On the coast of British Columbia, Ryan Leech and Krysta Powers are building their two-story post-and-beam family home using light straw/clay for insulation. They are hoping to inspire change in the construction community, to build as ecologically ethically as they can. They have used as much recycled and reclaimed material as possible.
The owners have done much of the work and have “work party days” when more labor is required––like for packing the straw-clay into the wall. They say, “It’s very laborious in terms of the number of arms and bodies that you need to do this.” Once the straw is separated and in the mixer, clay is shoveled into a container and mixed with water to the right consistency. The mixture is then sifted and poured into the mixer with the straw. The team then separates the mixture into buckets and carry the buckets to where they are packing the material. “It’s a lengthy process but honestly, you get into a flow, it’s pretty straightforward. This is not new technology, it’s just a modern take on old technology.”
The straw-clay works well with the truss wall construction style because it packs down well, is very dense, provides difficult ingress for rodents, and is highly fire resistant. Bamboo is also used as a rebar throughout the home. The walls take about two months to dry, which is one of the downsides of building with straw-clay, given coastal B.C.’s relatively short dry season.
While almost all materials were reclaimed or repurposed, some things had to be bought new, such as fasteners and the occasional sheet of plywood, as well as the spray foam roof insulation (to prevent air gaps). “The goal is to use recycled materials where we can, buy materials where we have to, but otherwise, try to do this as ecologically ethically as we can.”
You can read the original article at www.coastreporter.net