the rights and well-being of children, community empowerment, education, micro-economics, international relations, environmental stewardship and more. When the New York Times put an article about straw-bale building and Judy and Matts Myhrman (her husband and co-conspirator in their little business that emerged from all this, Out On Bale) on the front page of a section of the Sunday Times, the world (literally) beat a path to their door with a flood of mail arriving daily and the phone ringing off the hook for months. As a result of the depth and breadth of her experience and her commitment to action in service to larger ends, once swept into the strong and rising current of the revival, she realized that they would not soon return to their former lives.

In her unique and powerful way, she saw straw-bale construction as a vehicle to empower people, especially women, to go, as she put it so clearly, “from ‘I can’t’ to ‘I can!’” And it was her attention to the human and personal potential of this movement, that shifted the revival to being much more than about a building technique or material, or a more environmentally responsible way to build. It was all of that, but she also nurtured a foundational aspect of the revival, helping people see what they were capable of doing. She has always been on the lookout for champions – a champion of champions – seeking to pull people into their fullest potential. She certainly had a big influence on me. The structure of the Out On Bale Workshops, which I was fortunate to be invited to attend and eventually to teach, paid as much attention to the process, and the possibilities emerging from the workshop participants, as to the importance of sharing the most current and best technical information available. As a result of Judy’s focus on process, those workshops became a safe place for everyone to explore possibilities about their own capacities and for each participant to share their deepest feelings about what was most important to them. This was also about building people and community. And thus the straw-bale community was seeded with a communitarian spirit and a generosity rare in building circles. Judy and Matts made it clear that this was a building system that was part of the commons.

The Last Straw grew out of a vision of having a vehicle to expand that community and enable those of us in it and coming into it, to take responsibility for guiding what we were creating with our ever-growing collective knowledge that occasionally rose to the level of wisdom. While Matts was tirelessly, inquisitively, brilliantly, and, thankfully, often hilariously exploring and working on the physical and technical and historical details, Judy was attending to the health and well-being of the movement and all of us who were involved with it. Judy’s initial and essential framing of the revival in terms of community and personal potential carried forward and out as straw bale construction echoed out into the rest of the world. I know how deeply her focus on these things affected me then and how it resonated in me and became part of who I am and how I do what I do in the world, a gift for which I am profoundly grateful…”

It is with great honor that we pay tribute to the founder of this publication, Judy Knox. We are grateful to be able to continue its purpose and remember her very special place in our hearts.

With much love and respect,

The TLS Team http://thelaststraw.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Mensa_Talk.pdf https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N2q9JSBBSvI

18 The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 Remembrance Mechanizing Straw-Clay Production by Alfred von Bachmayr

My first experience with light-clay straw was at a workshop in which the straw and clay had to be mixed by hand with pitchforks. I remember thinking that I loved the finished product but I discounted the viability of the material due to the high labor requirement. Having grown up on a farm where my father was always creating machines out of items from the junk pile, my mind went to work on a mixing device that could be easily made out of materials obtainable anywhere. I first tried a conventional cement mixer but found it too small and awkward to process significant amounts of material. I then created a tumbler out of a 55-gallon (250-liter) drum, which replicated a cement mixer; even though the volume was greater, the problem of limited batch size remained. I started thinking about a rotating tube with the raw Alfred using his barrel straw-clay mixer materials being fed in one end and the mixed product coming out the other. After welding two 55-gallon (250-liter) drums together to form a tube, I attached a driving belt to turn the tube to an HP electric motor. The raw material was fed in the upper end of the tube in sequence (straw, water, and clay) and mixed as it tumbled down the tube. By adjusting its pitch, I could control the rate at which the materials went through the tube. A series of tines welded inside the tube helped mix the material more thoroughly by lifting it at each rotation up the side of the drum and dropping it when the tines approached vertical. This device allows the ratio of clay to straw to be adjusted as desired. For walls where high insulation values are desired, the material can be mixed at a dry weight of approximately 35 pounds per cubic foot (560 kilograms per cubic meter). Where more mass is desired, a higher percentage of clay is used and the mix can be made to weigh 50 to 75 pounds per cubic foot (800 to 1,200 kilograms per cubic meter). To optimize the thermal performance of a building, the lighter mix is used in north and west walls, while the heavier mix is used on the south, east, and in interior walls. My mixer design continues to evolve. In order to produce even more material, I developed a larger tumbler, 36 inches (90 centimeters) in diameter and 10 feet (3 meters) long. It is made of a tractor tire rim split in half, with corrugated metal roofing attached to create the tube. It is turned with a gear motor at about 30 revolutions per minute, and the whole device is mounted on a trailer that can be pulled to construction sites. This large device can produce enough mixed light-clay to keep a large crew busy compacting it in forms. The next evolution will involve a more automated feeding of the raw materials to the rotating drum and better delivery of the mixed material to the walls for compaction.

Architect Alfred von Bachmayr (1948 - 2013) by Catherine Wanek My friend Alfred Von Bachmayr passed away from a energy-efficient, and sustainable buildings using straw bales, rare cancer, August 4, 2013, at his home in Tesuque, NM. I straw-clay, pumicecrete, adobe, earthen plasters, rainwater miss him, and wish to honor his memory with a short tribute catchment, alternative waste disposal systems, and solar to his many contributions to human beings in need, and his electricity. He also came up with low-tech ideas to make cleverness as a natural builder. natural buildings easier, simpler, and more affordable. He Alfred von Bachmayr cared about people and the planet. invented the straw-clay tumbler described above and developed An award-winning architect, he designed and built low-cost, the “pallet truss”, a structural solution for supporting roofs

