Building Your Straw Bale Home (Landlinks Press)

Foreword......Page 8
Contents......Page 10
Preface......Page 14
Introduction......Page 16
The costs of straw bale houses......Page 17
The three construction methods for straw bale houses......Page 19
City officials and private inspectors......Page 22
The basic criteria for authorities......Page 23
On site inspections......Page 26
Considerations when choosing a building site......Page 28
Excavation of a building site......Page 31
Marking the ground to guide the excavator......Page 34
Marking the site for construction......Page 35
The purpose of hurdles during construction......Page 38
Timber versus concrete floors......Page 40
Soil reports......Page 41
Soil classifications......Page 42
Basic configuration of a timber floor......Page 43
Sole plates: materials and installation......Page 46
Stumps: materials and installation......Page 48
Installation of stumps......Page 49
Installation of the sub-floor bracing......Page 52
Installation of bearers......Page 53
Joining bearers......Page 57
Installation of floor joists......Page 59
Installing floor joists......Page 60
Flooring......Page 62
Insulation of timber floors for 5-star energy rating......Page 65
Concrete slab floor......Page 66
Fire and straw bale buildings......Page 70
Straw bale construction: the basics......Page 71
Testing bales for structural capacity......Page 72
Can any bales of straw be used to build a house?......Page 74
Bottom boxing......Page 75
Wall heights......Page 78
Top bale boxing......Page 81
Compression of straw bale walls......Page 82
Cutting a notching-out of straw bales......Page 87
Cutting special length bales......Page 89
Filling gaps and holes in the finished straw bale wall......Page 91
Installation of structural posts and beams for infill construction......Page 92
Bracing of infill walls......Page 95
Fixing to rendered straw bale walls......Page 97
Fixing points for pictures......Page 99
Supporting the roof and ceiling over windows and doors......Page 100
Window and door bucks......Page 101
Configuration of window and door bucks......Page 105
Simple window bucks......Page 107
Fixing the window and door bucks to the infill frame......Page 113
Large window openings......Page 114
Solid timber bucks supporting bales over an opening......Page 118
Render over deep posts......Page 120
Window openings with bales below and a lintel above......Page 122
Components of a timber framed wall......Page 123
The process of constructing walls......Page 124
Assembling a timber framed wall......Page 133
Fixing completed walls in the upright position......Page 138
Wall lining options for timber framed walls......Page 141
Connection of timber framed walls to straw bale walls......Page 143
Final preparation of walls prior to lining......Page 145
7 Ceiling frame construction......Page 146
The process of installing ceiling joists......Page 147
Installation of hanging beams......Page 149
Stick framing for a barn style ceiling......Page 152
Roof shapes......Page 154
The direction of forces applied by the roof load......Page 156
Roof construction......Page 158
Stick framed roofs......Page 159
Non-coupled roof......Page 161
Coupled roof......Page 163
Installation of collar ties......Page 178
Roof trusses......Page 180
Ceiling insulation......Page 182
Roof insulation......Page 183
Noise from rain......Page 184
Roof condensation......Page 185
Fascia board and tilt battens......Page 187
Roof cladding......Page 189
Preparation of windows and doors prior to rendering......Page 192
Protection of windows from render scratches......Page 193
Windows and condensation......Page 194
Control of liquid water on or about the windows......Page 195
Earthen render......Page 203
What we are looking for in a good earthen render......Page 204
The use of your soil for an earthen render......Page 205
Another approach to producing consistent earthen render......Page 207
Mixing of earthen renders......Page 208
Chicken wire on straw bale houses......Page 209
Earthen rendered walls that were growing......Page 210
Mixing of cob......Page 211
Installation of earthen render......Page 212
Cement render......Page 217
The longevity of the building......Page 219
Inserting electrical cables into a straw bale wall......Page 221
The installation of power outlets......Page 222
Render and power outlets......Page 223
Electrical outlets in rendered timber framed walls......Page 225
Wiring to the meter box or switchboard......Page 228
The primary enemy is moisture......Page 229
Condensation moisture and straw bale walls......Page 230
Fire is a major concern during construction......Page 232
Installation of toilet cisterns......Page 233
Showers and baths against straw bale walls......Page 234
Installation of a preformed shower base......Page 235
Silicone: uses, limitations and installation......Page 236
Pre-hung door jambs......Page 238
Standard door jambs......Page 239
Terminology to be used when purchasing materials......Page 252
Second-hand timber......Page 253
Purchase of recycled windows and doors......Page 255
The mice that didn’t know......Page 259
17 How to build your own staircase......Page 261
Make allowances for stair installation at the frame stage......Page 262
The theory behind the construction of straight stairs......Page 263
The use of brackets or mounting blocks to support the treads......Page 264
Building a staircase......Page 265
18 Conclusion......Page 267
Appendix: Metric/imperial conversion......Page 268
Glossary......Page 270
Anvill......Page 274
Index......Page 276