OVAL STRAWBALE HOUSE
Erin, Ontario
The above plan is the ground floor of a 2 storey, 2000 SF, OVAL STRAWBALE HOUSE that is starting construction April 2009! We have been so inspired by the gentleness and awareness of our client who is studying Reiki & Permaculture. The curved shape grew out of our many design conversations together and also creates an extremely high vibrational energy with this simple plan shape. Using my special Biogeometry BG3 pendulum, I am able to test many levels of more detailed design to continuously enhance & balance the quality of energy in each room. This building will be entirely non-toxic with 95% all natural, building materials. A combination timber post interior with balloon wood frame strawbale wall is our main construction system.
Strawbale walls have a unique vapour permeability that allows minute water vapours to pass through the unique porous crystalline structure of the plaster skin and can have anywhere from .10 to .50 ACH (air exchanges per hour) (with no mechanical assistance/technology). Strawbale walls don't actually 'breathe' which is a common myth, rather they "respire" which favourably impacts on the indoor humidity and which in turn provides comfort by adding/removing moisture in the winter/summer as needed.
This creates an extremely healthy living space and air environment that surpasses, in my opinion, any standard, stick frame home. Also, a typical brick/wood stud 2x4 wall usually has less than an R20 insulation whereas strawbale walls have a continuous monolithic insulation of a R30 to R40 value. And, the thick plaster on the inside of straw bale walls acts as a thermal mass and has been shown to play a significant role in stabilizing indoor temperatures. A strawbale house is simply a smarter house!
All finishes will be natural with '0' VOC's (volatile organic compounds). We are looking at reclaimed timber flooring, papercrete countertops, milk paint stains as well as milling wood from directly from the site.
As the site has a great supply of wood and our client would like to use some of the maple, cherry, ash and ceder wood in his house. We visited the site together a few weeks ago and talked with the trees to let them know they will be needed in the house. This was a tremendous experience for both of us that I wrote a lot about in my blog.
The house will also have radiant heating in the floors, a tankless water heater, is self-sufficient with off-grid wind and solar power.
Also, our contractor Ben Polley of Harvest Homes is a leader in the field of natural strawbale construction. His depth and breadth of experience is absolutely wonderful to work with. We highly recommend him for any projects. He works in the Guelph/Kitchener-Waterloo, Grey-Bruce, and Orillia-Muskoka area. From these three locations, they service projects north to Lions Head and Huntsville, east to Highway 400 and most areas south-west within a one to two hour distance from Guelph. In my opinion, there are very few Contractors as highly qualified as Ben is. Contact me if you want names of green, strawbale contractors in other areas of Ontario as well.
This is what Ben has to say about working together on this project;
Stay tuned for the next series of newsletters where we will be writing about the various stages of what the steps are and what to look out for when creating your dream, off-grid, natural & sustainable home.