The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 19 Remembrance where wood is scarce, and pallets are readily available. Alfred grew up on a farm in Colorado, and graduated with a degree in Architecture from the University of Colorado in Boulder. He apprenticed with an architectural firm in Aspen, where he worked on an early passive solar house for Steve Martin (the comedian and bluegrass musician), and went on to design the award-winning passive solar dormitory at Fountain Valley School in Colorado. In the 1980’s he became involved with low-income housing and was a founder of the Affordable Housing Alliance in Boulder. In the early 1990’s he moved to Tesuque, New Mexico, (near Santa Fe) where he designed and built his own innovative solar adobe home in a family compound. In addition to his private architectural practice, he worked with Habitat for Humanity designing a house for them that won a national award. During two years as the Director of Earthworks Institute, he led a project in Fiji involving low-cost structures using local and native materials. Alfred also designed and helped build (along with Matts Myhrman, Judy Knox and many others) a strawbale house for Mary Lowe, an 84-year-old great grandmother on the Zuni Pueblo. Alfred was one of about 20 strawbale advocates (including Steve MacDonald, Joe Kennedy, Derek Roff and myself) who met at the Black Range Lodge in 1999 to discuss how we might use strawbale building knowledge to help during the war in Kosovo. We saw people being made homeless by bombs, and winter was coming. By the end of the day we founded Builders Pallet Trusses Without Borders, which was conceived as a network of ecological builders and other volunteers dedicated to teaching consulting with the Picaris Pueblo on a greenhouse design, and and promoting natural building as a solution to affordable, helping with the nearby Tesuque Pueblo to design and build a comfortable housing. strawbale Seed Bank, and develop their proposed Community Through BWB, Alfred was integral in designing and Plan of 2013. He also helped restore an old adobe building into building a strawbale Hogan with the National Indian Youth the Esperanza Shelter, a wonderful, warm space for kids from Leadership Project (NIYLP) near Laguna Pueblo, an eco battered families. Alfred’s community service included many compound for Catholic sisters in Chaparral, NM, and a years as the Mayordomo of the Acequia (the neighborhood strawbale house for a family whose house had burned down irrigation system) in Tesuque. in Anapra, Mexico, a sprall of pallet houses without city Alfred was also a superb athlete: A triathlete, a swimmer infrastructure, across the border from relatively prosperous El and a kayaker, he ran most of the big rivers in the West (doing Paso, Texas. the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon six times). He The Anapra project evolved into a long-term relationship went as far as the Northwest Territories in Canada to run the with the community, during which he founded World Hands Nahanni River. He won the Fourth Annual Kinetic Sculpture Project to continue the work, forging a partnership with a local Challenge race in Boulder in May 1983, setting a course priest and developing relationships with local builders. Alfred record. listened more than talked, and developed designs that worked Alfred was a creative tinkerer and a hard-working practical with locally-available building materials and skills. He located person. He loved people and nature, grew a bountiful garden, a nearby source of free clay to replace cement (which was lived an active and joyful life, and had many friends. He will unaffordable), and shifted from strawbale buildings to straw- be remembered. clay infill inside pallet walls covered with pallet roofs, which were easier for local builders. He continued working in Anapra, an unincorporated suburb of Juarez, until the border drug wars Catherine Wanek, Builders Without Borders made him feel that it was too potentially dangerous to bring his http://builderswithoutborders.org small team of volunteers into the region. [email protected] During the last decade he worked closer to home,

20 The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 Japan Straw Bale Building in Japan by Kyle Holzhueter

Rice cultivation is common throughout most of Japan. Subsequently, rice straw is locally and plentifully available. Historically, rice straw was a valuable commodity in pre-industrial Japan. Rice straw was used in agricultural and architectural applications and was also used in the production of daily goods. For example, rice straw provided bedding for livestock, thatch roofing for buildings, and flooring for homes in the form of tatami mats. In pre-industrial Japan, rice straw was also used to create sandals, snow boots, raincoats and other commonly used items. Although rice straw is still used for various applications, in modern mechanized farming, at the time of harvest, the combine chops grain straw into 15cm (roughly 6in) lengths and returns the chopped straw to the soil. But rather than discuss the traditional uses of rice straw in Japan, this article hopes to explore the relatively recent use of straw in Japanese architecture, namely straw bale building. Each country presents a unique architectural context, including climate, cultural norms and architectural history. We’d like to explore straw bale building within Japan’s unique architectural context. For example, Japan is one of the most seismically active regions in the world. Also, compared to Europe, North America and Australia, Japan’s climate is characterized by high humidity and precipitation. Traditionally, homes consist of a timber frame on pier foundations with non-load bearing walls. And culturally, shoes are removed at the front door and living quarters have raised floors. Lastly, since exhaust from fires for cooking and heating directly entered the living quarters in traditional homes, there was never strong emphasizes on building air tightness or thermal insulation. Modern straw building in Japan finds itself within this climatic, cultural and historical context. Here we describe how straw bale building in Japan has developed from and adapted to this context. Today, in Japan and throughout the world, awareness of environmental problems continues to rise. As a response, interest in natural and alternative building, such as straw bale building, also continues to grow. The actual number of straw bale buildings in Japan increases every year. Although there are some load-bearing straw bale structures in Japan, most straw bale homes are non-load bearing, meaning that loads are carried by a frame, generally timber, and straw bales are used as an infill. The greatest challenges facing straw building in Japan are damage from moisture and the susceptibility of straw to microbial decay. These challenges will be discussed in greater detail in a subsequent article. The purpose of this first installment is to photographically present the variation of straw building in Japan. According to Load Bearing Straw Bale Walls in Tochigi Prefecture (left) and Wakayama Prefecture (right) the International Straw Bale Building Registry, as of February 2014, there are over 1625 straw bale buildings in 50 countries on six continents. However, only three buildings are listed for Japan, whereas the author has identified over 50 Non-load Bearing Straw Bale Walls in Minamiboso City, Chiba Prefecture (left) and Toyama City, Toyama straw bale buildings Prefecture (right)

The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 21 Japan in Japan. The International Straw Bale Building Registry recognizes that the registry does not reflect the actual number of straw bale buildings in the world and that the global number of straw bale buildings is actually much larger. And since the registry is conducted in English, non-English speaking countries are naturally under-represented.

Straw Bale Building in Japan: History and Current State In Japan, rice straw is the most common type of straw, though wheat is also grown in some areas. Bales of rice straw are the most common type of bale, while bales of wheat straw, dried meadow grasses, susuki (Miscanthus sinensis), and bamboo grass (Bambusoideae luerss) are also available in some areas of Japan. According to the now defunct Japan Straw Bale House Association, the first straw bale home in Japan was completed in January 2001. Thirteen years later, there are over 50 straw bale structures throughout Japan, from sub-tropical Okinawa to cold climate Hokkaido. The NPO Japan Straw Bale House Association lead by Kiyohiko Umagami folded in 2013. Presently, there are four organizations in Japan designing and building straw bale structures: Slow Design Research Group directed by Goichi Oiwa, the Straw Bale Project headed by Hideto Oshima, the Toyama Straw Bale House Association lead by Hiroaki Yoshimoto, and the Hokkaido Straw Bale Building Network organized by Takeshi Jinnouchi. In addition, there are numerous individuals and DIY homeowners building with straw bales. Working with all of the afore mentioned organizations, the author has been involved in the construction of over 20 straw bale buildings in Japan, including both load-bearing and non-load-bearing straw bale walls. The non-load-bearing straw bale walls have been combined with framing in a number of ways. Of structural wood buildings in Japan, conventional Japanese timber framing represents the greatest portion of new wood construction. In contrast to traditional Japanese timber framing, characteristics of conventional timber framing are the use of bolts to secure joints and large diagonal bracing for seismic stability. Building officials and professional carpenters are accustomed to the conventional norm and straw bale construction often finds itself within this context. The robust and ubiquitous diagonal bracing of conventional Japanese timber frames tends to push bale walls to either the exterior or interior side of the timber frame. There are three principle methods combining straw bale walls and timber frames: 1. Stack bales entirely on the exterior side of conventional Japanese timber framing. In this case, the exterior finish consists of plaster applied directly to the bale walls. Due to fire, thermal performance, and moisture concerns, the interior side of the bales should also be plastered. However, these concerns are often overlooked and the interior side of the bales may or may not be plastered. The interior walls are usually finished with wood, earthen plaster on a bamboo lattice, or drywall, providing a gap the width of the timber framing between the bale wall and interior finish. Although this gap provides a space for utilities such as wiring, it also provides a space for thermal convection. In order to prevent thermal convection, packed straw bundles have been used, and an infill of light straw clay or cellulose is also possible. In other cases, the interior side of the straw bales is plastered, exposing the posts and diagonal bracing.

Straw bales stacked on the outside of a conventional timber frame Straw bundles packed between posts with in Minamiboso a bamboo lattice on the interior side and City, Chiba straw bale wall on the exterior side of a Prefecture conventional timber frame in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture

2. Stack bales entirely on the interior side of framing. In this case, exterior siding is attached to the exterior side of the frame. In new construction, it is possible to plaster the exterior side of the bale wall before the exterior siding is attached. When using bales in the renovation of existing buildings, it is nearly impossible to plaster the exterior side of the bale wall unless the exterior siding is removed. In one instance, cellulose insulation was installed between the framing members. The interior side of the bales is finished with plaster.

22 The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 Japan

Straw bales stacked on the interior side of a conventional timber frame in Toyama City, Toyama Prefecture. The exterior side of the bale wall is plastered and allowed to dry before covering with a ventilated rain screen.

Renovation where straw bales are stacked on the inside of a steel frame in Handa City, Aichi Prefecture

3. The bales are notched with a chainsaw/grinder/hedge trimmer/brush cutter to fit in between and to the inside of a timber frame. In these cases, the use of a conventional Japanese timber frame is uncommon. For example, in one instance, the timber framing style used was reminiscent of North American or European timber farming with relatively small diagonal bracing (knee bracing). The exterior and interior side of the bales was plastered and functioned as the finish.

Straw bales notched with a chainsaw and stacked between and inside of a post and beam frame in Higashi Town, Kamikawa County, Hokkaido

Challenges Facing Straw Bale Building in Japan Straw bale building faces a number of challenges particular to Japan. For example, the supply of straw bales varies by region. In some areas, bales are inexpensive (\250JPY or approx. $2.50USD) and readily available, while in other areas, bales are nearly impossible to obtain and/or very expensive (\2,500JPY or $25USD). Livestock farming is less common in Japan than in other parts of the world, particularly in comparison to the US or Australia. Thus, the number of square, compact balers is relatively few. However, the greatest physical challenges facing straw bale construction in Japan are moisture and the susceptibility of straw to microbial decay. The author knows of at least five straw bale buildings where serious straw decay has been identified. Similar to conventional building, moisture is the number one physical threat to straw bale buildings in Japan. As a general rule, as moisture increases, the biological and chemical breakdown of building materials concurrently increases. Straw bales are a moisture sensitive material and must be kept dry throughout harvesting, baling, storage, transport, construction, and the entire life of the building.

The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 23 Japan Annual precipitation around Japan’s main population centers ranges from 1100mm to 2300mm. For comparison, the average annual precipitation of Nebraska, the historical birth place of bale building, is 581mm. The Japan inlet stretches from Okinawa to Hokkaido and encompasses various climate zones, from subtropical Okinawa to cold climate Hokkaido. Globally, there are time-tested, successful examples of straw bale buildings in temperate and cold climates, including areas of intense humidity, rainfall, and hurricanes. For example, the oldest non-load-bearing straw bale building still in existence was built in Huntsville, Alabama, USA in 1938 and is still in apparently good condition. Huntsville has a climate similar to Tokyo, with potential hurricanes. Climatic Comparison of Tokyo, Japan and Huntsville, Alabama, USA Annual Average Tokyo, Japan Huntsville, AL, USA Temperature (ºC) 15.9 16.0 Precipitation (mm) 1467 1465 Relative Humidity (%) 63 65

Photographic Exploration of Straw Building in Japan The following is a photographic exploration of some of the straw bale buildings found in Japan. The buildings are divided into four groups. The first group includes buildings consisting of straw bales surrounding a timber structure with a plastered exterior finish applied directly to the bales. The second group includes buildings with plastered interior and exterior finishes applied directly to the bale walls. The third group consists of buildings utilizing rain-screens. Lastly, the fourth group consists of buildings utilizing straw bales as interior elements. Since the use of straw bales in group four is sometimes more decorative than functional, these buildings are not straw bale buildings in a strict sense. Within each group, there are differences between buildings in regards to other construction details.

Buildings Consisting of Straw Bales Surrounding a Timber Structure with a Plastered Exterior Finish Applied Directly to the Bale Walls

Jinya Jinya, a home located in Nantan City, Kyoto-Prefecture, was designed by Goichi Oiwa of Slow Design Research Group and the bale walls were built by Takao Kobayashi, a master plasterer. Construction began in April 2004 and was completed in October 2004. The exterior is finished with earthen plaster, while the interior is Summer and Winter scenery at Jinya finished with earthen plaster on a bamboo lattice or wood.

Furyu Furyu was designed by Goichi Oiwa and built by Ishii Construction Company and now serves as a café and gallery. Takao Kobayashi led construction of the straw bale walls. Furyu consists of straw bales surrounding a conventional timber frame. The exterior of the bale wall is finished with earthen plaster and the interior is finished with wood siding or earthen plaster on a lattice of split bamboo. Construction began in the spring of 2008 and was Unique interior plaster consisting of Bedroom completed in the fall of the same year. straw fibers, clay and seaweed glue

24 The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 Japan

Furyu

Okinamamenoki Okinamamenoki, located in Ajimumachi, Oita Prefecture, is a private residence built by the homeowner. It consists of straw bales surrounding a timber frame with an exterior finish of earthen-lime plaster and drywall on the interior. This home is special for a number of reasons: (One) the cost of materials came to roughly \3,400,000JPY (approximately $34,000USD). All of the lumber used was second grade and of reduced market value in Japan. (Two) a smaller straw bale structure/tower is located within the open span of the larger home. And (three) the interior drywall is left unfinished, but painted with waves of fermented persimmon extract.

Okinamamenoki

Wallah Wallah, a home in Karuizawa, Nagano Prefecture, was designed by Goichi Oiwa and built by Midori Construction Company. Kyle Holzhueter led construction of the straw bale walls and finish plastering. Construction began in May, 2011 and was completed in September 2012.

Interior and exterior process

The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 25 Japan

Interior and exterior finish Monshido Monshido is the new main hall of Zenryoji Buddhist Temple in Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture. Monshido was designed by Goichi Oiwa and built by Miki Construction Company. Kyle Holzhueter led the construction of the straw bale walls and finish plastering. Monshido consists of straw bales surrounding a circular conventional timber frame. The exterior of the straw bale walls are finished with earthen plaster applied directly to the bales. The interior consists of earthen plaster applied to a bamboo lattice. The gap between the bamboo lattice and straw bales is packed with straw bundles. Construction of the straw bale walls began in October 2011 and was completed in March 2012.

Exterior and interior of Monshido Main Hall Buildings with Plastered Interior and Exterior Finishes Applied directly to Straw Bale Walls Atom House The first straw bale building constructed for research purposes in Japan is known as “Atom House”. It is located at Nihon University’s Center for Natural Environmental Sciences in Fujisawa City, Kanagawa Prefecture. Atom House was designed by Mirai Tono, Koji Itonaga, and students of Nihon University’s Architecture and Regional Ecological Design Studio. Construction began in 2002 and was completed in 2006.

Construction (2002) Southeast Elevation Interior Atom House in Fujisawa City, Kanagawa Prefecture

26 The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 Japan The exterior of Atom House’s straw bale walls are finished with approximately 50mm of fermented clay loam mixed with straw (Jp: Arakabe) as a base coat, 10mm of earthen plaster as a second coat, and 5mm of earthen-lime plaster as a finish coat. The interior is finished with 10mm of lime plaster. Atom House’s indoor environment is unconditioned but designed for passive solar gain using a south facing window and rammed earth trombe wall.

Cross Section of Atom House

Straw bales are a moisture sensitive building material. It is often recommended to avoid the use of living/green and flat roofs in conjunction with straw bale walls. Unless meticulously detailed, constructed, and maintained, living roofs are a danger to straw bale walls. Atom House provides an example of a problematic living roof in conjunction with straw bale walls.

Hareakara Hareakara, a studio located in Arita, Wakayama Prefecture, was designed and built by Motoyoshi Murayama of Liveart. Unlike the previous buildings, Hareakara consists of straw bales stacked on edge surrounding a 2x4 frame. Both the interior and exterior are covered with earthen plaster. Construction began in June 2008 and the final exterior finish was completed in May 2009.

Hareakara Square One Mikio and Masami Sakai designed Square One, located in Higashikawa, Hokkaido. Construction of the bale walls and interior finish was led by Stefan Bell and the exterior Tosa Shikkui plaster was applied by Keisuke Noda. Unlike common Shikkui which consists of hydrated lime, seaweed glue and hemp fiber, Tosa Shikkui consists of fermented hydrated lime and straw. Tosa Shikkui is allowed to ferment for three years, which causes the straw fibers to break into thinner fibers and produce a glue-like substance, both of which improve workability. Tosa Shikkui is known for its weather resistance. Construction of Square One began in the spring of 2009 and was completed in the summer of 2010. Square One

The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 27 Japan Buildings with Rain-Screens The term “rain-screen” refers to the use of a drainage plane/air gap between exterior siding and bale wall. Permeable plasters tend to be porous and absorb exterior moisture. In many cases, this moisture is then transferred to interstitial bales through capillary action. In order to prevent liquid water, i.e. rain, from direct contact with a plastered bale wall, rain-screens can be used. The author has found that rain-screens help control interstitial moisture in straw bale walls.

Madeinoie Madeinoie, a studio in Iitate, Fukushima Prefecture, was designed by Yoshiyuki Toyota. Construction of the straw bale wall was led by Kyle Holzhueter and Koji Itonaga of Nihon University. Construction began in November 2009 and was completed in February 2010. Madeinoie consists of straw bales stacked to the inside of a conventional Japanese timber frame. Cellulose insulation was blown in between the posts. The building was designed for passive solar gain, and with no supplemental heating, the average indoor and outdoor temperatures in January, 2011 where 12C and -3C respectively. Madeinoie is located in the nuclear evacuation zone near Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. For this reason, the brown and finish coats of plaster were never applied. The earth used for the base coat was recycled from a 150 year-old farm house. And although Iitate Madeinoie experienced a Shindo 6 on Japan’s seven-point scale for measuring the intensity of earthquakes, and the concrete pavement around the building cracked, there was no cracking in the straw bale wall.

Leyenda Leyenda, an antique store and gallery located in Toyama City, Toyama Prefecture, was designed by Shoko Yoshimoto and built by Hiroaki Yoshimoto of the Toyama Straw Bale House Association. Hiroaki Yoshimoto and Kyle Holzhueter led the construction of the straw bale walls and finish plastering. The bale walls are plastered on both sides with lime plaster. The ventilated rain-screens consist of wood lath, roofing, metal lath, a layer of cement plaster and a layer of lime plaster. Construction began in August 2010 and was completed in September 2011. Leyenda Buildings Utilizing Straw Bales in Interior Finishes

“Cafe BuraBura” - Urakawa Town, “Okagesama Ichiba” Natural Food Hokkaido Store - Kokubunji City, Tokyo

“Cafe Slow” - Kokubunji “Harappa Cafe, Yufuin City, Tokyo Town, Oita As you can see, straw bale building takes many forms in Japan, adapting to the regional climatic, cultural and architectural context. Inspite of challenges, the seed that sprouted in Nebraska over 100 years ago continues to grow today across the ocean in a country very different from its origins.

Kyle works as a builder, consultant, researcher and educator specializing in natural building materials such as straw bale, light straw clay and natural plasters. He has a PhD in Bioresource Sciences from Nihon University where he researched the hygrothermal environment of straw bale walls in Japan and building practices to control moisture. http://holzhueter.blogspot. com, http://japaneseplastering.blogspot.com

28 The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 Education Framing Bale Walls: How to by Andrew Morrison of strawbale.com

There are many different approaches to framing a straw bale house; however, there is one in particular that I have used on the vast majority of my projects over the years. It is a post and beam frame system with roots in conventional framing techniques. Because I came to straw bale construction many years ago as a general contractor practicing conventional construction, I brought some of that detailing over. I should preface this article by saying that there are right ways of framing and wrong ways of framing. The system I describe in this article lands in the “right way” column, but so do many other styles. As long as you are working with a structurally sound and safe system that brings you the best results possible for your style of building, then go for it. One of the first details that often surprises people is the spacing of the posts in the system I use. I hear people talk about wanting to reduce the amount of notching in the bales by spreading their posts out as far as possible. I disagree with this approach and instead keep my posts relatively close together: no more than 6’ apart. One reason for this is that when the bales are stacked in between posts that are set far apart, there is no point of attachment for the bales other than the top and bottom of the wall. As such, the wall becomes weak as it is stacked higher. When posts are set closer together, the notches at each location provide a point of connection to the frame and make the wall much stronger both during construction and for the life of the structure. One way I keep the posts close together is by incorporating them into the window and door frames. By using 4x4 posts as the king studs I end up with wider nailing surfaces on either side of the opening. This allows me to attach the finish trim, plaster channel and/or plaster lath, and welded wire mesh around every opening with positive attachment to the frame. These king studs serve two purposes by providing the nailing surface and by acting as

The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 29 Education part of the overall structural frame. doors and partition walls is that those Because windows and doors are locations are typically specific and not placed in many locations around the something that I want to start moving home, and because I otherwise limit around at this stage of the process. my post spacing to no more than 6’, In addition, you may find that a post I can minimize the wall beam size as lands on or very near a window/ a result. This minimal wall beam is door frame. In this case, you can important because the bigger the beam, often eliminate the post and simply the more expensive it will be. Further, use the wall opening frame as your larger beams are made from larger structural element. This saves you trees (unless an engineered beam is some additional lumber and time in used) and I want to reduce the size of both the framing and baling phase. Be the trees I am using in my projects for careful not to remove posts that are environmental reasons. too far from the wall opening frame Okay, let’s take a look at how the as this may create a situation in which system works and why it can save time the beam becomes “over-spanned” and money in your building process. and undermines the engineering of the IÕll simply lay out the process so you structure. can see, step-by-step, how it comes With the layout complete, separate together. the two plates and place them on the Use 8d nails to tack (just barely floor system (slab, framed floor, etc). nail) a 2x4 top plate to your bottom Insert your window frames and posts plate (in this case, a 4x4 which will be per the layout and attach them to the part of your toe-up system). Complete plates. Use at least two 16d nails to the framing layout on the two plates attach through the top plate into the just as you would in conventional posts and frames and use four 8d nails construction. For those of you not to toe-nail the frames to the bottom familiar with this process, start with plate. Do not attach any wood in the wall openings (window and door location of the partition walls because locations) and partition walls. Mark the intersecting walls will not actually the king stud of the wall opening with make it all the way through to the the letter K and the trimmer studs exterior frame. The only place this is with the letter T (see diagram below not true is when the partition wall is for window framing details). Use the used to create a water isolation wall letter P to mark any partition walls against which the bales will stop. You that intersect the main frame. You can learn more about water isolation need only mark the P on the top plate walls on our website. as there will not be a framing member Now stand the wall in one long attached here, only a notch cut in the section, or several sections depending top beam. I’ll discuss this in more on the wall length. Be careful not to detail below. lift too much at once as that can be Next, mark a line across both plates dangerous. Lift only as much as you at one edge of the location of all the and your helpers can do safely. After posts and strike either a dash or an X all, standing one long wall can be on the side of the line to represent the faster than standing two shorter walls, post location. (Note: I use 4x4 posts throughout but not if you end up in the hospital along the my structures to save time and money. A major way. reason is that anything bigger gets into the Building the walls on the ground speeds plane of the strings, which either need to be cut up the process tremendously, and here’s why. and retied or pulled out of the way. A 4x4 post One of the big problems with traditional post will notch into the bale without any adjustment and beam construction is that each post has to to the strings, thus saving labor.) For studs that be plumbed in two directions and then braced are truncated by windows or doors, mark the in that position. Once the posts are braced, the plates with the letter C for cripple. I know this beams are laid into position, often nudging is not the most PC labeling system, but it is the the posts out of plumb. After some fine-tuning industry standard. of each post, the frame is up and braced; The reason I start with the windows, however, no windows or doors are installed.

30 The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 Education Those would have to be framed in to a standing wall, which is much harder and slower to accomplish than framing them on the ground. With the system I use, the wall is built completely on the ground and raised as a single unit. Once it is lifted into position, the bottom plate is moved onto a chalk line snapped on the floor system and anchored into place. If anchor bolts are part of the equation, i.e. you are framing on a slab, then those locations can be pre determined, drilled, and fully prepared ahead of time so that the wall can literally be raised, lifted and then dropped onto the bolts. If framing over a wood deck, simply attach the bottom plate to the frame (not just into the plywood decking) with long structural screws, like those used in SIPs construction [Trufast or Timberlok screws]. This is where things get even better: plumbing the wall. Because the layout was marked in exactly the same location on both plates, plumbing the end of the wall will translate down the entire length of that section. In other words, by securing the corner of the wall in a plumb location, the entire wall section is plumbed in one step. This is much faster than plumbing each post. Continue around the structure plumbing each corner and bracing the wall sections in position with long diagonal braces (typically 2x4s) attached to the exterior of the frame. For longer walls, raised in multiple sections, be sure to brace each section in line with the adjoining section so that any changes made to one will translate to the other. I break my walls so that the junction is split evenly over a post location. This allows me to stand one section with a post in place, and then attach the adjoining section directly to the post so as to make the wall sections perform as one. With all of the walls in position and braced, add steel strapping plates to connect each post to the bottom plate. I use plates on both sides of the posts to ensure a solid connection as relying on toenails alone isn’t strong enough. The final step of the frame assembly is to lay the beams on top of the 2x4 top plates and nail them together (nail from the 2x4 into the beam). Once the beams are in place, you can straighten the walls as necessary. Because the corners are already plumbed, straitening the walls will transfer that plumb line down the wall and keep the frame straight. Here’s a quick tip: if you buy beams that are really straight to begin with and you don’t leave them around the site for long before they are installed, you won’t have much work to do in order to get the walls straight. Install the partition walls and make sure that everything is tied together by clearing out a section of the beam (basically creating a dado) equal to the depth of the 2x interior top plate as shown in the diagram. Lay your partition wall top plates into the dados and face nail down through the intersecting plate to tie the two walls together permanently. This adds a level of “out of plane” strength to the bale walls and also transfers shear strength from the partition walls to the bale walls. I leave the last stud, closest to the bale wall, off of my partition walls when completing my initial framing. This allows me to access the bale wall with ease during the baling phase so that I can place, plumb, and clean up the bales without getting trapped behind a stud. Once the bales are fully prepared, I attach the last stud assembly of each partition wall to the bale wall by nailing it at the toe up and top plate. The image below shows a mock up partition wall with a minimum 1/2” plywood backing, covered with roofing felt.This provides a vapor seal at the wall intersection and a nailing surface for both the field mesh and plaster lath and creates a high quality transition between the partition wall and the bale wall while firmly connecting the partition wall to the bales without having to drive a single dowel into the bales. The process of baling is either improved or impeded by the framing system into which the bales are applied. Take the time to properly frame your structure and you will save time and money throughout the rest of the project. After all, having adequate nailing for mesh, plaster lath, and finishes is more than just desirable, it is imperative. Whenever one aspect of the build has a positive effect on one or several following details, the process is improved. As I mentioned at the start of this article, this is one way to frame, not the only way. That said, I believe in this system and have used it on many, many projects with great success. I find that it is fast and effective and provides for a strong wall system and I know it will do the same for you.

Andrew has a passion for straw bale construction that is matched only by his desire to teach his knowledge to others. With nearly 20 years of building and contracting experience, he has now moved his practice entirely to consulting and teaching. He shares his knowledge with thousands of people via his DVD series, blog, and hands on workshops. www.StrawBale.com.

The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 31 Materials The growth of hemp lime as a natural building method by Tom Woolley When Rachel Bevan and I did the research that led to the publication of Hemp Lime Construction in 2006-7 (IHS BRE Press ISBN 978-1-84806-033-3) we had a fairly good idea of the location of every building using hempcrete in the UK and Ireland. Seven years or so later it is impossible to keep track of the use of this remarkable composite building material as it has become commonplace in the UK. This is good news because it is evidence of the widespread acceptance of this excellent sustainable way of building. However once such an innovative form of construction becomes so widely used there is also a risk of careless and poorly supervised construction, detailing and specification if it is used by people who expect it to behave like ‘conventional’ materials. Fortunately a new book : The Hempcrete Book: Designing and building with hemp lime will soon be available . By Alex Sparrow and Will Stanwix it will be published by Green Books (ISBN: 978 0 85784 120 9 ) and will set Hemp lime wall immediately after shuttering has been removed out guidance for best practice in building construction for hemp lime Hemp Lime construction is a method for creating a natural “concrete” which provides a solid wall system either cast around or within a timber frame structure. The composite uses small pieces of hemp shiv or hurd, which is the chopped up woody core of the plant and then mixed with water and a special lime binder mix. It is incredibly strong almost as soon as it is cast into formwork or sprayed onto permanent shuttering. The formwork can be removed almost straight away or left on for 12 hours before casting the next lift. It then takes a couple of weeks to dry out and longer to gain its full strength. Sceptics often ask, “why use hemp, and why not use wood chips or straw?” people often say (there is an inbuilt prejudice because of its relationship to Marijuana). The best way to convince such people is for a practical demonstration and it is possible to see straight away the strength of the composite. Hemp is much tougher and can cope with moisture better than other cellulose materials. The resulting composite provides a solid wall with superb air tightness capabilities and very good insulation. Its density of 300-400 kg/m3 is strong but light and contains air pockets in the tubular hemp plant structure giving a “u”value of about 0.2 for a 300mm thick wall. (Lambda 0.06/mK). In practice the thermal performance of hemp lime, or hempcrete as it is often called, is enhanced by its thermal mass and thus the actual performance of a building is often much better than predicted by the abstract thermal resistance figures. Hemp Lime also has the benefit of being full breathable and hygroscopic so that humidity Prefabricated Hemp Lime Wall is controlled. Because of this it has been adopted by major commercial food and wine storage companies* to insulate storage warehouses as the walls provide a stable temperature and indoor climate without the need for heating, cooling or air conditioning. Hemp lime insulating walls have also been used by the British Musuem for storing special artifacts. Hundreds of social housing schemes and one-off private houses have been built using hemp lime and it has also been used in major public and educational buildings, 5 or 6 storeys high. Hemp lime is versatile so it can be used as an infill in multi-storey construction, in floors and roofs, as a renovating or insulating plaster and as an external render for straw bale buildings and other eco forms of construction.

32 The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 Materials Supply of materials has not been fully sorted out yet. Hemp shiv or hurd is readily available but not always in the right place so it has to be transported from processing factories where the hemp fibre is stripped off the plant. The hemp fibre is a valuable crop with a thousand uses, so the shiv used for building is almost just a by-product. Making or sourcing the lime binder is also tricky. There are a range of proprietary products available such as Tradical, Batichanvre and recently Ciment Prompt [French]. These are not always available from local suppliers of building materials. It is possible to mix up your own binder but it is essential to use the right materials with careful quality control. The binder is largely lime based, mainly hydraulic lime but some hydrated lime and or cement is also added. There have Completed apartment building in Letchworth, England been a few “cowboys” who have been supplying hemp and built with hempcrete lime materials that are not fit for purpose and this has led to a few building failures. Their main mistake has been to use cheap hydrated lime, often too much water and hemp fibre as well as shiv. One company even says it is more ecological to use the whole of the hemp plant even though this invariably leads to a soggy mess. We are working hard to establish proper standards. Sadly the internet gives people partial information about how to build with hemp lime and makes them into overnight experts. In some ways hempcrete is easy to use and is even tolerant of misuse, within limits, but this means that there are many dangers and possible pitfalls. On the other hand, once you become aware of its advantages it is hard to find another way of building walls, (and possibly floors and roofs), that can meet Social Housing Scheme in Northern Ireland built with so many of today’s demands of sustainable, healthy and energy hempcrete (Photo Oaklee Housing Association) efficient construction so successfully. As pressure builds to meet

Hempcrete wall following removal of shuttering showing timber frame

The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 33 Materials ever more strenuous energy efficiency targets, many weird and Tom Woolley was Professor of Architecture at Queens wonderful building techniques and materials have appeared in University Belfast from 1991 to 2007 and now works for the market. While some mainstream architects and clients have Rachel Bevan Architects (wwww.bevanarchitects.com). He embraced hemp lime quite quickly the construction industry is created the first strawbale building, in Crossgar County still largely wedded to synthetic petrochemical based methods Down 1997, to receive full planning and building regulations of construction that contain many risks both to the health of approval in the UK and has gone on to be one of the pioneers building occupants and the planet. Valuable and non-renewable of hemp lime construction. He has written a chapter about fossil fuel resources produce significant CO2 emissions even hemp construction of the new edition of The Art of Natural though ironically they are being used to reduce such emissions! Building (Chelsea Green) to be published later this year. He Recent research shows that many so-called low or zero energy will be running a workshop on hemp lime construction at the buildings consume more energy in producing the materials and Endeavour Centre** in Ontario November 1 and 2, 2014 and construction (embodied energy) than is saved in the lifetime of lecturing at Ryerson University in Toronto on October 30th the building. These synthetic quick fix approaches to building 2014. also present serious fire hazards, emit toxic chemicals. Leading to poor indoor air quality and pollute the planet when disposed Tom is part of a group of architects and builders that are of in landfill. Despite this the devotees of “Passiv Hause” in the establishing a hemp lime association in the UK. He is also on UK tend to use synthetic materials, though there are a handful the European board of Natureplus, a certification system for of Passiv Haus projects in Ireland that have been built with ecological materials (www.natureplus.org). An example of hemp. a hemp lime building that can be rented as a holiday cottage Hempcrete is not only a low embodied energy material, can be found on http://www.irishcottagesdown.com/cottages/ it locks up CO2 in the building fabric. While land is required downpatrick/hempcottage.htm. There are links to some to grow it, hemp is also a valuable food crop and is used as technical details and a video showing the construction process. an intercrop between wheat and other cereals. Those who are fixated on the ‘techy’ quick fix synthetic solutions, disparage ** Contact Chris Magwood for details hempcrete as being too slow to construct and dry out and not http://www.chrismagwood.ca/ giving good enough thermal performance. However even [email protected] the most deeply prejudiced, once they actually experience hempcrete, are soon won over. Despite the obstacles to using hempcrete, its rise has been rapid as it almost sells itself as a solution to producing environmentally friendly buildings. Hemp lime is widely used in France and recent workshops in Holland, Denmark, Sweden, Poland etc. have led to projects in many of these countries. In many ways hempcrete is a touchstone to the adoption of a sustainable and environmentally responsible approach to building and renovation because it provides a key to solving so many problems that other materials and buildings systems cannot cope with. As hemp can be grown in so many parts of the world, providing it is not too arid, it can be a solution to insulating buildings in poorer developing regions as well as the gas guzzling western countries. Hemp provides food, oil, clothing, paper and many other products as well as building insulation and weather protection. Hempcrete in conjunction with timber, as long as it is used carefully, should last much longer than many of the petrochemical based greenwash materials being used today. Designing and building with hempcrete is a real demonstration of a total commitment to ‘saving the planet” and protecting the health and wellbeing of building occupants. It’s an easy commitment to make because hempcrete is affordable, great fun to build with and ticks all the boxes that envirocrats can come up with.

*Companies like The Wine Warehouse, Marks and Spencers etc.

34 The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 Community

Community Rebuilds - Path to Zero Waste by Stuart Jeffrey Hart Courtesy of Stuart Jeffrey Hart

Community Rebuilds is a nonprofit organization that builds straw bale homes for low-income families in Moab, Utah. The homes are built by volunteers who exchange their time for an education in natural building and sustainability. Our student intern volunteers commit to the entire 4 month build, participating in the foundation pour all the way to ‘key in the door.’ Our program is committed to replacing dilapidated, energy wasteful trailers, for highly efficient homes that use a fraction of the energy to heat and cool. Community Rebuilds was been awarded this year’s “Innovative Path to Zero Waste Award” by the Utah Recycling Alliance. Here is how we achieved it. To reduce the waste we produce on the build site, we follow the ‘Reduce, Re-use, Recycle’ principle. Reduce- Our design choices help us reduce the amount of building materials that we use. When ordering roofing metal for example, we use Google Sketch-up, a computer-modeling program, to lay out the exact cuts needed. It shows us where the off-cut from one piece can be used elsewhere. This allows us to order the precise lengths of metal needed, meaning less materials are ordered and we produce the minimum waste possible. All lumber is ordered at lengths specific to the building needs. We order lumber lengths as close to the actual length needed to reduce the amount of material left. The conventional approach is to order only 16 ft lengths, then cut everything from those. The remaining pieces are often too short to be used and are discarded as waste. A major design choice is for our houses to incorporate natural Pallet Warriors materials that are compostable. We choose to build the walls of our Courtesy of Douglas Nichols homes with straw bales, an agricultural industry waste product that would

The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 35 Community otherwise be burned. Extra bales and waste straw are composted. The homes we build have earthen floors and the walls and ceilings are plastered with earthen plaster. We use a combination of locally sourced sand, clay and straw for all of these applications. Plaster mix that is dropped during plastering or left over at the end is either re-hydrated and used again, or simply spread in the garden to become the soil. Reuse - We incorporate used and re- purposed building materials into our homes to reduce the cost of the homes and to reduce the amount of new building materials required. We construct non-load bearing interior walls with pallet wood salvaged from the local waste stream and earthen plasters. In addition, we reuse functional lumber, tiles, doors, windows, interior lighting and plumbing fixtures, sinks and toilets. During construction we reuse our waste as much as possible dump approximately 30 cubic yards of waste during a similar and we try to incorporate other people’s waste material when sized build. To accomplish our low waste goals, we begin possible. When sheeting the internal walls of our homes, we each new home build by creating pallet-recycling bins on our use drywall off-cuts from other build sites. Conventional construction sites. Metal, plastic, cardboard and wood scraps construction crews will not use drywall scraps. Scraps will are stored in them. When we need a small piece of lathe to usually be the end of a 12’ x 4’ drywall sheet. We flip all the patch a crack, some wood for blocking or cardboard to protect 4’ pieces horizontally and use them to span our 2’ on-centre our floor a quick check of the recycling bins can save cutting framing. In our homes we piece together a total of 960 sq ft of a new piece. Once the build is over anything that hasn’t been ‘waste’ drywall. We mesh tape the extra seams and clay slip the used is recycled. At the end of our previous build we recycled gaps, and then our earthen plaster hides all. By collecting the one cubic yard of scrap metal and one cubic yard of cardboard. salvageable scraps and using them in our homes we reduce the Our goal is to create a quality affordable product with amount of waste destined for the landfill and save purchasing minimal waste and environmental impact. In doing so, new materials. we educate the next generation of builders how to move When we are building with other conventional materials towards zero waste. Our students learn how the current excess material and remnants are incorporated in the home as building methods are wasteful and inefficient and how, using much possible. We use rigid foam insulation sheets to insulate just a small amount of planning, we can change the home our foundation and underneath the floor. Scrap from this construction paradigm for the better. We are building homes process is saved and inserted into the roof cavity before we in a smarter, more sustainable way. Our homes’ energy blow in cellulose. Some burnable wood scraps are collected performance, thoughtful construction methods and quality together and used by the volunteers in their wood burning stand as an example for our volunteers, the community and the cob oven and communal fire pit. The rest is donated to a local construction industry as a whole. family who use it to heat their house throughout the winter. We donated four cubic yards of burnable wood scraps from our most recent build. Jeffrey was an apprentice and natural building instructor with We choose to use as little wood that contains glues as Community Rebuilds from 2012 – 2013. He is now heading possible. This means that more of the wood scraps are home to his native England to build small, affordable, straw burnable. It also reduces the amount of potentially harmful bale homes using the Community Rebuilds volunteer/educate chemicals in our homes. To replace OSB sheeting on the roof, model. Jeffrey can be found at www.jeffreythenaturalbuilder. we use rough sawn 1x10 wood for the same price. We have com. replaced LVL beams with rough sawn 4x12’s. Both of these come from the Colorado Rockies where pine beetles have Community Rebuilds mission is to build energy-efficient devastated huge areas of pine trees leaving them standing dead. housing, provide education on sustainability and improve the Recycle- We challenge ourselves to limiting our waste housing conditions of the workforce through an affordable production to one domestic garbage bin (0.5 cubic yards) program. They can be found at www.communityrebuilds.org. weekly. Our waste consists mainly of non-recyclable packaging and cumulates to an average of 8 cubic yards per build. By comparison, we estimate that local private contractors will

36 The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 Book Reviews Rocket Mass Heaters Third Edition Reviewed by Jeff Ruppert

For the technical geeks out there the section formatting is cleaner and more Rocket Stove instills enough inspiration spacious, probably contributing to the to make us want to build a structure just increase in pages from 100 to 121. to house one of these things. There are There are nice spaces next to diagrams Facebook groups and websites devoted for the note-takers out there. to the Rocket Stove by enthusiasts As one would expect, the Research giving them nearly cult status. The Needed and Experiments and Case variations of Rocket Stoves are truly Studies sections have been updated. The amazing. Case Studies section alone is enough to For those of us who can’t get enough literally fuel ones imagination with great of a good thing Cob Cottage Company color images of new ideas and useful has published a Third Edition of Rocket tips. Mass Heaters. While the name remains As with the first two editions, the same as the second edition, there are you will not be disappointed. It is plenty of new nuggets here, and more our opinion that all new homes in color pictures. heating climates should incorporate The phrase “mass heater” is used as either a traditional masonry heater or the title of the last two editions because rocket mass heater (where allowed the most useful version of rocket stoves by regulation and with a supply of are buried in a shed-load of thermal wood available) in place of the typical mass in the form of cob, masonry, or wood stove. They reduce both the whatever may be lying around the jobsite with high mass consumption of wood and emissions to the point where characteristics. Without large amounts of mass to capture and your impact to the surrounding area is greatly reduced in store the heat generated by one of these little monsters you end comparison. up with something like a regular wood stove where the heat is quickly dissipated into the room and out the flue. The Rocket Mass Heater, Third Edition (ISBN-13: 879- The content of this new book is mostly the same as the 0-9663738-4-4, ISBN-10: 0-9663738-4-7) is available for previous version, but it is easy to see where years of experience $20 USD (softcover) directly from Cob Cottage Company on are refining the thought process when planning a rocket mass their website at www.rocketstoves.com or by mail at Box 942 heater. While many of the diagrams are from the original Coquille, OR 97423. (541) 396-1825. The PDF version is publication, the layout of information is better. Text and also available on their website for $18.

Topics for Your Article Submissions While we are not creating a focus in each issue until we once again have a backlog of common articles, we are focusing on a few features in upcoming issues. Here are some of the topics:

• Water Conservation and Management – Catchwater, greywater, water storage, composting toilets and waste management.

• Putting a Project Together – How to work with code officials, architects, engineers, contractors, lenders, insurance companies, etc.

• Commercial, Industrial and Institutional Buildings – Exemplary structures and projects that go way beyond what today’s “green-building” industry expects.

• Details, Details, Details! – We’ll always be collecting these and highlighting them as we go. Please send yours in! If you want your article to be included in any of these themes, please let us know when you send them in.

The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 37 Upcoming issues will include articles How Can You Help on: TLS? • Pre-Fabricated Bale Panels • Hemp Lime, or Hempcrete Publishing a magazine like TLS usually • Large Buildings with Bale Walls requires a little more income than we • Plastering Techniques and Materials receive through subscriptions. • Regional Associations • Details (Send yours in today!) The best way for you to support us is to make a donation or advertise with us. • And more… Our website is growing daily and is a great place to gain exposure with your Please tell us what you want to see and send us your target audience. articles. If you are a professional organization To make sure your work is shared among the best of please visit our website and look at natural building, send us your articles. our Media Guide. It’s a great way to increase business and keep TLS going.

TLS Human Resource List List your Stuff in the TLS Classifieds The Human Resource List, or HRL, is a resource for professionals who want to share their products or services Classifieds in the print publication are with the TLS audience. still free, but you must also list your goods or services on our website. In the past TLS printed an annual Human Resource Issue. Any listing added prior to our deadline To save printing and overhead costs we are keeping the date for publication will be included HRL web-based for the most part. in the print version of the next issue. Thousands of visitors are viewing TLS However, during our start-up period, while the number of website pages each month, which listings is relatively few, we will include those listing in the makes the online Classifieds the most printed issues, free of charge. valuable tool for reaching your target.

When you enter a listing you are given the option to make For your listing to be included in it a “Featured Listing.” This means it will be at the top of the print version of each issue we every search and listing of services on our site, rotated with will need a compact version with a other Featured Listings. In addition to being featured on our maximum of 40 words. The online website, Featured Listings will also be printed in each issue limit for your classified listing is 750 of TLS as an incentive to get you to use the service. words and six images.

A basic listing is $15/year per category with a maximum of 2 Prices images. A Featured Listing is an additional $50/year to be One month $ 9.99 at the top of searches. Two Months $17.99 Three Months $26.99 These costs, when spread out over one year, are very reasonable considering that thousands of people visit our Deadlines site who are looking for resources to use on their next April Issue March 1 project. July Issue June 1 October Issue September 1 The best thing is, you are supporting your favorite natural January Issue December 1 building journal!

38 The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 Classifieds

Plaster Pump and Power Trowel Apparatus Straw Bale House for Sale in Southern for Sale Colorado $750 $239,000 Location: Guelph, Ontario, Canada 1824 Sq. Ft., 5.63 acres, open floor plan, Visit http://harvesthomes.ca tile floors, infloor heat throughout, custom Thompson Plaster Pump – pumps mortar & cement- kitchen, attached heated oversized 2-car lime plaster over long distances. Upgrades include: garage with workshop, great well, master Honda motor complete with external throttle control bedroom, bath & huge walk-in closet, & clutch, custom-fabricated “power trowel” to apply upstairs bedroom 15x30 with full bath, material directly to wall (no messy spraying), several large living room with stove, 1/2 bath in lengths of 2” hose with quick connects; many spare hall, large mud/laundry area off garage, parts. Thompson piston type pumps were built to last. covered front porch, breathtaking views of We’ve invested $3500+ in upgrades &components. the Sangre de Christo and Wet Mountains, Stored idle for 5 years, so will likely need some work year-round access, pictures at MLS#: to make serviceable. Sold as is. $750 OBO 2509189. 141 Navaro Road, Westcliffe, Colorado 81252 Call (417) 224-5369 2 Power Trowels – as described in TLS issue #42. Built by the author.

To read the entire listing and view product photos, visit the TLS website.

The Last Straw • No. 63 Spring 2014 39 The Last Straw Journal PO Box 1809 Paonia CO 81428 (970) 704-5828 [email protected]

Upcoming Natural Building Events 04/20 The Stack Effect: Natural Cooling, Heating & Ventilation Waitsfield, VT 04/28 Natural Building School in Asheville Asheville, NC 05/04 Natural Building Certificate Course Waitsfield, VT 05/04 7-Day Earthen Building Immersion Snow Camp, NC 05/17 9-Day Permitted Natural Home Snow Camp, NC 05/17 Earth Plaster, Lime Plaster, Earthen Floor, Natural Clay Paint Workshop Kingston, NM 05/23 14th Annual Village Building Convergence Portland, OR 05/24 Greenhouse Design Waitsfield, VT 05/24 Regenerative Solutions for Community and Home Scale Living Rancho Mastatal, Costa Rica 06/12 10-day Women’s Natural Building Intensive Jacksonville, OR 06/15 Strawbale Build/Design Waitsfield, VT 06/21 Earth Plaster, Lime Plaster, Earthen Floor, Natural Clay Paint Workshop Kingston, NM 07/19 Strawbale and Earth Plaster Workshop Kingston, NM 07/26 Natural Building Extravaganza Asheville, NC 08/16 Solar Design Waitsfield, VT 09/13 Straw Bale Building Workshop Salida, CO 11/08 Design-Build Workshop Ashanti, Ghana, Kumasi 11/22 7-Day Straw Bale Design & Construction Workshop Geraldine, New Zealand 11/29 EcoXpo Sydney 2014 Surry Hills, New South Wales Please visit our website for a full listing and description of these events.

Human Resources TransMineral USA Dan Dorsey Provider of Saint-Astier Natural Hydraulic Limes, Lime Designed and drawn plans for 85+ straw bale projects, Mortars, Lime Putty and Lime Paints know the SB codes, built first permitted SB single www.limes.us family residence in Pima County, AZ, in 1991. Consult (707) 769-0661 and Design on Straw Bale and other natural building projects, do workshops, wall raisings. SolarWise www.sonoranpermaculture.org/teaching-team- For the last decade, Solarwise has specialized in members/dan-dorsey energy and resource efficient straw bale design and (520) 624-8030 construction. We combine a lifetime of conventional construction knowledge with the specific skills needed MG Architects for effective straw bale construction. We design and Full architectural design services including: conceptual build beautiful and healthy homes with exceptional design, construction and permit documents, and attention to detail, quality and craftsmanship. Our construction phase administration. Can assist owner/ projects incorporate passive solar and site appropriate builder with getting approval for construction from local design, local/natural/green/recycled materials, non-toxic building inspector/department. finishes and renewable energy systems to create an www.mgarchitects.net attractive and nourishing home that is both socially and (315) 423-3707 environmentally responsible. (970) 376-3495 or (719) 539-9160